The Farnese Hercules
The Farnese Hercules is a classic masterpiece in Naples’ Archeological Museum. A Roman copy of a bronze Greek statue created by in the 4th C BC, the statue depicts a weary Hercules leaning on his club, over which is draped the skin of the Nemean Lion. Behind his back Hercules holds the Apples of Hesperides, and so both the first and last of his twelve labours are represented.
Finding Klimt
During the fin de siècle, the works of Gustav Klimt were seen as part of a radical new movement by the conservative Viennese. Belvedere Museum in Vienna has the world’s largest collection of Klimt’s works.
An Angel, A Florentine Painting, and My Novel.
Sometime around 1252, a monk fell asleep and an angel finished his painting. If only the angel would do the same for my novel.
It Began Here
Thoughts on how I fell in love with Florence and how the city changed my life - of course it began with a painting by Leonardo da Vinci!
Caravaggio, Negative Space and Non-Existence.
How Caravaggio’s The Seven Acts of Mercy gave me a lesson on the meaning of non-existence