Luke Mack Art

In 1607, the Delft city council decided to commission a portrait of Stadholder Maurits of Nassau for the town hall, with Michiel van Mierevelt as the chosen artist due to the passing...

encaustic on panel b. 1954, Reno Nevada Michael David is best known for his use of encaustic on large abstract paintings. A practitioner of Abstract Expressionism, David layers bees...

Dalessio makes the sea sparkle in this plein air depiction of the coast of Portugal. Framed dimensions: 13.5 x 17.5 inches Artist Bio: Marc Dalessio was born in 1972 in Los Angele...

A plein air painting. An impressionistic view of a street in Tribeca. The setting sun illuminates the skyscraper in the distance. Artist Bio: Marc Dalessio was born in 1972 in Los ...

Icilio Federico Joni. Italian ( b.1866 - d.1946 ). Painted Gesso, Gilt & Wood Tavolette Book Cover Binding In The Sienese Biccherna Aesthetic. Book Cover size 11 inches x 8.1 inches ( 28cm x 20.5cm ). Frame size 16 inches x 13 inches ( 40.5cm x 33cm ). Available for sale; this painted gesso and gilt “tavolette” wooden book cover in the Biccherna aesthetic is by Icilio Federico Joni. The book cover is mounted and supplied in a contemporary black Tulip Wood frame (which is shown in these photographs) which is glazed with non-reflective Tru Vue UltraVue® UV70 glass. The wooden book cover is curved and float mounted giving a wonderful 3D depth to its presentation. The gesso and painted surfaces have benefitted from professional restoration which was performed on our instruction, supervision and approval. This antique book cover is in very good condition, commensurate with its age. The frame presentation is new and in excellent condition. Combined, it wants for nothing and is supplied ready to hang and display. The story of these panels and of their artist is fascinating, and begins in 13th century Siena: The Biccherna was the person who held the position of Magistrate of Chancellery of Finance from the 13th to the 14th century for the republic and the city of Siena, in the Tuscany region of Italy. The records of that office were very important because Siena was one of the earliest and most significant banking centres in Italy, and indeed in Europe. It became the fashion to keep banking and taxation records of the region in large books with painted leather covers. These were originally made from wood and leather. In the competition to make these ever more prestigious the bindings and panels on the front and rear of the books were painted by the major artists of the day, such as Giovanni di Paolo. Many of these mainly secular covers are displayed in the Archives of the State of Siena located in the Palazzo Piccolmini. The Gothic Revival of the 19th century occurred partly as a reaction against the progress of industrialisation in Europe generally. It was however greatly affected by the unification of Italy in the second half of the 19th century. This led to the closure and downsizing of many religious institutions, which resulted in the dispersal of thousands of works of art dating from the Middle Ages and early Renaissance. Many aristocratic and bourgeois families struggled to pay debts or simply to make ends meet and so they sold off their private collections and family heirlooms. There was then an influx of goods into the antiques market which provided a great deal of work for Italy’s restorers and craftsmen, since many of these pieces were in need of cleaning, repair and, in keeping with the interventionist tastes of the times, radical restoration, before they could be sold on, often to foreign buyers. These early Italian works became so fashionable that demand soon outstripped supply. This in turn gave rise to a new type of artist-craftsman capable of turning out from scratch increasingly convincing reproductions, imitations and out-and-out fakes. Siena naturally became the epicentre of this thriving cottage industry because of the extraordinary continuity there in traditional craft skills. This technical expertise had been handed down from generation to generation, and it was perhaps inevitable that a number of artists with real talent, the flair of commerce and a genuine love and understanding of antique Sienese art should adapt their skills to these new market conditions. Among these artists were Igino Gottardi, Alceo Dossena, Fulvio Corsini, Umberto Giunti...

A deeply impressionistic plein air painting of the beach and its flora. Clouds along the horizon, waves crashing on the beach. Framed dimensions: 13.5 x 17.5 inches Artist Bio: Mar...

"Pony and Groom" is an unframed, oil on wood panel, contemporary impressionist painting. Painted during the 2014 Wellington Winter Equestrian Festival. Center stage, stands a fit, br...

