Frederick Leighton, Flaming June

I love this painting. It is strikingly beautiful. The orange is so vibrant and lovely it really seduces you. Or me at least. It is part of the aesthetics movement in which artists were interested in creating art for art's sake (although the term came later). During this time the artists were interested in creating works that really demonstrated the play with the medium of paint. I love that they were interested in the craft itself and really making works that speak to this. Unfortunately, the works are also somewhat misogynist in that they most often show beautiful women that are lazy, sleeping, and passive. The stereotypical female during the 19th century.