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List of illustrations

  • Study for La Grande Jatte
  • Self-Portrait with Her Daughter Julie
  • Wreath of Laurel, Palm, and Juniper with a Scroll inscribed Virtutem Forma Decorat
  • Small Cowper Madonna, reverse of panel
  • Madonna of the Oak, reverse
  • Holy Family (La Perla), reverse
  • The Cardinal, reverse
  • The Nativity
  • The Nativity, ultraviolet photograph
  • Virgin of the Rocks
  • Virgin and Child with St. Nicholas of Bari and Mary Magdalen, detail
  • Jacobus Zaffius
  • Portrait of Jacobus Zaffius
  • Crucifixion
  • Crucifixion, x-ray study
  • Descent into Limbo
  • Descent into Limbo, x-ray study
  • Pentecost
  • Pentecost, x-ray study
  • Adoration of the Shepherds
  • St. Victor, from St. Victor altarpiece
  • St. Corona, from St. Victor altarpiece
  • Blinding of St. Victor
  • Crucifixion
  • Proposed reconstruction of the St. Victor Altarpiece
  • St. Victor, reverse
  • Annunciation, detail of reverse
  • Proposed reconstruction of the battens on the reverse of Simone Martini's Annunciation
  • Samuel Alleyne Otis
  • Samuel Alleyne Otis, radiograph detail
  • Senator Thomas Hart Benton
  • Senator Thomas Hart Benton, reverse (detail of top edge)
  • Pueblo
  • Pueblo, verso
  • Baron Fitzgibbon
  • Baron Fitzgibbon, detail of reverse of unlined canvas
  • Going to Market
  • Going to Market, pre-treatment photograph
  • Going to Market, side view of the panel before treatment
  • Nirvana, Portrait of Meyer de Hahn
  • Nirvana, Portrait of Meyer de Hahn, macro detail in raking light
  • Nirvana, Portrait of Meyer de Hahn, macro detail in raking light
  • Self-Portrait Dedicated to Carriére
  • Hochsitz mit Gänse (Watchtower with Geese)
  • Reverse of a canvas on a stretcher
  • Las Meninas, macro detail of edge
  • Gardener's House at Atibes, detail of verso
  • A Painter in His Studio
  • Prince Baltasar Carlos on Horseback, detail of reverse
  • Portrait of a Man Trimming His Quill
  • Portrait of a Young Woman Seated
  • Lucas de Clercq
  • Feyntje van Steenkiste
  • Virgin and Child with St. Justine, St. George, and a Donor
  • A Man in Armour
  • A Man in Armour, x-ray study
  • A Man in Armour, diagram of support
  • Mother and Child
  • Mother and Child, fragment
  • Mother and Child, reconstruction prior to removal of father
  • M. et Mme Edouard Manet
  • Execution of Maximilian
  • Clement VII
  • Our Lady of the Rosary with Saints
  • Mars and Venus Surprised by Hephaistos
  • Horse Attacked by a Lion
  • Two Personages in Love with a Woman
  • Two Personages in Love with a Woman, detail
  • My Grandparents, My Parents and I (Family Tree)
  • Weymouth Bay (Bowleaze Cove)
  • Study Head of a Young Woman
  • Self-Portrait
  • The Jungle
  • Madonna of the Goldfinch, photomicrograph of cross-section
  • Saint Luke, detail
  • The Interior of an Atelier of a Woman Painter
  • Apollo and Phaëton
  • Laughing Youth with a Wine Glass
  • Why Are You Angry? (No te aha oe riri)
  • Why Are You Angry? (No te aha oe riri), detail
  • Portrait of the Sisters Zénaïde and Charlotte Bonaparte
  • Portrait of the Sisters Zénaïde and Charlotte Bonaparte, detail of artist's signature and date
  • The Migration Series: Migrants left. They did not feel safe. It was not wise to be found on the streets late at night. They were arrested on the slightest provocation.
  • The Migration Series: Migrants left. They did not feel safe. It was not wise to be found on the streets late at night. They were arrested on the slightest provocation, detail
  • The Round Table, detail
  • Self-Portrait, Les Misérables
  • Blue Jump
  • Blue Jump, detail
  • Coronation of the Virgin, detail
  • Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple
  • Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple, detail in raking light
  • A Lady Writing a Letter, macro detail in raking light
  • A Lady Writing a Letter, with Her Maid
  • Hunt in the Forest
  • Hunt in the Forest, raking light detail
  • Hunt in the Forest, analysis of perspective
  • Hunt in the Forest, analysis of perspective
  • The Sacrifice of Isaac
