Yellow Framed Art

During the Middle Ages but also throughout the Renaissance, most artists associated yellow with the infamous character of Judas betrayed Christ. This explains why even today, yellow is sometimes linked with bad things, such as duplicity, jealousy and envy. Among the framed yellow artwork, there are several paintings inspired by the Bible or medieval manuscripts, depicting the most important events of those times. Non-Christians were sometimes forced to wear yellow clothes to differentiate themselves from the rest of people, but in art, yellow has far more positive valences.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, impressionist artists were fascinated by this color and there are plenty of framed yellow artwork inspired by their paintings. Close Monet created the Sunflowers in 1881, while Frederick Leighton was more attracted by orange and his Flaming June painting is the best-known artwork. The interest for the yellow color manifested itself earlier, with Jean Honore Fragonard’s A Young Girl Reading being instantly recognizable due to the yellow saffron dress that she is wearing.