Picture This! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Edward Hopper

New York artist Edward Hopper (1882-1967) used watercolor and oils to create a realistic style for his paintings of both urban and rural scenes. Among Hopper's works are "Automat" (1927), "Chop Suey" (1929) and "Early Sunday Morning" (1930).

In 1942 Hopper produced one of his best known pictures, "Nighthawks", which depicts a downtown diner late in the evening. There is a couple and a gentleman at the counter, with the counterman in white. No expressions and no frills.

Answer: Edvard Munch

Norwegian artist Edvard Munch (1863-1944) was influenced by the German Expressionism of the 20th century, and often included psychological themes in his pictures. Other works include "Madonna" (1895), "Anxiety" (1894) and "The Dance of Life" (1900).

Did you know that Munch's most famous painting, "The Scream" ("Der Schrei de Natur" in Norwegian), is actually four versions of the familiar painting, done between 1893 and 1910, as both paintings and pastels?

Answer: Vincent van Gogh

Most of us know of the troubled life of Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890). He was a post-impressionist painter, and one of the most influential artists of all time, despite the fact that, of his 900 paintings, he only sold one while he was alive. Among his famous paintings are "Irises" and "The Potato Eaters".

In June 1889 he created "The Starry Night" which shows the view from van Gogh's east-facing window at the asylum at Saint-Remy-de-Provence in southern France. The painting, with its bold colors and brushstrokes, resides at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Answer: Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) may have been one of the first "Renaissance" men. He was an artist, sculptor, architect, inventor, musician and scientist. Among his inventions was an early parachute and helicopter. He is also responsible for the masterpieces "The Vitruvian Man" (1490) and "The Last Supper" (1498).

Between 1503 and 1506, da Vinci created "La Giaconda", a portrait of Lisa del Giocondo, known world-wide as "Mona Lisa", with her impenetrable smile. This work of art, housed in the Louvre, is often called "the best known, the most visited...the most parodied work of art in the world" (according to the Wikipedia article on the painting).

Answer: Sandro Botticelli

Born Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filpepi, Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) was an Italian artist during the Early Renaissance. He spent his life in Florence, Italy where he painted "Primavera" (1482), "Adoration of the Magi 1475" (1476) and "Mars and Venus" (1483).

"The Birth of Venus" was created between 1484 to 1486, and is located in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. It depicts Venus, the Goddess of Love and Beauty, standing in a giant scallop shell, rising from the sea. It is said that the painting was commissioned by Lorenzo de' Medici, and has religious overtones.

Answer: Rembrandt van Rijn

Dutch artist Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) is often thought to be one of the greatest visual artists of all time. His art was varied in both style and subject, as he created portraits and landscapes, animals, biblical themes, and allegories.

Among Rembrandt's works are "The Return of the Prodigal Son" (1665) and "Aristotle with a Bust of Homer" (1653). However, his most recognizable work might be "The Night Watch", painted in 1642. It is a group portrait of a militia company, and is alternatively titled "The Shooting Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch".

Answer: Grant Wood

Grant Wood (1891-1942) was a painter who grew up in Iowa and generally depicted scenes from the American Midwest. Many of his works were created in the depression era and were basic, simple and without flair. Among his paintings are "Woman with Plants" (1929) and "Fall Plowing" (1931).

In between the two above-mentioned paintings, Wood produced his most iconic masterpiece in 1930, "American Gothic", which shows a dour couple, a farmer holding a pitchfork and standing, with his unsmiling wife or daughter, in front of their house.

Answer: Salvador Dali

In a quiz like this, I would be remiss if I did not include Spanish artist Salvador Dali (1904-1989). Dali, with his strange ideas and that iconic mustache, was really the King of Surrealism. His works challenged the senses with their paradoxes and created controversy with his themes.

Among his masterful pieces are "Swans Reflecting Elephants" and "The Burning Giraffe", both from 1937. However, Dali's most well-known masterpiece is, perhaps, "The Persistence of Memory", painted in 1931. Dali's images of melting clocks is unforgettable.

Answer: Michelangelo Buonarroti

One of the art world's most famous artists was the painter, sculptor, poet and architect, Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564). During the Italian Renaissance, he created two of the best known sculptures, the "Pieta" and "David" (1504).

In 1508, Michelangelo was commissioned by Pope Julius II to work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. It took approximately four years and, in 1512, the ceiling was completed. It had nine panels, illustrating events from the Book of Genesis, with one of the central panels depicting God and Adam in "The Creation of Adam".

Answer: Andrew Wyeth

Visual artist Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009) grew up in Pennsylvania and was primarily a "realist" painter. His art depicted his life, nature and the scenes around him. His father, N.C. was also an artist and illustrator, and he was instrumental in developing these skills in his children.

"Christina's World" was completed in 1948. The painting shows a young woman with her back turned toward the viewer. It is Wyeth's neighbor, Christina Olson, lying in the grass, with a farmhouse in the background. The work is housed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

Answer: Johannes Vermeer

Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675) was one of the 17th century Dutch masters. He painted scenes of everyday middle class life. Vermeer is known for his use of light in his pictures. Among his works are: "The Art of Painting" (1666), "The Milkmaid" (1658) and "View of Delft" (1661).

In 1665 Vermeer completed his masterpiece, an oil painting called "Girl with a Pearl Earring", which features an image of a young girl from the shoulders up. Her face is unspoiled, and she is wearing a blue and tan headscarf and a pearl earring.

Answer: Claude Monet

Claude Monet (1840-1926) was the founder of the French Impressionistic School. His soft, pastel images of scenes from nature produced some of the most beautiful images on canvas, e.g., "Impression Sunrise" (1872), "Woman with a Parasol" (1875) and "Poppies" (1873).

Did you know that "Water Lilies" was actually a series of approximately 250 paintings, painted between 1840 and 1926? The scenes show Monet's flower garden at his home in Giverny in Northern France; many of the pictures were painted while Monet's vision was impaired by cataracts.

Answer: James McNeill Whistler

James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) was an American artist who did most of his work in London, England. Many of his pictures were portraits of the upscale people of Whistler's world, e.g., the muted "Portrait of a Man in Evening Dress" and "Sketch of Miss Ethel Philip" (1897).

Whistler's crowning achievement, "Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1" was completed in 1871. You may think you are not familiar with this work of art, but it is also titled "Whistler's Mother". You know; the iconic black and white oil painting of Anna McNeill Whistler sitting in a chair with her feet on a stool.

Answer: Georges Seurat

The French post-impressionist painter Georges Seurat (1859-1891) was known for using techniques like chromoluminarism and pointillism, where he used small dots of color to create large images of his surroundings. His works include: "Circus Sideshow" (1889), "The Laborers" (1883) and "The Eiffel Tower" (1889).

In 1884 Seurat completed what may be his most well known work, "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte". The scene shows families sitting and standing on the grass by the water. The people are dressed in the garb of the times with their parasols and their pets, looking out at the boats on the water.

Answer: Pablo Picasso

Spanish artist Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was a painter, sculptor, designer, poet and playwright who spent most of his life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Picasso worked in "periods", i.e., the Blue Period, Rose Period, African-influenced Period and Cubist Period.

His works include "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" (1907) and "The Weeping Woman" (1937). That same year, 1937, Picasso painted his masterpiece, "Guernica", which depicts the bombing of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.