  • The Sacrifice of Isaac, diagram of incisions
  • A Sunday on the Grande Jatte—1884
  • The Fortune-Teller
  • Madonna and Child with Saints Andrew, Benedict, Bernard, and Catherine of Alexandria with Angels, middle panel
  • Madonna Enthroned with Saints and Angels (middle panel), raking-light detail
  • The Annunciation
  • The Annunciation, detail
  • Portrait of Giovanni(?) Arnolfini and His Wife
  • Coronation of the Virgin
  • The Rest on the Flight to Egypt with St. John the Baptist
  • The Rest on the Flight to Egypt with St. John the Baptist, detail
  • Ecce Homo
  • Ecce Homo, detail of pentimento
  • Doge Andrea Gritti
  • Doge Andrea Gritti, detail
  • Prince Baltasar Carlos on Horseback, detail
  • Phillip IV
  • Phillip IV, x-ray study
  • Allegory of Salvation
  • Milking Time
  • Irises
  • Irises, macro detail
  • The Etang des SÅ“urs, Osny
  • Ryder's House
  • Ryder's House, mid-cleaning detail
  • John/Fingerpainting
  • Ginevra de' Benci
  • Ginevra de' Benci, detail of background
  • Capriccio Musicale (Circus)
  • Capriccio Musicale (Circus), detail
  • Untitled anthropometry 82
  • Anthropometry performance
  • Water Lilies, detail of surface during varnish removal
  • Water Lilies
  • Water Lilies
  • Water Lilies
  • Entry of Christ into Brussels in 1889
  • Entry of Christ into Brussels in 1889, detail
  • Blue poles
  • Blue poles, macro detail
  • Collective Suicide
  • Collective Suicide, detail
  • Portrait After a Costume Ball (Portrait of Mme Dietz-Monnin)
  • Portrait After a Costume Ball (Portrait of Mme Dietz-Monnin), detail
  • Self-Portrait Beneath a Woman's Mask
  • Two White Planes
  • Two White Planes, detail
  • Bird
  • Full Fathom Five
  • Full Fathom Five, detail
  • Detail of the upper left corner of a canvas
  • The Marquise de Pezé and the Marquise de Rouget with Her Two Children
  • The Marquise de Pezé and the Marquise de Rouget with Her Two Children, detail
  • Girl with a Pearl Earring
  • Partial diagram of the crackle patterns on Girl with a Pearl Earring
  • Girl with a Pearl Earring, mid-treatment photograph
  • Tableau No. IV: Lozenge Composition with Red, Grey, Blue, Yellow, and Black, raking-light view
  • Red Cross Knight
  • Red Cross Knight, detail
  • Editha and the Monks Searching for the Body of Harold, detail
  • Salomé
  • Salomé, raking-light photograph
  • Salomé, macro detail
  • Small Cowper Madonna, detail
  • View at Rehnen
  • View at Rehnen, macro detail
  • Circe and Her Lovers in a Landscape
  • Madonna and Child
  • Edward VI as a Child
  • Saint Paul and a Group of Worshippers
  • Madonna and Child
  • Cape Cod Evening
  • Irises
  • Harvard Murals: Panel Five
  • Harvard Murals: Panel Five
  • The Ladies Amabel and Mary Jemima Yorke
  • Painting
  • Waterloo Bridge, London, at Dusk, photomicrograph detail
  • Waterloo Bridge, London, at Dusk, photomicrograph detail
  • Enthroned Virgin and Child, detail during treatment
  • Enthroned Virgin and Child, detail after inpainting
  • Enthroned Virgin and Child
  • Rouen Cathedral, West Façade, macro detail prior to treatment
  • Rouen Cathedral, West Façade, macro detail during treatment
  • Rouen Cathedral, West Façade, macro detail during treatment
  • Rouen Cathedral, West Façade, mid-treatment
  • La Loge
  • La Loge, detail
  • Madonna and Child on a Curved Throne
  • Enthroned Madonna and Child
  • Madonna and Child on a Curved Throne, ultraviolet photograph
  • Self-Portrait
  • Self-Portrait, ultraviolet photograph detail
  • Self-Portrait, infrared photograph
  • Self-Portrait, radiograph
  • Composition
  • Composition, x-ray study
  • Biblical Subject
  • Biblical Subject, x-ray study
  • Queen of Hearts
  • Queen of Hearts, infrared reflectogram
  • Watson and the Shark
  • Watson and the Shark, infrared reflectogram detail
  • Small Cowper Madonna
  • Small Cowper Madonna, infrared reflectogram assembly
  • Julius II
  • Julius II, x-ray study
  • Soap Bubbles
  • Soap Bubbles
  • Soap Bubbles
  • The Game of Knucklebones (Les Osselets)
  • The Game of Knucklebones (Les Osselets), x-ray study
  • Soap Bubbles, x-ray study
  • Soap Bubbles, x-ray study
