Art is one of the most subjective things in the world; what one person loves, another person may hate. To look at what we consider to be the most beautiful pieces of art in the world, we also look at the most famous paintings.

Notable artists paint so many beautiful pieces of art. We have listed out fifteen of the most beautiful and exciting works of art ever created. From artists like Leonardo in the Renaissance era to Vincent Van Gogh, we are all blessed to surround ourselves with beautifully executed artistic masterpieces.

Table of Contents

• What Makes An Artist Great?
  • Great Artists Have Mastery of their Craft:
  • Great Artists Have Innovation:
  • Great Artists Have Originality:
  • Great Artists Have Lasting Impact:
• 15 Of The Most Beautiful Pieces of Art in the World
  • 1. Mona Lisa, By Leonardo da Vinci
  • 2. The Last Supper, By Leonardo da Vinci
  • 3. The Starry Night – Vincent Van Gogh
  • 4. The Scream by Edvard Munch
  • 5. Guernica by Pablo Picasso
  • 6. The Kiss – Gustav Klimt
    • Listen To Our Podcast About The Most Beautiful Pieces Of Art In The World, below or by clicking here.
  • 7. Girl With A Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer
  • 8. The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli
  • 9. Las Meninas by Diego Velazquez
  • 10. The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo
  • 11. American Gothic by Grant Wood
  • 12. Water Lilies Series by Claude Monet
  • 13. The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali
  • 14. Oriental Poppies by Georgia O’Keeffe
  • 15. Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird by Frida Kahlo
• The Significance of Art and Artists: 10 Reasons to Embrace and Study Art
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Related Questions
  • 21 Top Renaissance Artists And Their Works of Art
  • What Is The Importance Of Art From The Renaissance Period?
  • Early Renaissance Vs. High Renaissance Art Explained

What Makes An Artist Great?

The definition of what makes an artist great can vary depending on personal opinion and cultural context.

Great artists often have a unique vision or perspective on the world that they can express through their art. They may use their art as a way to comment on social, political, or cultural issues or to explore deeper themes related to the human condition.

However, some general characteristics that are often associated with great artists include the following:

Great Artists Have Mastery of their Craft:

Great artists have a deep understanding of the technical aspects of their medium and can use that knowledge to create works that are both aesthetically pleasing and emotionally impactful.

Great Artists Have Innovation:

Great artists often break with convention and push the boundaries of what is considered acceptable or desirable in their respective fields. They create new styles, techniques, or forms of expression that inspire.

Great Artists Have Originality:

Great artists create works that are original and unique to them. They may draw inspiration from other artists or the world around them, but they always put their spin on their creations, making them stand out from the work of others.

Great Artists Have Lasting Impact:

Great artists have a lasting impact on their field and on the wider culture. Their works may be influential in shaping artistic movements, inspiring future generations of artists, or changing how people think about art and the world around them.

What makes an artist great is a combination of many things; It is a subjective and constantly evolving concept. Great artists are those whose works continue to inspire and captivate audiences long after they have been created.

15 Of The Most Beautiful Pieces of Art in the World

Each year, billions of dollars worth of art will pass through many of the world’s international auction houses. Some of this art will end up in a museum for everyone to enjoy, and others will end up in the hands of private collectors.

Of all the billions of art sold, auctioned, and produced each year, it is hard to know what art is considered the most beautiful. To look at this, we will look at the most famous works of art globally.

All these famous works of art on our list deserve to be there. They are beautiful works of art, but they are also very famous.

1. Mona Lisa, By Leonardo da Vinci

The Mona Lisa Artist: Leonardo da Vinci
Estimated date of painting: 1503 to 1519 (no one is sure)
Where to view The Mona Lisa: Louvre Museum (Paris, France)

The Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci is number one as the most beautiful and most famous painting worldwide; there is something so magical about Mona Lisa’s enigmatic smile.

The Mona Lisa is thought to be a painting of Lisa Gherardini, the wife of the influential Florence merchant Francesco del Giocondo; no one is sure who the model is for the Mona Lisa painting. The mystery of who the Mona Lisa is, adds to the allure of this beautiful and famous painting.

At one time, the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre Museum and hidden in Italy for about two years. The culprit was caught. You can learn about this fascinating art robbery by reading our blog about the Mona Lisa Painting And The Paris Louvre Museum by clicking here.

