LONDON — Today I went to the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square. I had visited the Gallery on my previous trip to London and enjoyed it so much I just had to return for another look. And it didn’t disappoint. I still can’t get over how bright and vibrant the colours in the paintings are, especially those from the 15th and 16th centuries, when compared to what you see reproduced in books. And the other thing you don’t appreciate from the books are the relative sizes of the paintings. Some are tiny, and others are simply enormous. There is nothing like seeing the original paintings.

There were many memorable paintings but the one that really caught my eye was Two Tax Gatherers by Marinus van Reymerswaele, painted in about 1540. It reminded me of modern illustrations created with vector graphics programs. It impressed me so much I think I might go back and purchase a print.

For the rest of the afternoon I went shopping.

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