RA Genre Paintings

Two days ago the Royal Academy of Arts in London opened a free exhibition in the John Madejski Fine Rooms that will run for a whole year: From All Walks of Life: Genre paintings from the Royal Academy Collection. The term "genre painting" - a depiction of everyday life - smacks of a put-down, but it shouldn't. Masters such as Vermeer could turn simple domestic scenes into gobsmacking works of art. The exhibition includes Sir Henry Raeburn's Boy and Rabbit, Sir Thomas Lawrence's Gypsy Girl and Stanhope Forbes' The Harbour Window (shown).