"The Factory Builds Eternally East" depicts a open skies and city lights. This scene is of no particular place, but rather Carpenter's interpretation and compilation of various places he has visited. As a painter, I examine how the depiction of light contributes to our experience of paintings. The portrayal of light helps a painting to convey the atmosphere and mood of a scene, and is much of what enables a painting to convey depth and realism. Our perception of lighting features occurs largely through pathways in the brain that carry only black and white information, pathways which are distinct from areas that encode the colors and details we use to delineate specific objects. By painting in grayscale, I try to interact specifically with this region of our visual system, with the hope of conveying some of the spaciousness and emotional significance that light can imbue on scenes. Light, whether as the crisp contrast of a back-lit forest or the gray haze of an industrial landscape, is what defines a scene. Its power to communicate the feel of a place is the principle subject of my paintings. The Blue Azul...

encaustic on panel b. 1954, Reno Nevada Michael David is best known for his use of encaustic on large abstract paintings. A practitioner of Abstract Expressionism, David layers bees...

Icilio Federico Joni. Italian ( b.1866 - d.1946 ). Painted Gesso, Gilt & Wood Tavolette Book Cover Binding In The Sienese Biccherna Aesthetic. Book Cover size 11 inches x 8.1 inches ( 28cm x 20.5cm ). Frame size 16 inches x 13 inches ( 40.5cm x 33cm ). Available for sale; this painted gesso and gilt “tavolette” wooden book cover in the Biccherna aesthetic is by Icilio Federico Joni. The book cover is mounted and supplied in a contemporary black Tulip Wood frame (which is shown in these photographs) which is glazed with non-reflective Tru Vue UltraVue® UV70 glass. The wooden book cover is curved and float mounted giving a wonderful 3D depth to its presentation. The gesso and painted surfaces have benefitted from professional restoration which was performed on our instruction, supervision and approval. This antique book cover is in very good condition, commensurate with its age. The frame presentation is new and in excellent condition. Combined, it wants for nothing and is supplied ready to hang and display. The story of these panels and of their artist is fascinating, and begins in 13th century Siena: The Biccherna was the person who held the position of Magistrate of Chancellery of Finance from the 13th to the 14th century for the republic and the city of Siena, in the Tuscany region of Italy. The records of that office were very important because Siena was one of the earliest and most significant banking centres in Italy, and indeed in Europe. It became the fashion to keep banking and taxation records of the region in large books with painted leather covers. These were originally made from wood and leather. In the competition to make these ever more prestigious the bindings and panels on the front and rear of the books were painted by the major artists of the day, such as Giovanni di Paolo. Many of these mainly secular covers are displayed in the Archives of the State of Siena located in the Palazzo Piccolmini. The Gothic Revival of the 19th century occurred partly as a reaction against the progress of industrialisation in Europe generally. It was however greatly affected by the unification of Italy in the second half of the 19th century. This led to the closure and downsizing of many religious institutions, which resulted in the dispersal of thousands of works of art dating from the Middle Ages and early Renaissance. Many aristocratic and bourgeois families struggled to pay debts or simply to make ends meet and so they sold off their private collections and family heirlooms. There was then an influx of goods into the antiques market which provided a great deal of work for Italy’s restorers and craftsmen, since many of these pieces were in need of cleaning, repair and, in keeping with the interventionist tastes of the times, radical restoration, before they could be sold on, often to foreign buyers. These early Italian works became so fashionable that demand soon outstripped supply. This in turn gave rise to a new type of artist-craftsman capable of turning out from scratch increasingly convincing reproductions, imitations and out-and-out fakes. Siena naturally became the epicentre of this thriving cottage industry because of the extraordinary continuity there in traditional craft skills. This technical expertise had been handed down from generation to generation, and it was perhaps inevitable that a number of artists with real talent, the flair of commerce and a genuine love and understanding of antique Sienese art should adapt their skills to these new market conditions. Among these artists were Igino Gottardi, Alceo Dossena, Fulvio Corsini, Umberto Giunti...

An oil painting by American plein-air painter Marc Dalessio. A depiction of the rolling hills of Tuscany. Cultivated nature lives on the left with the vineyard organized with fencep...

A plein air painting of the Carmel coast in California. The quick white brushstrokes approximate the crashing water on the rocks. Artist Bio Marc Dalessio was born in 1972 in Los An...