(via Wiki) Joan Miró was a Catalan (Spanish) painter, sculptor and ceramicist + his work has been interpreted as Surrealism, a sandbox for the subconscious mind, a re-creation of the childlike, and a manifestation of Catalan pride + his artistic autonomy is reflected in his work and his willingness to work with several media.
I really like his style of art.
Useful links:
www.museothyssen.org
www.palazzodiamanti.it
www.nga.gov.au
www.guggenheim.org
www.expomuseum.com
www.centrepompidou.fr
Saturday, April 19, 2008
The De Beers Anti-Trust Settlement: Winners and Losers
I found Chaim Even Zohar's views on the De Beers Anti-Trust Settlement @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp informative and insightful because at the end of the day consumers are always the losers.
Graphic Novel Update
I think comics are unique genre of art that connects people + I love it.
Useful links:
www.comic-con.org
http://act-i-vate.com
http://paulmay.livejournal.com
http://www.hollywoodcomics.com/pope.html
Useful links:
www.comic-con.org
http://act-i-vate.com
http://paulmay.livejournal.com
http://www.hollywoodcomics.com/pope.html
The Picture Of Dorian Gray
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde is a great book, a book about you + there are lessons to be learned + I liked it.
Useful links:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037988
http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/WilDori.html
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/174
Useful links:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037988
http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/WilDori.html
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/174
Chequer Designs
(via Diamond Cuts in Historic Jewelry:1381-1910) Herbert Tillander writes:
I have seen several diamonds dating from around 1600, and even one or two from the middle of the sixteenth century, which have surfaces covered all over with very very small squares or lozenges, rather like the design of a chessboard. One of the main reasons for this type of faceting was that at that time, when light effects were not considered important, closely packed small facets could completely disguise even very disturbing inclusions in a gem. Many of these Chequer Cuts would otherwise have been fashioned into Table Cuts.
A number of Chequer Cuts were shaped like calves’ heads, though just as many had other outlines—square, oval, round, triangular, etc. On the whole, early inventories mention either faceting or outline, but very seldom both.
I have seen several diamonds dating from around 1600, and even one or two from the middle of the sixteenth century, which have surfaces covered all over with very very small squares or lozenges, rather like the design of a chessboard. One of the main reasons for this type of faceting was that at that time, when light effects were not considered important, closely packed small facets could completely disguise even very disturbing inclusions in a gem. Many of these Chequer Cuts would otherwise have been fashioned into Table Cuts.
A number of Chequer Cuts were shaped like calves’ heads, though just as many had other outlines—square, oval, round, triangular, etc. On the whole, early inventories mention either faceting or outline, but very seldom both.
Realism And Impressionism In France
(via The Outline of Art) William Orpen writes:
Another contributor to this exhibition, whose picture, ‘The Dancing Lesson’, attracted much attention, was Degas. Friendship with Manet drew Degas into this circle, though he never entirely accepted all the priciples of Impressionism. Edgar Hilaire Germain Degas (1834-1917) was born in Paris, the son of a banker, and, like Courbet and Manet, was originally destined for a legal career. In 1855, however, he entered the École des Beaux Arts, and also studied under Lamothe, a pupil of Ingres. All this life Degas, who was brought up in the classical tradition, had the deepest veneration for Ingres. He was also an admirer of Holbein and Clouet, whose pictures he copied. In 1856 he went to Rome and remained two years in Italy studying the work of the early Italian masters. Returning to Paris, he began as an historical painter, his last picture in this style being ‘A Scene of War in the Middle Ages,’ shown in the Salon of 1865. But about this time he came into contact with Manet, and through him with Pisaro, Monet, Renoir, and others who frequented the Café Guerbois in the Batingnolles, and there endlessly discussed their artistic aims and ideals. Because of this centre for social intercourse the Impressionist group was at one time nicknamed ‘The School of Batingnolles’. Owning to the powerful new influences surrounding him, Degas was led to abandon his historical works and devote himself to painting scenes of modern life. Always intensely interested in the rendering of movement, Degas was first attracted to subjects he found on the racecourse, one of the earliest successes in his new manner being ‘A Carriage at the Races’. He also painted washerwomen at their work, scenes in cafés and in theaters, and revealed himself as an artist passionately absorbed in the spectacle of city life, though with rather a cynical outlook. Degas was the greatest draughtsman among the Impressionists, and in his pictures of modern life he relied upon line more than any other of the friends with whom he exhibited, like Whistler, he was much influenced by Japanese colors prints, which gave him new ideas of pattern and design.
