Help finding a picture to copy

[Jazzy]

I'd like to paint my mum a bookmark based on a famous picture for Mother's Day (it's coming up soon in the UK) because she likes art and books (see, that was simple) but the trouble is, she likes so many artists that I can't immediately think of a painting to copy. This is where you guys come in! If you could post your favourite paintings here, I'd be very grateful; my only stipulation is that it must be a painting by an artist which could be hung in a large gallery (Tate Britain, Tate Modern, MOMA, etc), rather than something by, say, an artist famous online. My mum's tastes in art are quite varied - I remember her seeing exhibitions of Cezanne, Picasso, Monet, Whistler, Turner, Freud, and so many others, and her current calendar's Howard Hodgkin (whom I think is completely overrated, but then I always had a bias towards things which actually look like what they're meant to be...). Oh, and I also specifically don't want to copy a Mucha painting, since my mum gave me my Mucha calendar knowing I like his work. It'd look like I'd just drawn something because I like Mucha, not because she does.

Once it's done, I'll be posting it up here Since coming to uni I've been doing a lot more traditional art (ie, more than the none I had been doing), especially in pencil after doing a few life-drawing sessions. I think this is the only one online...I'm not sure if I'm allowed to upload life-drawing art to my uni webspace, so I haven't yet.

[Twofold Black]

I love William-Adolphe Bouguereau. My favorite Bouguereau paintings are Virgin and Child and Cupidon ... Biblis is also a contender ... I could go on like this for a while, but anyway, I have the vague impression -- I am a famously poor judge of these things -- that his best-known paintings are Evening Mood and Seated Nude. Lots of religious imagery (some of it pretty violent), lots of semi-naked girls, lots of kids with wings. Here's a decent collection.

[Jazzy]

Oh, wow. I don't think I've ever seen his work before, and it's beautiful. I think it's not quite right for this - I can't copy the religious one to give to my mum without feeling like a hypocrite (she's a firm Christian and I'm not), and the nude ones seem a bit wrong for a bookmark, but thank you for showing me those, because I really like them.

I'm surprised there haven't been more replies to this - I mean, you guys must have favourite artists and paintings! I'm not going to smite you if you post the Sunflowers or something just because it's well known - I'm not looking for really obscure artists only or anything like that, I'm just posting here because since my mum likes pretty much everything, I'm having a hard time narrowing it down myself. I've got access to graphite, watercolour and acrylics, too, so pretty much anything is fair game.

[Monkeyguy]

Well, this is probably one of my favorite paintings. I also love this one, but I don't think they are exactly what you are looking for.

I like a lot of Aubrey Beardsley's work too, but I don't know if you want something like that either.

[AngharadTy]

My problem is that all the artists I have bookmarked are digital. ^_~ Also, my favorite artist is Giger, aaaaand that might be weird to give to your mom.

I like a lot of sumi-e art, but I lost my folder of Japanese pieces. ;_; Now I am sad.

[Twofold Black]

the nude ones seem a bit wrong for a bookmark

Oh yeah! I always forget nudity is somewhat naughty. I react to actual naked people in my vicinity in whatever fashion is appropriate (mortification, hilarity, arousal or some combination of the above) but images of naked people that aren't actively dirty never register to me as charged.

my favorite artist is Giger

Well chosen.

I almost suggested Bosch, because I'm a big fan of his, but unlike naked girls, I am able to realize on my own that maybe a bookmark of a guy kissing a pig dressed as a nun while birds with the heads of scorpions climb out of his skull and leg-stumps (or whatever, I just made this up -- but you can totally picture it, can't you) is maybe not appropriate to give one's mother.

[Jazzy]

Monkeyguy: I love the El Greco one, and it might well work - it's bold, and it should scale down quite well. I'm going to have a go at it and see what happens, I think.

Ty: have you seen the Giger Citroen? And ooh, sumi-e...do you know any good sites for pictures? Not for this, because I don't think it's my mum's style, but just because I'd like to see some.

Oh yeah! I always forget nudity is somewhat naughty. I react to actual naked people in my vicinity in whatever fashion is appropriate (mortification, hilarity, arousal or some combination of the above) but images of naked people that aren't actively dirty never register to me as charged.

Me neither, and nor my mum, but if she's using it in front of her students, they're probably going to comment on it; you know what teenage boys in groups can be like Better to go with something uncontroversial, though I might email her a link to his gallery anyway.