Here are a few interesting paintings that show “unusual” objects.

The Annunciation with Saint Emidius by Carlo Crivelli (look closely at the disc shining the light down on Mary)

Check out the source of the ray of light

This next one is even stranger. What the object is I really don’t know, but the painting was done in 1600 and can still be seen in the  San Lorenzo church in San Pietro, Montalcino, Italy. It looks uncannily like Sputnik, yet either side of it are seated God and His son. 

The object in the top of the painting seems rather out of place!

  And, a detail -

What does it all mean? The most obvious solution is to assume these are just coincidences or that the meaning of these things has been lost in time. Or, in some cases, that the artists just didn’t do a very good job! 

Next on the list a Madonna and Child painting by Domenico Ghirlandai, with closeups - 

  But wait, it gets weirder in the closeups - 

And finally, a pretty remarkable flying saucer in Aert De Gelder’s “Baptism of Christ” painting. 

Baptised by WHAT?!

Li Ze Zhong Article

I particularly enjoyed the light/dark theme and the style of the paintings.

I have fond memories of watching the programs as a child (anyone else remember Morph? Claymation in the pre-Wallace and Gromit days!). The TV shows must have had a big influence on me and my other English colleagues, judging by our choice of careers!

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Some of these artists are already attracting attention and winning prizes. Please, drop by and take a look at the collection!

Research recently carried out by the University of Bari in Italy has proved that Art, Décor and a pleasant environment does in fact help us to overcome both emotional and physical pain. The results of the experiment will no doubt be good news to those hospitals who are accused of wasting money on Art and interior design.

A team at the Neurophysiopathology Pain Unit run by Professor Marina de Tommaso randomly selected a group of men and women to pick 20 paintings that they found to be either beautiful or ugly from a collection of 300 masterpieces by artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Bottero and Botticelli.

Whilst the group examined the paintings they were zapped with a short laser pulse into their figure tip. What they experienced was a sensation akin to a pin prick. Interestingly, each subject reported the sensation to be a third less intense whilst viewing the selected works they deemed beautiful as apposed to when they were viewing just a blank panel or an ugly painting.

Paintings that were deemed beautiful by the group who were not experts in art were works mainly by Leonardo da Vinci, Van Gogh and Botticelli whilst Bottero was ranked as an ugly painting. Whilst electrodes measuring brain activity noted a reduced response to pain whilst the group observed the beautiful paintings they did not measure any increase in pain whilst the subjects viewed the uglier paintings.

Distractions such as music and art have always been suspected of soothing pain in patients but now the findings from Professor Marina de Tommaso and his team reported in the New Scientist finally give us some proof of beauty being a healer.