#Josefina Lopez Ovalle

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My Art Haven

Three artworks for my living room, if money and space were no object �� with Bernadine Bröcker, Vastari Co-Founder & CEO

1. John Singer Sargent's Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose (1885-6)

This is a beautiful work on so many levels, but if I owned it, I would take it out of its frame and have it on an easel. That is how I encountered it once at the conservation studio of the Tate (thanks to Josefina Lopez Ovalle, who showed me around while she was conducting research there on Latin American art). Something about seeing a work on an easel, stripped of the gilded cage, was emotionally impactful and so strong. Also, given the subject matter is so delicate, framed with delicate lighting, it felt so much more spiritual, seen in that way.

2. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner's Street, Berlin (1913)

This is a very different work. I truly felt that the women portrayed by Kirchner had such power and sultry appeal, it always fascinated me. Further, the optical illusions of these works really caught me off guard. What is happening with the environment? What is real, what is imagined? I can keep looking at the work for very long periods of time.

3. Diego de Siloe's Saint Jerome (c. 1555)

I am not particularly religious but I am always attracted to the Catholic depictions of Saint Jerome (347-420 AD), the scholar with a friendly lion by his side who also experienced humility in the desert. This figuration by Diego Siloe is one of my favourites. The charming lion under the desk, looking hesitantly at his companion from the corner of his eye. The very detailed feet of Saint Jerome and the way his pinky still earmarks a chapter in the book he's reading even though he's clearly going through some kind of agony. It's not your typical living room art work, but I can also look at this for hours on end. I wrote my master's thesis on this Spanish Renaissance artist, and travelled to Burgos specially to see this work in person. It did not disappoint.