“The pieces I chose were based on one thing only — a gasp of delight. Isn’t that the only way to curate a life?”*…

The Louvre has the Mona Lisa. In his nifty newsetter Ironic Sans, David Friedman reviews the “most treasured” holding of other museums…

Did you know that there is only one painting by Leonardo da Vinci on view in America? It’s a portrait of a teenage girl named Ginevra de’ Benci, a Florentine aristocrat, possibly commissioned for her wedding. And it’s one of only four portraits Leonardo painted of women. The most famous one, of course, is the Mona Lisa.The portrait of Ginevra is on display at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, which acquired the painting in 1967. There’s an interesting story of how the painting was brought from Liechtenstein Castle to Washington in carry-on luggage.

[I haven’t told you this yet, but for the past year I’ve been working full-time as Senior Video Producer at the National Gallery of Art. I love it. Working in a museum surrounded by some of the world’s best art and telling stories about how art makes a difference in people’s lives, every day is a good day. Another time, I’ll share some of the work we’re doing. But for now, I just need to make clear that this newsletter is in no way formally connected to the museum or my work there.]

Here is Ginevra, painted by Leonardo around 30 years before Mona Lisa:

I once heard someone refer to Ginevra as “America’s Mona Lisa.” Obviously that’s in part because they’re both by the same artist. But sometimes people refer to something as their Mona Lisa to mean it’s their prize possession, or an incredible work, or the draw that people come to see.

And that got me wondering: What do other museums and institutions refer to as their Mona Lisa?

So I did some digging and I’ve gathered 17 works of art and other surprising things where someone from the institution has gone on record calling it their Mona Lisa

From Duccio and Matisse to Sow and Warhol: “It’s Their Mona Lisa,” from @ironicsans.com.

* Maira Kalman, My Favorite Things

###

As we hit the highlights, we might spare a thought for a man whose works were often the “Mona Lisas” of the halls they graced: Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (AKA, Giambattista or Gianbattista Tiepolo): he died on this date in 1770. A painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice, his luminous, poetic frescoes, while extending the tradition of Baroque ceiling decoration, epitomized the lightness and elegance of the Rococo period. Indeed, he was described by National Gallery head Michael Levey as “the greatest decorative painter of eighteenth-century Europe, as well as its most able craftsman.” He is considered– with Giambattista Pittoni, CanalettoGiovan Battista PiazzettaGiuseppe Maria Crespi, and Francesco Guardi— one of the traditional Old Masters of that period. 

A preliminary sketch for “Allegory of the Planets and Continents,” a fresco in the palace of Carl Philipp von Greiffenklau, prince‑bishop of Würzburg, in present-day Germany (Metropolitan Museum of Art) Tiepolo’s self-portrait (1750–1753), from a ceiling fresco in that Würzburg Residence #art #Baroque #culture #fresco #history #masterpiece #masterpieces #museums #OldMaster #Rococo #Tiepolo

Secret Room Club Night @ GD Lounge - 27 Mar feat. Fresco, Matilda

#SESH #Fresco #Matilda

https://sesh.sx/e/1962869

Copy of #fresco on a haveli wall in Mandawa, #India
#sketchbook #art #drawing #gouache #fineliner
Frescoed ceiling in San Nicolás de Bari y San Pedro Mártir | Sant Nicolau de Bari i Sant Pere Martir. Valencia, Spain 🇪🇸. 7th October 2023.

https://wp.me/p2yJaA-2HS

#Valencia #València #Spain #España #ValenciaSpain
#baroque #fresco #SanNicolasValencia #CapillaSixtinaValenciana
#travel #travelling #traveling #travelphotography #tourism
#JBinnacle

Lion by Sax in Paris, France (4 photos)

Photo by L’Art et la Rue Street Artist Sax By Sax (Henry B) at 5 rue Biot, 75017 Paris, France. More by Sax on Street Art Utopia. Comments: pic.twitter.com/x7e5TVrt9I— STREET ART UTOPIA 🖼️ (@StreetArtUtopia) December 6, 2021

https://streetartutopia.com/2021/12/06/lion-by-sax-in-paris-france-4-photos/

Lion by Sax in Paris, France (4 photos) - STREET ART UTOPIA

Photo by L’Art et la Rue Street Artist Sax By Sax (Henry B) at 5 rue Biot, 75017 Paris, France. More by Sax on Street Art Utopia. Comments: pic.twitter.com/x7e5TVrt9I — STREET ART UTOPIA 🖼️ (@StreetArtUtopia) December 6, 2021

