There is no doubt that antique oil painting are appealing to certain people especially collectors of fine art. Indeed, it is probably true that anything antique is specially regarded by most people. Have you ever wondered why?Old things, particularly very old things seem to fascinate us. They give us a connection to a distant past that we do not ourselves recall or feel we have participated in. However, we know that, either individually or collectively, we have something in common with that past.
That is where and when our ancestors lived. We are fascinated by what life would have been like during that time. History books can give us some account of it but oil painting, particularly antique oil paintings, give us a very tangible connection with this past.
That can be very exciting it itself, but there is more to it than historical connections. Many of these oil paintings are works of masters who have become renowned in the course of history. To see the work of master artists is certainly not something to be taken for granted. In fact, it would be fair to say that such a privilege would not have been available to most ordinary folk who lived around the time of these great masters.
Such works of art would have been commissioned by only by royalty and the privileged upper class in society who would have had the money to pay for them. Once completed by the artists, the paintings would have been proudly displayed in the palaces and grand manors and other exclusive places where only those ‘worthy’ of viewing them would ever got the chance to do so.
Some of these paintings will have had intriguing secrets behind them. To this day, for example, there are competing theories and speculations that revolve around the enigmatic smile of the Mona Lisa. Indeed, there are questions surrounding even the gender of the subject. Was the subject actually female? Who and what was Leonardo da Vinci really trying to capture?
Other famous antique paintings have even more dramatic and contentious tales surrounding them. Whose hand is it that seems to be coming from nowhere obvious in Leonardo da Vinci’s famous ‘The Last Supper’? Did it belong to John or Mary? If the latter, what was she doing among the disciples? Had Jesus made her one of the twelve?
Of course, most paintings did appear publicly and without controversy. But it would seem that the paintings that were shrouded in controversy were the ones that became most famous and that continue to intrigue people to this day. Might this have been a deliberate ploy on the part of the artists and those who managed or promoted them? It is certainly a question worth asking.
Today, you are likely to find antique oil paintings well guarded in national art museums, halls and galleries where anyone can go to view them. Some of these galleries include the Louvre in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum in New York and the British Museum in London. Of course, a few are in the hands of private collectors and may never be viewed by the general public!
Al Smitty is a writer who loves to discuss many topics ranging from famous oil paintings to bodybuilding. Thanks for reading!
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