2. The Last Supper, By Leonardo da Vinci

The Last Supper Artist: Leonardo da Vinci
Estimated date of painting: 1495 to 1498
Where to view The Last Supper: Santa Maria delle Grazie (Milan, Italy)

Leonardo da Vinci is the only artist to have two of the world’s most beautiful and famous paintings credited to him. The Last Supper also shows what an incredible artist Leonardo da Vinci was.

The Last Supper depicts the last time Jesus broke bread with his apostles. Leonardo painted it at the exact moment when Christ told his apostles that someone would betray him.

Since Leonardo studied human behavior, so he painted how he saw each of Christ’s apostles reacting to the news of His betrayal. To learn more about The Last Supper painting, you can read our blog about What Inspired Leonardo da Vinci To Paint The Last Supper? by clicking here.

The Last Supper is a vast fresco painting that is 4.6 meters (15 feet) high and 8.8 meters (28.9 feet) wide, ensuring a memorable viewing for all who view it.

The fresco has also survived two wartime threats. Once Napoleon’s troops used the refectory wall where the fresco was painted as target practice, and later during World War II, the roof was blown off the Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy.

3. The Starry Night – Vincent Van Gogh

The Starry Night Artist: Vincent van Gogh
Date of painting: 1889
Where to view The Starry Night painting: Museum of Modern Art (New York City)

The Starry Night is a widely famous and beautiful painting. It is an abstract painting that uses Van Gogh’s signature thick brushstrokes.

The painting used striking blues, yellows, and a dreamy, swirling atmosphere. The colors and technique inspire and intrigue art lovers and artists alike.

You can learn more about How Much Is Van Gogh’s Starry Night Worth And Other Facts by clicking here.

What is unique about this painting is that Vincent Van Gogh lived in an asylum in Saint Remy, France, where he was being treated for mental illness when he painted Starry Night. He would memorize the view from his window at night and then create this painting from memory during the daytime.

4. The Scream by Edvard Munch

The Scream Artist: Edvard Munch
Date of painting: 1893
Where to view The Scream painting: National Museum (Oslo, Norway)

The Scream by Edvard Munch is a beautiful and famous painting. The painting is so popular it even has its own emoji.

The figure in the painting is not producing the scream but is trying to block out the shriek or noise coming from nature. Munch painted The Scream from some actual experiences of taking a sunset stroll in Oslo, where his senses were overwhelmed by the deep red hue colors he was seeing.

The Scream is such a powerful painting filled with emotion, the emotion that Edvard Munch felt himself as we walked the streets of Olso, Norway.

5. Guernica by Pablo Picasso

Guernica Artist: Pablo Picasso
Date of painting: 1937
Where to view the Guernica: Museo Reina Sofía (Madrid, Spain)

Guernica is a powerful yet intriguing, beautiful black and white oil painting beautifully executed by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. Picasso painted the painting in 1937 following the German bombing of Guernica, a city located in Spain’s Basque region.

Guernica has the unique Picasso style of using art beautifully and uniquely while also using art to tell a story that includes elements of protest and propaganda.

During World War II, Picasso loaned the painting to the Metropolitan Museum of art in New York City, where it remained until 1981, when it was returned to its native Spain.

6. The Kiss – Gustav Klimt

The Kiss Artist: Gustav Klimt
Estimated date of painting: 1907 to 1908
Where to view the Kiss: Upper Belvedere Museum (Vienna, Austria)

The Kiss by Gustav Klimt is a beautifully mastered statement about love. In this painting, Klimt makes a general statement that love is at the heart of all human existence.

This painting is beautifully executed but has a broad magnetic and mass appeal. The painting shows a couple embracing each other as their bodies are intertwined using elaborate robes.

You can read our blog about Who Was Gustav Klimt Inspired By? by clicking here.

The painting is an oil painting, but adding to the beauty of the painting, Klimt added gold leafing, silver, and platinum to the painting.

Listen To Our Podcast About The Most Beautiful Pieces Of Art In The World,
below or by clicking here.

7. Girl With A Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer

Girl With A Pearl Earring Artist: Johannes Vermeer
Estimated date of painting: 1665
Where to view The Girl With Pearl Earrings: Mauritshuis (The Hague, Netherlands)

The Girl With A Pearl Earring is a beautiful painting of a girl wearing a blue and gold turban with oversized pearl earrings. The painting is beautifully executed and rightfully deserves its place as one of the most beautiful paintings in the world.

A Girl With A Pearl Earring Painting often gets compared with Leonardo’s Mona Lisa; both paintings are intriguing as both subjects are not quite smiling at us.

