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Feb 29, 2024 17 tweets 6 min read Read on X
Spring is a fierce reminder that from the barren comes the bloom, challenging the gloom to surrender to life.

This eternal cycle of rebirth and renewal is captured in the world's most beautiful spring paintings, each a tribute to nature's resilience and beauty. 🧵⤵️ By Pierre Auguste Cot - Metropolitan Museum of Art, online collection (The Met object ID 438158), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20137984
1. "Primavera" by Sandro Botticelli - A Renaissance masterpiece filled with mythological symbolism and lush, spring imagery. La Primavera (1482) by Sandro Botticelli; Sandro Botticelli, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
2. "Almond Blossom" by Vincent van Gogh - This painting is a celebration of spring and new life, with vibrant blue skies and blossoming almond trees. By Vincent van Gogh - dAFXSL9sZ1ulDw at Google Cultural Institute maximum zoom level, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21977493
3. "Spring" by Pieter Brueghel the Younger (1635) - A 17th-century village awakens in spring, blending Flemish detail with the season's joy in bustling human and natural life. Image
4. "The Orchard" by Claude Monet - An impressionist depiction of a spring orchard in bloom, showcasing Monet's mastery of light and color. An Orchard in Spring (1886) by Claude Monet; Claude Monet, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
5. "Spring" by Nicolas Poussin (1664) - Poussin's classical depiction of spring harmonizes mythological elegance with the season's renewal, capturing timeless beauty in serene landscapes. Spring (1664) by Nicolas Poussin; Nicolas Poussin, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
6. "A Spring Morning in the Heart of the City" by Childe Hassam - An American Impressionist painting capturing the lively essence of spring in an urban setting. Image
7. "Spring in Italy" by Isaac Levitan (1890) - A serene depiction of the Italian countryside, highlighting the tranquil beauty of spring. Isaac Levitan, Spring in Italy, ca. 1890, private collection. Wikiart
8. "Plum Trees in Blossom Éragny" (1894) by Camille Pissarro - A vibrant and lively representation of plum trees in spring, showcasing the beauty of nature's renewal. Image
9. "Springtime" by Pierre-Auguste Cot - A romantic and idealized portrayal of young love in a lush spring setting. Pierre-Auguste Cot, Springtime (1873). Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
10. "Vasanti Ragini, Page from a Ragamala Series" (1710), India - This exquisite piece from the Ragamala series embodies the spirit of spring through vibrant colors and poetic imagery, intertwining music, mood, and season in a celebration of cultural heritage. Vasanti Ragini, Page from a Ragamala Series (Garland of Musical Modes), ca. 1710, India. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, USA.
11. "Kumoi-Zakura" by Hiroshi Yoshida (1920) - Yoshida's print captures the ephemeral beauty of cherry blossoms against a serene sky, embodying the fleeting essence of spring in Japan with delicate precision and tranquil harmony. Hiroshi Yoshida, Kumoi-Zakura, ca. 1920, Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Spain. Wikimedia Commons (public domain).
12. "Wisteria" by Claude Monet - Part of Monet's exploration of his Giverny garden, this painting immerses the viewer in the beauty and tranquility of blooming wisteria. Image
13. "The Swing" by Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1767) - Fragonard's iconic work, with its playful romance and lush, verdant setting, encapsulates the frivolity and sensuousness of spring, immortalized in the rococo style's exuberant embrace of color and light Jean-Honoré Fragonard, The Swing.  Wallace Collection, London, United Kingdom.
14. "The Storm" by Pierre-Auguste Cot - Cot's masterpiece, with its dramatic portrayal of young lovers caught in a sudden spring storm, combines the intensity of emotion with the transient beauty of nature, capturing a moment of both vulnerability and enchantment. By Pierre Auguste Cot - 1. Pierre-Auguste Cot: The Storm (87.15.134). In Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. [1] (January 2007)2. Metropolitan Museum of Art, online collection (The Met object ID 435997), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1601165
15. "The Mount Riboudet in Rouen" at Spring by Claude Monet (1872) - Monet's impressionistic view of Rouen in spring captures the luminous play of light and shadow, showcasing his masterful depiction of the season's vibrant colors and atmospheric changes. The Mount Riboudet in Rouen at Spring by Claude Monet in Public Domain (1872) WikiArt
As spring reawakens the earth, which masterpieces of its renewal should be included in our collection? The Small Meadows in Spring (1881) by Alfred Sisley:  Sisley captures the tranquil essence of spring with delicate precision, portraying the lush, blooming meadows with a lightness and fluidity that breathes life into the landscape.  Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

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More from @CultureExploreX

May 8
Most stories entertain.

Dante’s Divine Comedy does something else.

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It’s the most terrifying and hopeful poem ever written. This is why Dante still haunts us today? 🧵👇 Dante and Virgil, a painting by William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1850), which depicts Dante and Virgil in the eighth circle of Hell, observing two damned souls in eternal combat in Hell.
Before you can glimpse Heaven, Dante forces you to stare into Hell.

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Illustration by Sandro Botticelli: Dante and Virgil visit the first two bolge of the Eighth Circle
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La materia della Divina commedia di Dante Alighieri, Plate VI: "The Ordering of Paradise" by Michelangelo Caetani (1804–1882)
The Paradiso assumes the medieval view of the Universe, with the Earth surrounded by concentric spheres containing planets and stars.
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May 7
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Let me show you what you’ve missed… 🧵👇 The Sistine Chapel in Vatican City
The Vatican Museums aren’t just a tourist stop.

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May 6
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You’ve never seen power struggles like this... 🧵👇 Cardinals walking into the Sistine Chapel for the start of the Conclave
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And once you see what Mexico built… you’ll never reduce it to a holiday again. Museo Nacional de Arts Photo: Shutterstock
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The deeper you look, the more impossible he seems.

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Antique Warrior in Profile, c. 1472. British Museum, London
He was born illegitimate.

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