Alexander Marshal–this country’s first major botanical painter–deserves to be better known, writes Tiffany Daneff, after seeing his luminous originals in the Royal Collection

The gargantuan, bewildering Louvre

The Dream by Henri Rousseau

Johannes Vermeer brightened his native Delft with luminous pictures of women caught in intimate moments, but the serenity of his work, of which he produced remarkably little, is at odds with a life mired in debt, as Carla Passino discovers

Painting a local cricket match, Sherree Valentine-Daines received an invitation that changed her career and led her to become artist-in-residence at Goodwood

From gleaming presents to inebriating parties, discover five artists’ interpretations of the festive season