Famous artists and their paintings

Claude Monet was a leading figure and co-founder of the French Impressionist movement. In fact, the term 'Impressionism' was coined by a critic mockingly referencing the title of Monet's painting, 'Impression, Sunrise'.

The School of Athens is a famous Renaissance fresco painted by Raphael between 1509 and 1511. Located in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican, it depicts a gathering of great classical philosophers, including Plato and Aristotle.

Pablo Picasso, along with Georges Braque, pioneered Cubism in the early 20th century. This revolutionary movement abandoned traditional perspective in favor of analyzing and reassembling objects in abstracted, geometric forms.

When the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in 1911, police arrested and questioned the poet Guillaume Apollinaire, who implicated his friend Pablo Picasso. Picasso was brought in for questioning because he had previously purchased stolen Iberian sculptures, but he was ultimately cleared of any involvement in the theft.

Francisco Goya is widely regarded as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. His innovative use of bold brushwork, subjective emotional expression, and dark, imaginative themes paved the way for modern movements like Romanticism and Expressionism.

Peter Paul Rubens was a highly influential Flemish artist of the Baroque period, active in the 17th century. His style emphasized movement, color, and sensuality, which are defining characteristics of Baroque art.

Michelangelo Buonarroti painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel between 1508 and 1512 under the commission of Pope Julius II. The masterpiece features iconic scenes from the Book of Genesis, including 'The Creation of Adam'.

Edvard Munch created four distinct versions of 'The Scream' using different mediums. These include two painted versions (one in the National Gallery of Norway and one in the Munch Museum) and two pastel versions, in addition to a lithographic stone from which several prints were made.

While Vincent van Gogh produced over 900 paintings, he is widely believed to have officially sold only one during his lifetime: 'The Red Vineyard' (La Vigne Rouge). It was purchased in 1890 by the Belgian artist Anna Boch for 400 francs.

The Last Supper is a late 15th-century mural painting by Leonardo da Vinci, located in the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan. It depicts the dramatic moment Jesus announces that one of his apostles will betray him.