Masterworks at Musee Jacquemart-Andre

 This was a Beaux-Arts mansion owned by a rich couple who loved to collect art. (She was a talented society painter who painted the banking heir. They got married and indulged their love of art.)

Not only did they collect an astonishing array of simply world-class paintings, the house itself is fascinating. The walls surrounding the ballroom were engineered to sink into the basement to make it even bigger. It's a testament to the power of money, certainly.

Here are some of the many, many paintings. Tiepolo... Bellini... Mantegna... Rembrandt. I thought there was a Giorgione, but I missed it this trip.

I think they built an elaborate staircase just to show off this magnificent fresco. Notice how the legs of the little person in the lower right-hand corner extend beyond the "frame." The Jacquemart-Andre's even cut out the marble surround to highlight this.

Paolo Uccello is a crowd pleaser. He was early, early Renaissance who did a lot of technical perspective work. His finishes aren't as refined as High Renaissance, but there's a cartoony quality that pleases the modern eye. Plus, he does both beasts and horses in a highly unique style. I love every Uccello painting that I have seen.

Not by a "great" painter, but I loved this Saint Jerome's slowly expression.

Not perhaps the finest Rembrandt, but still, a Rembrandt.

More Tiepolo!