Even writing the
words "Top 10 Painters of All Time" makes me cringe a little bit because...really?
Really? I find it a herculean task to
narrow a list down to the best 100 oil painting artists of all time, let alone
just ten. But in the spirit of our latest special-issue magazine, The 75 Greatest Artists of All Time, I
wanted to assess all of the artists--particularly painters of the past, in this
case--and artworks that have inspired me and decide who I would put on the
hallowed walls of my own art hall of fame.
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The Ballad of the Jealous Lover of Lone Green Valley
by Thomas Hart Benton, 1934, oil and tempera
on canvas mounted on aluminum panel. |
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It was tough! I definitely realize that I have a few biases,
but it was a good exercise and helped me discover what kind of oil on canvas
works I most admire and what
oil painting techniques and methods I most revere.
Remember, this list is particular to me and my ideas about painting, not a
universal standard. Here, then, are my Top 10 Painters of All Time, in no
particular order, along with a little bit about why they
are my picks.
Michelangelo--The
artist that opened my eyes to art! He
made the human figure powerful, sensual, and an artistic pinnacle.
Odilon
Redon--For colors that are beyond vibrant and narratives that are like nothing
I've ever seen before.
Sargent--He
made me realize how much there is to the action
of painting.
Whistler--For
his sense of atmosphere.
Frida
Kahlo--Because of the confessional and personal symbolism in her art.
Hopper--He captured
a sense of time and the human emotion that seemed to suffuse that time like no
other artist has been able to replicate.
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The Two Fridas by Frida Kahlo, 1939,
oil on canvas, 67 x 67. |
Lucian
Freud--As a contemporary artist, he showed that painting can still be taken into
uncharted territory.
Picasso--He
broke with so many practices of the past and developed a new way of seeing that
paved the way for modern art.
Caravaggio--For
his searing lights and rich shadows, and because he painted people with dirty
fingernails and grimy feet.
Thomas Hart
Benton--His work made me see how art is such a valid part of history. It can go
beyond the dry timeline of dates to capture what isn't in the history books--the
workers, small towns, and tall tales of people and their lives--and encompassing the
zeitgeist of it all with an image.
Well? What do
you think? I showed you my list and now I want see yours. Leave a comment and gimme
ten, twenty, oh, a hundred (if you are so inclined!) of your top artists. And then see how your list
matches up with that of our editors by getting your hands on The 75 Greatest Artists of All Time. Enjoy!
