Edmund Blair-Leighton

I have recently discovered one of my favorite painters. I think the thing I like most about his paintings is the way he uses light. He never uses "artificial" spot lights. Rather, he uses sunlight usually coming from the back or side. Also, all the paintings are oil-on-canvas which gives real depth to the pictures. This lighting and paint, combined with the warm colors he uses, create a quietly radiant painting that is simply breath-taking. The picture I first fell in love with is called The Accolade (1901)


If this was not enough to put him in my "favorite painters" list, on further research I found another picture. Now, understandably, Lady Godiva has a special place in my heart. However, there really aren't any acceptable pictures of her, seeing as painters seem to harp on the riding-naked-on-a-horse theme. So I was rather ecstatic when I found Blair-Leighton's Lady Godiva (1892)