1. “Art for art’s sake” is the English version of a French slogan, from the early 19th century, ”l’art pour l’art” , and expresses a philosophy that the intrinsic value of art, and the only “true” art, is divorced from any didactic, moral or utilitarian function. “The term is credited to Théophile Gautier (1811–1872). Such works are sometimes described as “autotelic”, from the Greek autoteles, “complete in itself”, a concept that has been expanded to embrace “inner-directed” or “self-motivated” human beings. A Latin version of this phrase, “Ars gratia artis”, is used as a slogan by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and appears in the circle around the roaring head of Leo the Lion in their motion picture logo. (Wikipedia)

2. Verism is the artistic preference of contemporary everyday subject matter instead of the heroic or legendary in art and literature; a form of realism. The word comes from Latin verus (true). Verism was often used by the Romans in marble sculptures of heads. Often described as “warts and all”, verism shows the imperfections of the subject, such as warts, wrinkles and furrows. (Wikipedia)

3. For decades, the Saturday Evening Post distinguished itself through its cover artwork. The most famous are by Norman Rockwell who created a total of 322 original covers for The Saturday Evening Post over 47 years. J.C. Leyendecker created over 320 covers, the most well known are his “New Year’s Baby” series which ran every year from 1908 to 1943.

4. In 2010, Picasso’s, Nude, Green Leaves and Bust sold for $106.5 million US to an anonymous buyer,  setting a record for the sale of any work at auction. One of a series of highly prized, intimate portraits Picasso painted in 1932 of his lover, Marie-Thérèse Walter. (DAF)

5. Italy has by far the most art crime, with approximately 20,000 art thefts reported each year.  Russia has the second most, with approximately 2000 art thefts reported per year. Italy’s government takes art crime very seriously and its Carabinieri are by far the most successful art squad worldwide, employing over 300 agents full time. (ARCA)