The Artist’s Psyche
The Artist’s Psyche embodies the introspective, allegorical vision of Nikolaos Gyzis, where the fragile, winged Psyche becomes a symbol of the creative soul suspended between imagination, idealism, and inward struggle.
Teaching with Domenico Ghirlandaio
Vasari called Ghirlandaio one of the greatest masters of his age — his tender Portrait of an Old Man and his Grandson still moves hearts across five centuries.
House of Venus in the Shell
Hidden along Pompeii’s main thoroughfare, the House of Venus in the Shell dazzles with vivid frescoes — Mars, dolphins, cherubs, and a goddess born from the sea.
The Labours of the Months: January
Twelve tiny Venetian panels, vivid with ultramarine and vermilion, trace a year of rural labour — a rare, charming 16th-century celebration of seasons, work, and life’s quiet rhythm.
The Legendary Shield of Achilles
Homer’s Shield of Achilles — a microcosm of war, harvest, dance, and law — inspired Flaxman’s stunning 1821 silver-gilt masterpiece, proudly displayed at George IV’s coronation banquet.
Christmas-Time
Eastman Johnson — Longfellow’s portraitist, Dutch Masters admirer, and chronicler of American life — captured slavery, family, and freedom on canvas with quiet humanity and extraordinary skill.
Church of the Holy Martyr Polyeuktos
Built to rival Solomon’s Temple, Anicia Juliana’s magnificent 6th-century Constantinople church defied even Emperor Justinian — its looted treasures now scattered across Venice, Barcelona, and Vienna.
Teaching with Domenico Veneziano
Vasari’s gripping tale of artistic jealousy, a lute smashed and a murder committed — totally fictional, yet Domenico Veneziano’s ethereal Florentine masterpieces remain breathtakingly, undeniably real.
Matisse and Jazz
Matisse’s Jazz — bold, improvisational, electric with colour — mirrors the music it celebrates. Two dazzling pochoirs in Athens invite us to feel rhythm through cut paper and pigment.
The Month of December
Maestro Venceslao’s December fresco captures a frozen Trentino world — bare-footed peasants chopping timber, knights escorting noble ladies, icicles hanging from castle eaves — vivid, harsh, and unforgettable.