To learn more, you can read our blog How Much Is Johannes Vermeer’s Girl With A Pearl Earring Worth? by clicking here

8. The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli

The Birth of Venus Artist: Sandro Botticelli
Estimated date of painting: 1485
Where to view The Birth of Venus: Le Gallerie Degli Uffizi (Florence, Italy)

The Birth of Venus is a beautifully executed painting by Sandro Botticelli. The wealthy art-loving Medici family probably commissioned the painting in Florence, Italy.

In his painting, Botticelli focused on the Goddess of love. The theme of love makes this an essential and significant work of art.

9. Las Meninas by Diego Velazquez

Las Meninas Artist: Diego Velázquez
Date of painting: 1656
Where to view Las Meninas: Museo del Prado (Madrid, Spain)

Las Meninas is a beautifully complex work of art by the Spanish artist Diego Velazquez. The work was commissioned by King Philip IV of Spain, who ruled Spain from 1621 to 1665. This painting was housed in the Royal Palace of Spain until 1819.

The Las Meninas work of art is very complex, and the complexity of the work has fascinated art critics and the public for centuries. Hidden in the painting is also a self-portrait of Diego Velaquez.

10. The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo

The Creation of Adam Artist: Michelangelo
Date of painting: 1508 to 1512
Where to view The Creation of Adam: Sistine Chapel (Vatican City)

The Creation of Adam is a magnificent work by Michelangelo a renowned Renaissance artist. The Creation of Adam covers part of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

The famous painting depicts God and Adam with outstretched arms and their fingers almost touching. Michelangelo masterfully created this, so it continues to be one of the most replicated images.

You can learn more about Michelangelo by reading our blog about Michelangelo’s Method Of painting the Sistine Chapel Ceiling by clicking here.

One of the things that make this work such a masterpiece and so beautiful is the way Michelangelo was able to masterfully depict the muscles and form of Adam and God while simultaneously showing a kind of intimacy, as their fingers are almost touching but not quite.

11. American Gothic by Grant Wood

The American Gothic Artist – Grant Wood
Date of painting: 
Where to view The American Gothic – The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Il.

Perhaps no other American painting so eloquently and beautifully symbolizes the American Midwest than the American Gothic by Grant Wood. A man and woman stand outside their house with a Gothic window at the very top of the home.

Though many have considered this painting satirical commentary about the American Midwest, Grant Wood wanted to show the world positive and beautiful imagery of the midwestern United States. Grant Wood beautifully executed this painting to show us the beauty of good midwestern American values.

You can read more about the American Gothic painting by reading Why The Painting American Gothic Is Called That? by clicking here.

12. Water Lilies Series by Claude Monet

Water Lilies Series Artist – Claude Monet
Date of painting: Late 1800s to 1927
Where to view Water Lilies Series – Museums and collectors around the world.

Water Lilies is a series of 250 oil paintings by the French Impressionist Claude Monet. The paintings are of his flower garden in his home in Giverny, France.

The water lilies became Claude Monet’s primary focus for the last thirty years of his life. What is impressive about these paintings is that many of them he painted while he suffered from cataracts.

To learn more about Claude Monet And His Art Work, please read our blog by clicking here.

Over the years, these beautiful paintings have found their way into the collections of museums worldwide.

13. The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali

The Persistence of Memory Artist – Salvador Dali
Date of painting: 1931
Where to view The Persistence of Memory – Museums of Modern Art, New York, New York

The Persistence of Memory is considered by many to be a bleak painting, but this painting has this very haunting beauty that ensures it gets a top spot as a well-known and beautiful painting. Dali brilliantly chooses colors that are rich and beautiful.

This painting has become so vital that it is often referred to in popular culture.

14. Oriental Poppies by Georgia O’Keeffe

Oriental Poppies Artist – Georgia O’Keeffe
Date of painting: 1928
Where to view Oriental Poppies – The University of Minnesota Art Museum, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Georgia O’Keeffe was fascinated with flowers and painted many wonderful ones, but one masterpiece that we feel deserves to be in the top fifteen is her Oriental Poppies painting. When it was painted, it was considered a groundbreaking art masterpiece.

O’Keeffe used her trademark way of magnifying the flower to allow the viewer to appreciate its beauty with all its details. Part of how she handled this subject matter continues to give this painting a timeless beauty.

To learn more about Georgia O’Keeffe, you can read our blog about Georgia O’Keeffe, The Mother of American Modernism Painting, by clicking here.

15. Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird by Frida Kahlo

Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird Artist – Frida Kahlo
Date of painting: 1940
Where to view Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird – Harry Ransom Center, Austin, Texas

One of Frida Kahlo’s iconic paintings is Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird. Frida Kahlo had this unique way of making a painting that may have pain and suffering but at the same time look hauntingly beautiful; Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird is a classic Frida Kahlo painting.

This oil on canvas was painted in 1940, but during her lifetime, Frida Kahlo painted over 55 self-portraits, many of which had to do with her suffering and physical pain.

The Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird is a masterful composition showing Kahlo’s sense of color selection, delicate brushwork, fine details, and artistic skill and ability.

To discover more about Frida Kahlo, you can read our blog about Who Was the Mexican Artist Frida Kahlo (1907-1954)? by clicking here.

The Significance of Art and Artists: 10 Reasons to Embrace and Study Art

In its myriad forms, art has always been an intrinsic part of human civilization. Whether we realize it or not, it weaves into our daily lives, enriching and shaping our experiences.

Here are ten compelling reasons why art and artists are invaluable and why the study of art matters:

1. Reflection of Culture: Art is a mirror of a society’s values, beliefs, and historical context. By examining art, we can understand and appreciate the essence of different cultures and epochs.
2. Emotional Resonance: Art has the power to evoke emotions, ranging from joy and awe to sorrow and introspection. It allows for catharsis, healing, and deeper emotional understanding.
3. Cognitive Development: Engaging with and creating art can sharpen critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It encourages lateral thinking, imagination, and the ability to see multiple solutions to a problem.
4. Social Commentary: Throughout history, artists have used their medium to comment on societal issues, from war and injustice to love and human rights. Art becomes a platform for raising awareness and inciting change.
5. Enhancing Aesthetics: Artists bring beauty into our world. From well-designed products and captivating advertisements to public sculptures and murals, their contributions enhance our everyday surroundings.
6. Fostering Connection: Art transcends linguistic and geographical barriers. It provides a universal language that allows people from diverse backgrounds to connect, relate, and communicate.
7. Economic Impact: The art industry, comprising galleries, theaters, music venues, and more, contributes significantly to the economy. Artists, curators, and other professionals offer employment opportunities and stimulate local economies.
8. Promotion of Open-mindedness: Encountering various art forms exposes individuals to different perspectives, fostering open-mindedness, tolerance, and a deeper appreciation of diversity.
9. Personal Growth: Studying art can be a journey of personal growth. It nurtures qualities like patience, dedication, and resilience. Engaging with art can also boost self-esteem and provide a sense of accomplishment.
10. Preservation of Legacy: Art is a testament to human creativity and civilization. Through conservation and study, we ensure that future generations understand their heritage and the evolutionary journey of human expression.

Art is not just about paintings in a gallery or performances on a stage; it’s interwoven into the very fabric of our existence. Artists, with their unique perspectives and skills, elevate our experiences, challenge our beliefs, and contribute profoundly to the tapestry of human history. Embracing and studying art is an acknowledgment of its irreplaceable role in shaping individual lives and society at large.

Anita Louise Art is dedicated to art education, great artists, and inspiring others to find and create their art. We love art that uplifts and inspires. #ArtToMakeYouSmile! #ArtToMakeYouHappy!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Related Questions

21 Top Renaissance Artists And Their Works of Art

The Renaissance produced many great artists throughout Europe. Many of these artists have continued to inspire artists throughout the centuries. When we speak of top Renaissance artists, we think of the trinity of artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael. But besides these three artists, many other influential Renaissance artists remain essential.

By clicking here, you can learn more by reading 21 Top Renaissance Artists And Their Works of Art.

What Is The Importance Of Art From The Renaissance Period?

Renaissance art is essential as it was a time of rebirth and discovery. Artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael were at the forefront of that change, creation, and discovery. Renaissance art has influenced art and artists for many centuries and continues to influence artists today.

By clicking here, you can learn more by reading What Is The Importance Of Art From The Renaissance Period?.

Early Renaissance Vs. High Renaissance Art Explained

Early Renaissance and High Renaissance are both periods of the art of the Renaissance era. The entire Renaissance era shared a lot of the same characteristics. The High Renaissance was dominated by three major artists: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael.

By clicking here, you can learn more by reading Early Renaissance Vs. High Renaissance Art Explained.