Flora and fauna; whether symbolic or documenting one-time curiosities from foreign lands.
Times of grief and sadness epitomised by the pietà - the mourning of Christ’s dead body.
Everyday chores and pastimes, from Dutch maids to the spectacle of the Spanish bullfight.
Music, laughter and celebration from Dutch genre painting to Italian allegorical scenes.
Corot’s rural idylls, Turner’s sublime seascapes, and the faded grandeur of ancient Rome.
The motherly love of the Madonna to the passion of Titian’s Bacchus, love in its many forms.