  • The Holy Family with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John
  • The Holy Family with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John
  • The Holy Family with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John, x-ray study
  • The Holy Family with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John, x-ray study
  • The White Horse (full-size sketch), after cleaning
  • The White Horse, x-ray study
  • Stour Valley with Dedham in the Distance
  • Tableau No. IV: Lozenge Composition with Red, Grey, Blue, Yellow, and Black
  • Composition in a Square with Red, Yellow, and Blue
  • Tableau No. IV: Lozenge Composition with Red, Grey, Blue, Yellow, and Black, raking-light detail
  • Tableau No. IV: Lozenge Composition with Red, Grey, Blue, Yellow, and Black, x-ray study
  • Hunting on the Lagoon
  • Two Venetian Ladies
  • Hunting on the Lagoon, infrared reflectogram detail
  • Photocomposite of Hunting on the Lagoon and Two Venetian Ladies
  • The Adoration of the Magi
  • The Adoration of the Magi, x-ray study
  • Vulcan's Forge
  • The Forge of Vulcan, x-ray study
  • The Buffoon Barbarroja, Cristóbal de Castañeda y Pernia
  • The Buffoon Barbarroja, Cristóbal de Castañeda y Pernia, x-ray study
  • The Surrender of Breda
  • Surrender of Breda, x-ray study
  • Surrender of Breda, infrared reflectogram detail
  • Girls in the Field, detail
  • The Bath of Venus, mid-treatment photograph
  • Fox Hill, Upper Norwood, mid-varnish removal photograph
  • Detail of a canvas reverse with dark varnish stains following the craquelure on the face of the painting
  • Virgin and Child
  • Virgin and Child, ultra-violet light photograph, mid-treatment
  • Virgin and Child, microphotograph of a cross-section in ultraviolet light
  • Waterloo Bridge, London, at Dusk, mid-varnish removal photograph
  • Flowers, specular light photograph during varnish removal
  • The Palm, detail
  • Easels, detail of reverse
  • Death and the Maiden
  • Three Tahitian Women
  • Supper at Emmaus
  • Supper at Emmaus, infrared photograph detail
  • Portrait of a Man
  • Portrait of a Man, stamp and number (508) on verso
  • Albano, Italy
  • Albano, Italy, detail of label on reverse
  • St. Luke
  • San Pier Maggiore Altarpiece
  • Photomontage reconstruction of original arrangement of San Pier Maggiore Altarpiece
  • San Pier Maggiore Altarpiece, right main tier panel
  • Frari triptych
  • The Aero
  • Harmony in Blue and Gold (The Peacock Room)
  • Archive
  • Self-Portrait in the Studio
  • Homage to the Square
  • Frederic Church’s painting "The Heart of the Andes" as displayed in the fine art gallery at the Metropolitan Fair in New York
  • 1° 2° 3° 4°
  • Chronology of Common Pigments According to Initial Use
Free
Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Contents
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.001
Free
Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
We have long felt the need for a book introducing nonspecialists to the physical examination of easel paintings and to the historical and critical implications of such study. Knowledge of a paintings materials, techniques, and condition can contribute to a range of scholarly approaches: iconography, regional and colonial studies, examination of artistic intent, study of interactions among artistic schools, and the history of collecting and display. An extensive literature exists—largely by and …
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.002
Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
The history of painting is the history of visual ideas expressed in material form. Investigation of paintings as physical objects contributes knowledge of how paintings were made and of the ideas that influenced their crafting; it can also reveal changes that occur over time. Art historians routinely study transformations in the use, presentation, and exhibition of paintings, as well as shifting cultural and historical conditions that affect their interpretation. Yet paintings also change as …
PublisherYale University Press
Related print edition pages: pp.1-4
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.003

