“Seductive,” “flamboyant,” and “deeply revealing” are the words used by this esteemed museum to describe the incredible family portraits executed by this well-known master. Who is he, and where can you catch a glimpse?

John Singer Sargent is, with little question, one of the greatest portraitists in art history. His ability to capture the subtleties of an individual’s dress and visage — revealing their character and so much more — is largely unparalleled.

A group of magnificent portraits by Sargent are currently on view through February 5 at the Jewish Museum in New York City. Fittingly, the portraits surround a prominent Jewish family during the Victorian era in England — the Meyers.

Painted in 1896, “Mrs. Carl Meyer and her Children” was met with vexed reviews upon its initial exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in 1897 — some loved the masterpiece, while others were skeptical. Harper’s Weekly critic Henry James wrote, “Of these elements Mr. Sargent has made a picture of a knock-down insolence of talent and truth of characterization, a wonderful rendering of life, of manners, of aspects, of types, of textures, of everything.”

Indeed, the family portrait is a tour de force of creative and artistic genius. The museum reports, “As a society hostess known for her exuberant soirées, enchanting voice, and support of the arts, Lady Meyer was also a socially concerned philanthropist supporting working class women, underprivileged families, and women’s suffrage. On loan from the Tate Britain in London, it has been over 10 years since this painting was on view in the United States. The exhibition highlights this remarkable work — contextualizing it with other family portraits, family photographs, personal correspondence and domestic memorabilia, as well as satirical imagery from popular culture that relates to both the Meyer family and John Singer Sargent.”

To learn more, visit the Jewish Museum.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

A current exhibition on view through February 12 is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see for yourself how and why this Renaissance city was renowned for its seductive colors — both in reality and through the monumental artists who called it their home. Can you name it?

It’s not surprising that Venice, Italy, is renowned for much more than its unique geographic location, food, and iconic gondolas. Indeed, for centuries scholars, aristocrats, royalty, and — of course — artists have all become enamored with the jewel-like colors that dance off the city’s canals and pastel-colored buildings. Nearly all the artists who called “The Floating City” home are noted for their use and mastery of color, especially with regard to Renaissance masters, including the Bellini family, the Bassano family, Giorgione, and Titian — to name just a few.

The splendor of Renaissance Venice and the magnificent artists it produced are the subjects of a once-in-a-lifetime exhibition currently on view at the Denver Art Museum. On view through February 12, “Glory of Venice: Masterworks of the Renaissance” includes a number of spectacular paintings by Titian, Giovanni Bellini, and Giorgione that have rarely — if ever — been exhibited in the United States.

Spanning the mid-1400s through the early 1500s, “‘Glory of Venice’ emphasizes how masters during this period — whose sensitivity toward color and light remained unparalleled for centuries — veered from traditional techniques and began using oil paint to experiment with depth, emotion, and dimension in their work,” the museum writes. “‘Glory of Venice’ features about 50 significant works, and provides visitors with a rare opportunity to experience 19 artworks from Venice’s Gallerie dell’Accademia, which houses one of the greatest collections of Venetian Renaissance in the world. Additional masterworks on view include paintings on loan from the Scuola Grande di San Rocco in Venice, and the Fondazione Magnani Rocca in Parma, Italy, as well as signature paintings in the DAM’s collection.”

To learn more, visit the Denver Art Museum.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

We get it. You’ve returned to work after a few weeks of family, food, and festivities. The luster and glee of the holidays are quickly fading into the reality of returning to your normal routine. Bummer, right? Nonsense! The beginning of 2017 is offering TONS of fantastic fine art opportunities — including this exciting annual event.

As the second-oldest charitable antiques show in the United States, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Washington Winter Show (The Washington Antiques Show) is an event that draws thousands of the world’s top collectors and dealers every year in early January.

