Titian 101

"...these are simply the most beautiful pictures in the world..."

- Lucian Freud (on  Titian's 'Diana' Masterpieces)

Diana & Callisto (click to enlarge)

Today the National Gallery purchased Titian’s ‘Diana and Callisto’ for £45,000,000. It had already purchased his ‘Diana and Actaeon’ in 2009 for £50,000,000. Both were completed 450 years ago, in 1556 - 1559.

It is a tremendous amount of money to spend on two works of art.

Titian is my favourite artist. Ever.

The Titian exhibition I visited at the National Gallery in 2003 changed my life.

The first time I saw one of his paintings, my heart cried out. The beauty and magnificence of his work was almost too painful to bear in silence.

It is an experience that I have trouble putting into words but, equally, one which I will never, ever forget.

It also presented me with a yardstick to measure against whenever I read the words “masterpiece”, “awesome” and “genius”.

Yes, £95million (6 zeroes) is a lot of cash to spend on two pieces of art but, compared to the approx. £1.2 trillion  (12 zeroes) that the UK government has already spent bailing out banks…well, you can finish off the thought without any help from me.

Pixie xx

Diana & Actaeon (click to enlarge)

Pixie Rain: An Artist's Impression

~Hexee's work is most frequently compared with Lucian Freud's. Usually in the context of "I'd rather have my portrait done by ~Hexee than that blooming Lucian Freud bloke!"


And so you can imagine just how thrilled I was to learn that ~Hexee has honoured me by employing her considerable skills as an artist to produce this portrait.


Thank you ~Hexee, sincerely.

Lucian Freud 1922 - 2011

Influential British artist Lucian Freud, probably best known for this portrait of my Mother before she started to put weight on, has died aged 88.

Freud's portraits never particularly concern themselves with flattering the subject - "disturbing" is one adjective frequently applied to them although many agree that "insulting" is equally appropriate. Some of the portraits are even said to have "compelling nastiness".

Other than my Mother, other notables to fall victim to serial portraitist Lucian Freud include Queen Elizabeth v2, Kate Moss, Lilly Allen, Gemma Kidd and Minch Yoda.

Freud was fond of saying:

"I would wish my portraits to be of the people, not like them. Not having a look of the sitter, being them."

and he has never even denied the accusation that he is in fact the grandson of notorious psycho-analyst Sigmund Freud.

Since his death yesterday, Freud's work has been introduced to millions of new people via. Twitter, Facebook, breakfast television, Google Blogger and Fox News.

Lucian The Painter is Dead!!!   Long Live....um, nvm.