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Thomas of Oxford’s Jessi window at Winchester College epitomises the skill and craftsmanship of the medieval glazier. The variety of artistic production during the middle ages has remained an inspiration to subsequent periods of art. This panel depicting the ordination of the first Christian Saint, Stephen, is carved on reused elephant ivory during the Carolingian period in the late 9th century, probably at Metz. It once formed part of a casket with stories of the life of the saint. The Wessex Jewel is an Anglo-Saxon gold and rock crystal aestel (manuscript-pointer) was made at almost the same time as the great jewel of King Alfred, and is one of only four such objects in the world to have survived from 9th century England. The technical achievements of artists during the Renaissance led to a new found confidence in the individual’s ability to conquer artistic problems. Raphael’s drawing is a study for an apostle in his final masterpiece, the Transfiguration.
Egon Schiele was introduced to the Wiener Werkstätte by Gustav Klimt. His haunting portraits and contorted drawings were greatly admired by the artists of the Vienna Secession. This tender image of Marie-Thérèse Gaillard of 1894 is executed in pastel. The sitter was the daughter of a friend and patron of the painter who also acquired works by Renoir, Cicely, and Degas among others. Modigliani’s Nu Couché epitomises his style which he constructed from primitive and modern sources creating an abstraction which went to the very essence of his subject. Nu Couché sold for over $26million at Christie’s New York in 2003. Painted at the same time as the Orangerie friezes, Monet escaped even the restraints of Impressionism to reach a unity with his subject that is intoxicating and is the culmination of his career. Le bassin aux nymphéas sold for over $40million at Christie’s London in 2008.
Experiencing the Venice Biennale is unlike experiencing any other contemporary art exhibition in the world. Courtesy John Slyce. Jorge Pardo, Detail, Untitled , 2007, Installation View from the exhibition 'I Love My Wife', Neugerriemschneider Gallery , Berlin. Site specific works such as Pawel Althamer’s Untitled, 2003, mixed media, dimensions variable are experienced on field trips throughout Europe and the UK. Installation view: Courtesy Neugerriemschneider, Berlin. The Modern and Contemporary Art programme shifts emphasis each year to take in the latest contemporary shows such as the decennial Sculpture Project at Münster. Pawel Althamer, Path (Sciezka), 2007. Courtesy Münster Sculpture Project.
The materials and methods of production and the creative forces behind the style and design of furniture help us to understand how the maker and designer transcended his craft to produce lasting works of fine art. Adele Bloch-Bauer was one of Gustave Klimt's most important patrons, and, it has been suggested, one of the artist's secret lovers. Dressed in a loose-fitting, Wiener Werkstatte gown, she is the first in a series of paintings of women set against decorative backgrounds in the manner of Japanese bjin-e executed after 1912. The modern boulevards of Baron Haussman on a sleety autumn day were the inspiration for Béraud’s realistic depictions of modern Parisian life. The maiolica technique was used in the Renaissance to promote classical historical scenes inspired by the new humanism, and made fashionable by the court at Urbino.
Ceramics hold a special place in the Arts of China. Chinese art is both the oldest and the newest art in the world. An integral part of the Arts of China course is the two week field study which takes in Hong Kong, Beijing and Taipei. Object handling lies at the heart of all Chrisite’s Education courses.
This decoy duck is an exceptional and rare red-breasted merganser hen, one of only six known to have been made by Lothrop Holmes (1821-1899). His shorebird species include yellowlegs, black-bellied plover, with the rarest being only two known examples of the ruddy turnstone. The duck sold for over $850,000 at Christie’s New York, in 2007. A carved and gilded pine spread-wing eagle, 19th century, carved in the half-round with spread wings grasping the shield of the United States with arrows and a laurel wreath. The appreciation of traditional folk art and the creative expression of contemporary self-taught artists has only recently become an academic discipline. A pieced wool Amish crib quilt, Indiana, late 19th-early 20th century, worked in the Log Cabin pattern in various pink, blue, purple, brown, black, cream, grey, and crimson wools with teal sashing, Joseph's Coat border and black bound edge, with sawtooth and channel quilting.

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