STREET ART UTOPIA

Mural of Keny Arkana by Wild Sketch in Avignon, France

Street Artist Wild Sketch By Wild Sketch in Avignon, France. This mural is a portrait of the Hip hop artist and activist Keny Arkana. More by Wild Sketch on Street Art Utopia. Comments: pic.twitter.com/gwYNeAsMdG— STREET ART UTOPIA 🖼️ (@StreetArtUtopia) November 26, 2021

https://streetartutopia.com/2021/11/26/mural-of-keny-arkana-by-wild-sketch-in-avignon-france/

Mural of Keny Arkana by Wild Sketch in Avignon, France - STREET ART UTOPIA

Street Artist Wild Sketch By Wild Sketch in Avignon, France. This mural is a portrait of the Hip hop artist and activist Keny Arkana. More by Wild Sketch on Street Art Utopia. Comments: pic.twitter.com/gwYNeAsMdG — STREET ART UTOPIA 🖼️ (@StreetArtUtopia) November 26, 2021

STREET ART UTOPIA

12 photos: Two children working to build the world of tomorrow (New York)

Land Artist Saype World in progress II, 11.000m2, biodegradable paint on grass by Saype in New York (USA) at UN headquarters. This stunning, ecofriendly land art showing two children working to build the world of tomorrow has been painted on the lawn of UN Headquarters, gifted to the UN by Saype and Switzerland. The artwork is a beautiful reminder of the need to work together for a better future. Photos by Valentin Flauraud. More by Saype on Street Art Utopia: World in progress […]

https://streetartutopia.com/2021/09/21/world-in-progress-ii/

12 photos: Two children working to build the world of tomorrow (New York) - STREET ART UTOPIA

Land Artist Saype World in progress II, 11.000m2, biodegradable paint on grass by Saype in New York (USA) at UN headquarters. This stunning, ecofriendly land art showing two children working to build the world of tomorrow has been painted on the lawn of UN Headquarters, gifted to the UN by Saype and Switzerland. The artwork is a beautiful […]

STREET ART UTOPIA

一人称と2D横スクロールが交差する。古代エジプトの壁画が動き出すアクションADV「Fresco」発表
https://www.4gamer.net/games/991/G099126/20260317018/

#4gamer #Fresco

一人称と2D横スクロールが交差する。古代エジプトの壁画が動き出すアクションADV「Fresco」発表

古代エジプトの遺跡を舞台に,考古学者と壁画の中のキャラクターを切り替えながら謎を解き進めるアクションアドベンチャー「Fresco」が発表された。一人称視点による遺跡探索と,2D横スクロールで展開する壁画世界を行き来する二重構造が特徴で,役割分担型の協力プレイモードも用意されている。

4Gamer.net

Layers of colored sgraffito on the Parroquia San Felipe Neri #baroque #church in #Malaga

#Sgraffito was a relatively cheap decorative technique of scratching through a #plaster to an underlying layer of contrasting color.

#pattern #decoration #architecture #histodons #Andalucia #ornaments #fresco #malteseCross #Spain

古代エジプト神殿の「壁画」の中を動くパズルアクションゲーム『Fresco』が面白そう。壁画世界の人物と外の世界の考古学者を操作し神殿の謎を解いていく
https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/news/2603162d

#denfaminicogamer #Steam #はくまいさん #PC #ニュース #Kelonia_Games #Fresco

古代エジプト神殿の「壁画」の中を動くパズルアクションゲーム『Fresco』が面白そう。壁画世界の人物と外の世界の考古学者を操作し神殿の謎を解いていく

壁画世界の人物と外の世界の考古学者を操作し神殿の謎を解いていく。ゲーム内では神々や神殿の守護者たちと対峙することにも

電ファミニコゲーマー – ゲームの面白い記事読んでみない?