Your Art Gallery: Tronies Trivia Quiz

Answer: Vincent van Gogh

Born in 1853 in the town of Zundert in the Dutch province of Noord Brabant, near the border with Belgium, Vincent Willem van Gogh is perhaps the most famous of all the Post-Impressionist artists, even though he died when he was just 37.

Although best-known for his landscapes, van Gogh painted a number of portraits, particularly in his final years. Examples are on display at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and elsewhere.

He also painted numerous self-portraits: one of the best known is his 1889 "Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear" that is part of the Courtauld Institute collection in London.

Van Gogh also painted a number of portraits of children, including numerous pictures of the three children of his postman in Arles, Joseph Roulin. "Portrait of Madame Augustine Roulin and Baby Marcelle", which can be seen at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, depicts the youngest of the boys and his mother. Armand Roulin, the oldest boy, who was 17 at the time, is probably the subject of our featured painting although he is not specifically named in the title of the work.

Answer: Wilhelm Leibl

Wilhelm Maria Hubertus Leibl was born in Cologne, Germany in 1844. A German Realist painter, he specialized in portraits and peasant life scenes.
Leibl's best-known works include 'Die drei Frauen in der Kirche' ('Three Women in Church'), which hangs in the Kunsthalle Hamburg museum. In der Bauernstube' ('In the Farmhouse') can be seen at the Neue Pinakothek museum in Munich, 'In Erwartung' ('In Anticipation') hangs in the Museum der bildenden Künste in Liepzig, and 'In der Küche' (In the Kitchen) is part of the collection at the Wallraf-Richartz Museum in Cologne.

Answer: Albrecht Durer

We have seen other works by Albrecht Dürer, born in Nuremberg, Germany in 1471, in earlier rooms of this gallery.

Dürer painted numerous portraits, of specific people such as Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (also housed at the Kunsthistorisches), of religious people including numerous depictions of Mary and a classic of Saint Jerome (Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga in Lisbon). His woodcuts and engravings are also amongst the finest examples of work in those mediums from just about any period.

Answer: Amedeo Modigliani

Amedeo Clemente Modigliani was born in 1884 in the port city of Livorno in northern Italy. He is particularly known for his portraits and nudes, most of them painted in his own very recognizable style.

Modigliani painted numerous portraits of specific people, including Picasso, but he also produced a number of tronies too. "Bride and Groom", painted in 1915 and displayed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, "The Little Peasant", a 1918 oil hanging at the Tate Modern in London and "Portrait of a Young Woman", also from 1918, which is part of the collection at the New Orleans Museum of Art, are all examples of Modigliani's work in this genre.

Answer: Camille Pissarro

He was born in 1830 in the Danish West Indies (now the U.S. Virgin Islands). Although slightly older than them, Jacob Abraham Camille Pissarro associated with most of the great French artists of the Impressionist period and beyond.

Primarily known for his landscapes, Pissarro also painted some notable portraits. Works pertinent to the genre of this room include "Washerwoman, Study", an 1880 oil housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, "Conversation" from 1881, which hangs in the National Museum of Western Art in Tokyo, Japan and "Shepherdess Bringing in Sheep" which is part of the collection belonging to the University of Oklahoma.

Answer: Paul Cezanne

Born in 1839 in the city of Aix-en-Provence, just north of Marseilles in southern France, Paul Cézanne produced work that can be divided into four distinct periods: dark, impressionist, mature and final. Our featured work comes from his 'Mature Period', between 1878 and 1890.

Cézanne's works cover most genres, with landscapes, still life and portraits all well represented. He painted a number of works that would have been suitable for this room of our virtual gallery including "Woman with a Coffeepot", an 1895 oil currently at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, "Bather" (Museum of Modern Art in New York) and "Mardi Gras", an 1888 work on display at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow.

Answer: Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Born in London in 1828, Dante Gabriel Rossetti was a poet, illustrator and painter whose work influenced many of the European Symbolists. Many of Rossetti's paintings were used to illustrate his literary works.

Rossetti painted numerous portraits of specific people, but also produced some works that would fit into the Tronie category including "The Roman Widow", an 1874 oil that can be seen at the Museo de Arte de Ponce in Puerto Rico.

Answer: Diego Velazquez

Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez was born in 1599 in Seville, Spain. Although not a prolific artist (there are only just over 100 of his works that are known today), he is best known for the many portraits of the Spanish royal family and other notable European figures of the period.

Velázquez also painted commoners, such as our featured painting which belongs to the collection at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Other examples suitable for this room of our gallery include "Old Woman Frying Eggs (The Old Cook)", a 1618 oil that is displayed at the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh, "The Lady with a Fan", now part of the Wallace Collection in London, and "The Lunch" which hangs in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.

Answer: Edgar Degas

Born in Paris in 1834, Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas is best known for his paintings of ballet and horse-racing. Indeed, more than half of his known works depict dancers.

Other Degas paintings that would have fitted into this room include "At the Café-Concert: The Song of the Dog", "The Singer with the Glove", an 1878 painting that can be seen at the Fogg Art Museum in Cambridge, Massachusetts and an 1879 pastel called "Woman in Street Clothes".

Answer: Mary Cassatt

Mary Stevenson Cassatt was born in 1844 in Allegheny City PA, on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, but spent most of her adult life in France. She had a close relationship with Edgar Degas, which is perhaps why a number of her paintings, such as our featured work, are set at the ballet or the theater.

Cassatt painted numerous pictures of 'ordinary people' going about their normal lives including "The Reader", an 1877 portrait that is displayed at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, "Child in a Straw Hat", an 1886 oil that hangs in the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. and "Young Woman in Green, Outdoors in the Sun" which can be seen at the Worcester Art Museum in Worcester, Massachusetts.