venturehwa.blogg.se - The Empress of Art by Susan Jaques

was founded with many of Catherine’s Hermitage paintings? What was behind Nicholas I’s dismissive attitude toward his grandmother? Were you surprised that the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

The final chapter explores the fate of Catherine’s art collection and palaces.

Why did she commission the sculpture? What does the inscription convey?

Consider the Bronze Horseman, her equestrian tribute to Peter the Great.

If you could join Catherine the Great at one of her famous hermitage dinner parties, what would you talk about?.

Catherine didn’t consider herself beautiful, yet she encouraged her images to go viral in today’s parlance.

How did this austere, elegant style complement her political ambitions? Do you believe they secretly married? Why do you think it became impossible for them to live with each other? Consider Catherine’s unusual relationship with Gregory Potemkin.Why did these tiny, palm-size objects matter so much to her that she took them from palace to palace? Catherine contracted what she called “cameo fever” and amassed a staggering 10,000 carved gems.Catherine disliked Moscow intensely, and canceled many building projects in the former capital.How do you explain these seeming contradictions in her personality? Though she charmed courtiers and foreign diplomats, she was ruthless in war and politics. Despite her extravagant spending on art and architecture, Catherine was a hard working ruler.Catherine proclaimed herself a “glutton for art.” Do you agree or was she more knowledgeable than she liked to let on? How does Catherine’s art collecting evolve? Which of her art agents had the greatest impact on her taste?.Why didn’t she believe him fit to be Russia’s tsar? What led to their dysfunctional relationship? Was Paul really mad as some historians argue? Were you in any way sympathetic to Paul? The biggest challenge of Catherine’s reign was her son Paul.What do you think motivated Catherine’s unusually strong involvement in her grandsons’ upbringing?.

In what ways did German-born Catherine the Great become more Russian than Russians themselves?.

Do you think she found love with any of her young favorites?

Catherine the Great once said that she couldn’t live a day without love.

Here are questions to spark discussion with your group. The Empress of Art is an excellent book for reading groups and book clubs.