Access to this content is only available to subscribers. If you are at an institution that currently subscribes to the A&AePortal, please login to your VPN before accessing the site. If you have already purchased an individual subscription, please sign in to your account to access the content. Learn more about subscriptions.

Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
The most significant information revealed by study of the support is the approximate age of the painting and whether the work has survived in complete or fragmentary form. These are crucial questions for anyone interested in a paintings subject matter or history, or in its formal characteristics. Examination of the support can also reveal the painting’s condition and any structural restoration that it has received. This can be essential in determining its authenticity or provenance. …
PublisherYale University Press
Related print edition pages: pp.5-65
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.004

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Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
The ground is usually covered entirely by the paint layer, but since it affects the look of the painting, study of the ground is essential for historians in understanding the painter’s intent. Did the artist prepare a rough or a smooth ground? How was it applied? Was it colored, and, if so, was it light or dark? Was it absorbent? Did the artist avoid a ground layer entirely, and why? As with other aspects of technique, the answers to these questions can sometimes identify a painting with a …
PublisherYale University Press
Related print edition pages: pp.69-100
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.005

Access to this content is only available to subscribers. If you are at an institution that currently subscribes to the A&AePortal, please login to your VPN before accessing the site. If you have already purchased an individual subscription, please sign in to your account to access the content. Learn more about subscriptions.

Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Technical examination of the paint layer can confirm a work’s age or authenticity and add to knowledge of the painting’s execution and the artist’s intended effects. Examination can address either the materials or the ways they were handled—the techniques. Study of paint materials offers information that is specific but of limited interpretive use to the art historian. Pigment identification can deny (but rarely confirm) a paintings age, or can identify areas of repaint. Precise identification …
PublisherYale University Press
Related print edition pages: pp.101-210
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.006

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Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Varnish has traditionally been considered, by both painters and collectors, a renewable coating somewhat apart from the artist’s handwork. Varnish was usually applied at least a year after the painting was completed so that the paint could dry. Some artists shipped paintings coated with a temporary varnish, expecting someone else to replace it with a proper varnish. By the nineteenth century, varnishing was routinely performed by professionals such as artists’ colormen. The practice of replacing …
PublisherYale University Press
Related print edition pages: pp.214-241
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.007
Chapter subject tags:Varnish and varnishingGlazes

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Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Art history has been increasingly interested in examining artworks within changing historical, social, institutional, economic, aesthetic, and intellectual contexts—all of which can be metaphorically termed frames. But what are the physical and optical limits of the painting? And can broadening those limits expand our historical understanding? In considering paintings as objects, where shall we set the boundaries? How can marks or labels affixed to a painting contribute to our historical …
PublisherYale University Press
Related print edition pages: pp.242-259
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.008

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Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Because the composition and availability of artists’ pigments are well documented, the identification of certain pigments with known dates of introduction and geographical distribution can help confirm or dispute a painting’s identification. The following table gives art historians a general idea of the most common pigments found during certain historical spans. Unless noted, pigments have no terminal date of use, although artists tended to favor more modern substitutes that were cheaper or more …
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.009
Chapter subject tags:Artists’ materials

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Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
These lists have been assembled for readers who want to gain first-hand visual understanding of some of the issues raised by the aging and treatment of paintings. They are by no means complete. Except for the unvarnished glue-size paintings, little of this information has been published. It is generously provided by the conservation and curatorial departments responsible for these works. …
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.010

Access to this content is only available to subscribers. If you are at an institution that currently subscribes to the A&AePortal, please login to your VPN before accessing the site. If you have already purchased an individual subscription, please sign in to your account to access the content. Learn more about subscriptions.

Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Bibliography
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.011

Access to this content is only available to subscribers. If you are at an institution that currently subscribes to the A&AePortal, please login to your VPN before accessing the site. If you have already purchased an individual subscription, please sign in to your account to access the content. Learn more about subscriptions.

Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Glossary
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.012

Access to this content is only available to subscribers. If you are at an institution that currently subscribes to the A&AePortal, please login to your VPN before accessing the site. If you have already purchased an individual subscription, please sign in to your account to access the content. Learn more about subscriptions.

Free
Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Index
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.013
Free
Description: Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
Photography Credits
PublisherYale University Press
https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00110.014
Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies
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