Famous paintings quiz: 20 questions with answers
Twenty questions, from easy to tricky. Some show you the picture and ask for its name, others ask who painted it, where it hangs or what it is made of. Tap “Answer” under each question to check yourself — and follow the link to the painting’s page for the story behind it. Keep score: 15 or more is excellent.
Questions 1–10
1. What is this painting called?
- Café Terrace at Night
- The Starry Night
- Wheatfield with Crows
- Irises
Answer
The Starry Night. Van Gogh painted The Starry Night in June 1889 in the asylum at Saint-Rémy. It hangs in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Open the painting page →
2. Who painted Girl with a Pearl Earring?
- Rembrandt
- Frans Hals
- Johannes Vermeer
- Diego Velázquez
Answer
Johannes Vermeer. Johannes Vermeer painted it around 1665. It is in the Mauritshuis in The Hague.
3. What kind of artwork is this?
- An oil painting
- A fresco
- A watercolour
- A colour woodblock print
Answer
A colour woodblock print. Hokusai’s Great Wave off Kanagawa is a woodblock print from around 1831, one of his Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji. Thousands of impressions were printed. Open the painting page →
4. Which museum is home to the Mona Lisa?
- The Louvre
- The Uffizi
- The Prado
- The National Gallery
Answer
The Louvre. The Mona Lisa is in the Louvre in Paris. In 1911 it was stolen and stayed missing for more than two years.
5. Who painted this?
- Gustav Klimt
- Edvard Munch
- Egon Schiele
- Vincent van Gogh
Answer
Edvard Munch. Edvard Munch made several versions of The Scream; this one, from 1893, is in the National Museum in Oslo. Open the painting page →
6. Klimt’s The Kiss shines because it uses…
- Gold leaf
- Silver foil
- Mosaic tiles
- Varnished glass
Answer
Gold leaf. The Kiss (1907–1908) is painted in oil with gold leaf. It hangs in the Belvedere in Vienna.
7. What is this painting commonly called?
- The Anatomy Lesson
- The Syndics
- The Night Watch
- The Conspiracy
Answer
The Night Watch. Rembrandt’s 1642 group portrait of a city militia company. It was never meant to be a night scene — darkened varnish gave it the nickname. It is in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Open the painting page →
8. In which city can you see American Gothic?
- New York
- Chicago
- Boston
- Washington
Answer
Chicago. Grant Wood’s 1930 painting is in the Art Institute of Chicago, which bought it the year it was painted.
9. Which painting gave Impressionism its name?
- Water Lilies
- Woman with a Parasol
- Impression, Sunrise
- Luncheon of the Boating Party
Answer
Impression, Sunrise. A critic mocked Monet’s Impression, Sunrise at the 1874 exhibition and called the whole group “Impressionists”. It is in the Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris.
10. Where is this?
- The dome of Florence Cathedral
- St Peter’s Basilica
- The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
- The Uffizi Gallery
Answer
The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo painted The Creation of Adam as a fresco on the Sistine Chapel ceiling in the Vatican around 1511. Open the painting page →
Questions 11–20
1. Who painted The Birth of Venus?
- Raphael
- Titian
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Sandro Botticelli
Answer
Sandro Botticelli. Botticelli painted it in the 1480s. It is in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence.
2. In this 1434 painting, what on the back wall shows two more people?
- A window
- A convex mirror
- A portrait
- A chandelier
Answer
A convex mirror. The tiny round mirror in Jan van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait reflects two figures in the doorway — possibly the painter himself. National Gallery, London. Open the painting page →
3. Seurat painted A Sunday on La Grande Jatte using…
- Impasto
- Pointillism
- Sfumato
- Fresco
Answer
Pointillism. Seurat built the picture from tiny dots of pure colour between 1884 and 1886. It is in the Art Institute of Chicago.
4. Which movement does this painting belong to?
- Romanticism
- Impressionism
- Realism
- Cubism
Answer
Romanticism. Caspar David Friedrich’s Wanderer above the Sea of Fog (1818) is a symbol of German Romanticism. Hamburger Kunsthalle. Open the painting page →
5. In Las Meninas, who is standing at the big canvas on the left?
- The king
- A court jester
- The painter, Velázquez
- The princess’s tutor
Answer
The painter, Velázquez. Velázquez painted himself at work. The king and queen appear only as a reflection in the mirror at the back. Museo del Prado, Madrid.
6. Who painted this winter scene?
- Hieronymus Bosch
- Jan van Eyck
- Pieter Bruegel the Elder
- Johannes Vermeer
Answer
Pieter Bruegel the Elder. The Hunters in the Snow (1565) is one of Bruegel’s paintings of the seasons. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Open the painting page →
7. Who painted Black Square in 1915?
- Wassily Kandinsky
- Kazimir Malevich
- Piet Mondrian
- Alexander Rodchenko
Answer
Kazimir Malevich. Kazimir Malevich, as the manifesto of Suprematism. The 1915 original is in the Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
8. What is this painting by Ivan Aivazovsky called?
- The Ninth Wave
- The Great Wave
- The Fighting Temeraire
- The Storm
Answer
The Ninth Wave. Aivazovsky painted The Ninth Wave in 1850. Sailors believed the ninth wave in a storm is the strongest. State Russian Museum, Saint Petersburg. Open the painting page →
9. Which town is this bedroom in?
- Paris
- Auvers-sur-Oise
- Saint-Rémy
- Arles
Answer
Arles. Van Gogh first painted his room in the Yellow House in Arles in 1888, and liked it so much that three versions exist. Open the painting page →
10. What is the real title of Whistler’s Mother?
- Portrait of a Lady in Black
- Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1
- Symphony in White
- The Artist’s Mother Resting
Answer
Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1. Whistler called it Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1 — he wanted people to see it as a study of colour and form. Musée d’Orsay, Paris.
How did you do?
0–7: a great start — you have a lot of wonderful paintings still to meet. 8–14: solid; you know the classics. 15–20: excellent — you could describe these with your eyes closed.
Knowing a painting’s name is one thing. Describing it well enough that someone else could paint it is another. That is the game in Speakasso: you see a masterpiece for a few seconds, describe it without naming it, and an AI paints your words. See all 279 paintings in the game.
Try it in Speakasso
Think you know these paintings? Describe them in 20 seconds without the forbidden words and see how close the AI gets. Speakasso is an Android game, coming soon to Google Play.
Questions
What are the most famous paintings in the world?
Lists vary, but almost every one includes the Mona Lisa, The Starry Night, The Last Supper, The Scream, Girl with a Pearl Earring, The Great Wave, The Birth of Venus, The Creation of Adam, The Night Watch and The Kiss.
Can I use this quiz in class?
Yes. The answers are hidden under each question, so it works on a projector: show the question, let the class vote, then open the answer.
Where can I learn more about each painting?
Most answers link to the painting’s own page, with its story, what is in it, facts and how to describe it.