With Valentine's Day just around the corner a lot of people have "love" on their minds.
Which got me to thinking..There are very few things I love more than art. To spread the love I have come up with a list of my top 10 "love affairs"(aka favorite paintings) of all time. Enjoy!
10. Coming in tenth place is the ever famous "Campbell's Soup Can" by Andy Warhol. What is not to love about Mr. Warhol?!
9. Picasso's "Guernica" is an emotionally charged painting that will be admired for decades to come. I love the raw and delicate nature of this painting.
8. "The Bath" by Mary Cassatt. It is fragile, intimate, soft and strikingly beautiful. With the bold patterns as a juxtaposition to the supple skin this painting just screams genius!
7. Monet's "Water Lilies". Let's be honest, if Monet is not one of your all time favorite artists it is quite possible that you have no soul.
6. Georgia O'Keeffe forces us to stop and really look at the intricate details that we would otherwise ignore. "Poppy" is a stunning piece that reminds me it is okay to slow down every once in a while and admire all the beauty this world has to offer.
5. Wayne Thiebaud's "Cupcake". Simple and sophisticated. I truly adore the way he manipulates color. His use of unexpected helixes of bright color could not be more brilliant!
4. "The Kiss" by Gustav Klimt. I have a hard time finding the words to express my love for this piece. It is emotional, whimsical, odd, and amazing. The intimate composition is ever inviting yet secretive much like a kiss.
3. "Nighthawk" by Edward Hopper is a piece that I will forever love. There is an overwhelming feeling of loneliness. It is introverted. It is human interaction. Hopper captures a world we all live in together and alone all at once.
2. To me she is the most beautiful and mysterious woman of all time. "The Girl With The Pearl Earring" by Johanness Vermeer captivates my imagination while satisfying my craving for aesthetic beauty. Who is she? Why does she part her lips? Is saying goodbye for the last time? Or simply glancing at her past? I want to know her story. My love for this piece falls somewhere between its precise technique and its mystery.
1. I am fairly confident that I could write a novel on my LOVE for "Sunflowers" by Van Gogh. It is brilliant. I believe art, like love, is meant to move your soul, to help you understand, and excite your wildest dreams. Many years ago this painting captured my heart and ignited my ever growing love for art.
There you have it my top 10 painting love affairs! Have a great Valentine's Day and be sure to celebrate ALL of the things you love!
-Megan A. Hansen