2017’s edition of the fair kicks off January 13 and will continue through the 15th at the American University’s Katzen Arts Center in Washington, D.C., and you can bet Fine Art Connoisseur will have representatives perusing the countless treasures. This year’s theme, “The Art of Style,” celebrates the timeless elegance and sophistication of good design. “True artistry is behind the best of fashion and interiors as well as antiques and art,” organizers suggest, “whether it’s the iconic design of a classic Chanel suit, the graceful carving of a Chippendale chair or the complex beauty of a Monet canvas. ‘The Art of Style’ recognizes the mastery of creativity and skill by great designers, craftsmen and artists, both past and present.”

This year is packed with a number of exciting events — including a remarkable loan exhibition surrounding artist Marion Pike and the revered Coco Chanel. Titled “Coco Chanel: A New Portrait by Marion Pike — Paris 1967-1971,” the exhibition marks the first time that this collection of portraits and couture fashions will be displayed in North America. Via the event website: “Curated by Amy de la Haye, London College of Fashion, the exhibition features five portraits of legendary designer Coco Chanel, painted by the California artist Marion Pike, following a meeting between the two extraordinarily talented, creative women at Chanel’s Paris atelier in 1967. The meeting sparked an immediate friendship between the women captured in the series of at least 13 expressive, color-saturated portraits of the fashion icon. This exhibition explores the profound friendship between Pike and Chanel, as well as the creative influences upon the two women’s work.”

In addition to the aforementioned exhibition, attendees will also have the opportunity to join Lela Rose for a special book signing, luncheon, and lecture on January 13 from 10:30 A.M. to 1:30 P.M. The weekend rounds out with several guided walks, lectures, and dealer talks throughout.

To learn more and purchase your entry tickets, visit the Washington Winter Show.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

This 18th-century sculptor and draftsman certainly tried. In each of his stunning works, his talent and ambition are obvious, emerging from the marble with classical fervor. A major exhibition of his works opens in just a few days. Who was he?

Royal sculptor and Enlightenment draftsman Edmé Bouchardon (1698-1762) was considered by his contemporaries to be one of the greatest artists of his time. He was  a major champion of classicism and key proponent of the Neoclassical movement, and his surviving sculptures remain a powerful symbol of the Renaissance’s influence upon centuries of creators.

Late in 2016, Fine Art Today detailed a special exhibition of Bouchardon’s sculpture on view at the Louvre Museum, Paris, entitled “The Sublime Idea of Beauty,” which featured a variety of drawings and sculptures by the artist and was the first major monograph on his oeuvre. The museum wrote, “This exhibition will be an opportunity to comprehend the sculptor’s style, a perfect balance between classical influence and life-like rendering.”

We now have the exciting news to report that the exhibition has moved to the United States and is on view January 10 through April 2 at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California. Under the title “Bouchardon: Royal Artist of the Enlightenment,” this exhibition will also feature a few works not included in the Paris show.

To learn more, visit the J. Paul Getty Museum.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

Museums and galleries make art available. That’s why we love them. However, as the world rapidly advances in the digital age, “availability” is a word that’s becoming more problematic — or is it? A case in point at the National Gallery of Denmark has us thinking. Where will you stand?

The National Gallery of Denmark is home to a world-class collection of plaster casts from antiquity that display everything from pagan gods and goddesses to heroes, warriors, and athletes. The museum recently announced that it has made available nearly 25,000 works — digitally, that is. Significantly — and quite interestingly — the museum has created a number of three-dimensional images of its renowned plaster sculptures, inviting the public to use, share, and remix the digital casts.

For educational purposes, the move by the museum is a moment of celebration, making otherwise inaccessible works accessible all over the world with the click of a mouse. Further, these three-dimensional images allow more accurate consideration of the sculptures from multiple viewpoints and angles.

To learn more, visit ArtDaily.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

So you’ve spent years and thousands of dollars amassing a superb fine art collection. But are you confident you’ve got everything buttoned up? If you aren’t 100 percent sure, there are opportunities to get there, including these lectures and seminars. What’s the buzz?

