We were at Air and Rod's house on Saturday, about 18 days
after your third birthday. You picked up one of their coasters and said
"water lily pond". Jan saw the coaster and was half-amazed, thinking
you'd stumbled across the name of the piece of art it showed by dint of knowing
the plant name. I asked you who painted it. "Monet" you said,
confidently. This caused quite a reaction.
Jan asked you who'd painted another of the coasters. It was
a self-portrait by Van Gogh, but not the one "~with a bandaged ear"
that you know. I tried to help out by giving you the first sound, "vÉ™".
"Vermeer," you guessed. I think this caused more of a reaction than getting the answer right would have done.
Later you identified a painting (Primavera) on a cup as by Boticelli and The Great Wave on another cup as by Hokusai. Jan thought it was Horoshige.
Tee hee, you clever little boy.