My favorite famous artists

These are a few of my favorite big names in art

Salvador Dali

From back in 1990 P and I have had a major fascination for Dali. We used to drool at Dali’s surrealistic paintings seen at BITS – can’t remember how we came across them. Maybe KM had a Dali obsession that was contagious?

In 2010, I got a chance to visit the Dali museum at Barcelona. Though not his most famous works, here is a collage of my visit:

Salvador Dali museum, Barcelona, 2010

Vincent Van Gogh

Living in Amsterdam about 20 mins from the Van Gogh museum, it is one of my favorite haunts to take my visitors to. He is known to have famously said, “Oranje is de kleur van gekte” – “Orange is the color of madness”, referring to the national color of the Netherlands. One year at the Keukenhof, the famous Tulip gardens, a floral tribute was made to Van Gogh:

The potato eaters, Vincent van Gogh, Nuenen, April-May 1885
The Harvest, Vincent van Gogh, Arles, June 1888
Inspired by Japanese artists - Vincent van Gogh
Courtesan (inspired by Japanese painter Kesai Eisen), Vincent van Gogh, 1887
Butterflies and Poppies, Vincent van Gogh, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, May-June 1889
Seascape near Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, Vincent van Gogh, Arles, June 1888
Almond Blossom, Vincent van Gogh, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, February 1890
Self-Portrait with a Straw Hat, Vincent van Gogh, 1887

M.C. Escher

Another Dutch artist I am fascinated by is Escher. Escher House/ Palace is a lovely collection of his works in De Hague, an hour’s train ride away. Have been there a few times in my years here, and never really tire of it.

Chiura Obata

Chiura Obata

Japanese-American artist, https://americanart.si.edu/artist/chiura-obata-27393

Discovered his art accidentally when browsing for 2020 calendars in American Book Center, Amsterdam!

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His series of paintings on Yosemite, made around 1930: El Capitan, Half-dome, red woods. beautiful! Brings back my own nostalgic memories of Yosemite from the turn of the century…