Whether your art collection is worth hundreds, thousands, or millions, it’s vitally important to protect it, and to abide by the legal rules. On January 23, February 6, and March 6, Jennifer Jordan McCall — chair of the Estate, Trusts and Tax Planning group at the international law firm of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP — will lead a lecture and series of roundtable seminars aimed at estate and tax planning for art collections.

Via the event website: “An art collection can form a substantial part of a person’s estate, offering valuable opportunities for estate and tax planning. During these in-depth discussions, learn several techniques to retain the use and enjoyment of your art collection, while also reducing the potential gift or estate tax burden when it is transferred to your beneficiaries. Certain strategies may only be available for a short time in the wake of possible new legislation. Each roundtable seminar will address questions from the participants. These more in-depth individualized sessions may include advance techniques that address your specific situations and questions.”

McCall will lead a lecture on January 23 from 6 to 7 P.M., with the roundtable seminars hosted February 6 and March 6 from 6 to 7 P.M. at the Fitz Eugene Dixon Education Building in Palm Beach, Florida. Tickets to each event are $25 and a reservation is required.

To learn more, visit The Society of The Four Arts.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

Readers of Fine Art Connoisseur’s November/December 2016 issue might remember a piece by editor-in-chief Peter Trippi detailing an event that celebrates the thriving world of art exhibitions. We’re just over a month away from this major event, so grab your tickets today!

With a name like the Global Fine Art Awards (GFAA), how can any serious fine art collector or connoisseur miss this monumental February 11 gala at the National Arts Club in New York City? Launched in 2014, the GFAA is an outstanding idea. As Peter Trippi wrote: “Ask yourself: how are the best exhibitions honored, after the lights have dimmed and the loaned artworks have headed home?” The answer is GFAA.

Continuing, Trippi reported, “Fortunately, the annual GFAA initiative was launched in 2014 by its president and CEO, Judy Holm, who specializes in arts and culture. Having discerned this glaring gap in the field, Holm has worked tirelessly to create a new tradition that fulfills specific objectives: to recognize the best curated fine art and design exhibitions in museums, galleries, art fairs, biennials, and public installations; to honor innovation and excellence in exhibition design, historical context, educational value, and public appeal; to develop the public’s interest and passion for fine art; and to further its educational role in society.”

The GFAA has been a resounding success and is continuing to gain awareness with 78 nominees in 11 categories in the current 2016 season. Awards will be announced during the GFAA’s annual gala on February 11 in New York City. Tickets for the gala awards presentation can be purchased at globalfineartawards.org, which also details other aspects of GFAA’s work. A list of the categories and their various finalists can be found in the November/December 2016 issue of Fine Art Connoisseur.

To learn more, visit the Global Fine Art Awards.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.

It’s an exhibition that coincides with a new monograph — and it’s so good that these prestigious New York City galleries asked, “Why take it down December 24?” If you thought you missed this blockbuster, you haven’t.

On view at New York’s Nohra Haime Gallery and Adelson Galleries now through January 21, 2017 is a wide range of works by accomplished artist Adam Straus. With a career spanning nearly four decades, Straus has worked in a variety of media, with representations of each on view during the shows. Among the works are Straus’s sculptures, paintings, works on paper, and photography.

Via the exhibition press, “Straus is known for his majestic and luminous depictions of the sublime, which are often saturated with a deep concern about social and environmental issues. His penetrating dark humor can transport the viewer to post-apocalyptic worlds and often offers a wry observation on how humans have altered the natural landscape.”

The two exhibitions also coincide with the release of Straus’ new monograph, published by Gli Ori, Italy, this month. Including text written by the artist and award-winning critic and filmmaker Amei Wallach, Adam Straus explores a range of topics, including the artist’s childhood experiences, fascinating moments in his life and career, and much more.

To learn more, visit Adam Straus.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine. To start receiving Fine Art Today for free, click here.