After the Franco-Prussian war, during which he served in the artillery, Degas concentrated on the Ballet, a subject for which he became famous throughout the world, and which occupied his best attention for twenty years. In these works Degas stands revealed as an uncompromising Realist. What he usually shows us is not the glamor and illusion of the Ballet from the spectator’s standpoint; Degas get behind the scenes and exposes the work and discipline which lie behind this artificial fairyland; he strips the dancers of their tinsel, compelling us to see that they are not lovely young nymphs, but plain, tired, hardworked women, often middle-aged. The beauty of his pictures is to be found not in any prettiness of his models but in the lighting, the arrangement, the drawing, and later, in the color, in the convincing truth of his vision, and in the decorative charm of his design. In the later seventies and thenceforward, Degas worked more frequently in pastel than in oils, and in these later pastels he adopts the prismatic hues of Luminism, based on the rainbow colors of the solar spectrum, so that these works, in addition to their masterly drawing and decorative design, have the additional beauty of shimmering, iridescent color. A superb example of his later style is the pastel ‘A Dancer on the Stage’ in the Luxembourg, Paris. Here, for once in a way, Degas forgets his cynicism and shows us the magical glamor of a première danseuse quivering with movement, bathed with light, and happy apparently in her moment of success. After 1886 Degas retired almost completely from the public eye, living the life of recluse on a fifth floor in Montmartre; refusing for the most part to sell his works or even to show them to collectors, though his fame continually increased and the value of his earlier works rose to sensational prices. Before his death his pictures ‘Dancers at the Bar,’ which he had originally sold for £20, was bought by an American collector for £17,400, this being the record price obtained today at public auction for a picture by any living artist. But Degas was equally contemptuous of praise or criticism, and to the end he declined all honors.
Realism And Impressionism In France (continued)
Another contributor to this exhibition, whose picture, ‘The Dancing Lesson’, attracted much attention, was Degas. Friendship with Manet drew Degas into this circle, though he never entirely accepted all the priciples of Impressionism. Edgar Hilaire Germain Degas (1834-1917) was born in Paris, the son of a banker, and, like Courbet and Manet, was originally destined for a legal career. In 1855, however, he entered the École des Beaux Arts, and also studied under Lamothe, a pupil of Ingres. All this life Degas, who was brought up in the classical tradition, had the deepest veneration for Ingres. He was also an admirer of Holbein and Clouet, whose pictures he copied. In 1856 he went to Rome and remained two years in Italy studying the work of the early Italian masters. Returning to Paris, he began as an historical painter, his last picture in this style being ‘A Scene of War in the Middle Ages,’ shown in the Salon of 1865. But about this time he came into contact with Manet, and through him with Pisaro, Monet, Renoir, and others who frequented the Café Guerbois in the Batingnolles, and there endlessly discussed their artistic aims and ideals. Because of this centre for social intercourse the Impressionist group was at one time nicknamed ‘The School of Batingnolles’. Owning to the powerful new influences surrounding him, Degas was led to abandon his historical works and devote himself to painting scenes of modern life. Always intensely interested in the rendering of movement, Degas was first attracted to subjects he found on the racecourse, one of the earliest successes in his new manner being ‘A Carriage at the Races’. He also painted washerwomen at their work, scenes in cafés and in theaters, and revealed himself as an artist passionately absorbed in the spectacle of city life, though with rather a cynical outlook. Degas was the greatest draughtsman among the Impressionists, and in his pictures of modern life he relied upon line more than any other of the friends with whom he exhibited, like Whistler, he was much influenced by Japanese colors prints, which gave him new ideas of pattern and design.
After the Franco-Prussian war, during which he served in the artillery, Degas concentrated on the Ballet, a subject for which he became famous throughout the world, and which occupied his best attention for twenty years. In these works Degas stands revealed as an uncompromising Realist. What he usually shows us is not the glamor and illusion of the Ballet from the spectator’s standpoint; Degas get behind the scenes and exposes the work and discipline which lie behind this artificial fairyland; he strips the dancers of their tinsel, compelling us to see that they are not lovely young nymphs, but plain, tired, hardworked women, often middle-aged. The beauty of his pictures is to be found not in any prettiness of his models but in the lighting, the arrangement, the drawing, and later, in the color, in the convincing truth of his vision, and in the decorative charm of his design. In the later seventies and thenceforward, Degas worked more frequently in pastel than in oils, and in these later pastels he adopts the prismatic hues of Luminism, based on the rainbow colors of the solar spectrum, so that these works, in addition to their masterly drawing and decorative design, have the additional beauty of shimmering, iridescent color. A superb example of his later style is the pastel ‘A Dancer on the Stage’ in the Luxembourg, Paris. Here, for once in a way, Degas forgets his cynicism and shows us the magical glamor of a première danseuse quivering with movement, bathed with light, and happy apparently in her moment of success. After 1886 Degas retired almost completely from the public eye, living the life of recluse on a fifth floor in Montmartre; refusing for the most part to sell his works or even to show them to collectors, though his fame continually increased and the value of his earlier works rose to sensational prices. Before his death his pictures ‘Dancers at the Bar,’ which he had originally sold for £20, was bought by an American collector for £17,400, this being the record price obtained today at public auction for a picture by any living artist. But Degas was equally contemptuous of praise or criticism, and to the end he declined all honors.
Realism And Impressionism In France (continued)
Oriental Rug, Gemstones, Jewelry
I found the article How To Buy an Oriental Rug @ http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1732112,00.html informative because buying rugs can be intimidating for the beginner, just like buying gemstones/jewelry + there is the clash of cultures + you shouldn't forget the first lesson: The seller is going to win, because he invented the game.
Iceland And Renewable Energy
Iceland's primary innovation = renewable energy + Iceland has begun making clean hydrogen fuel, a new blueprint to the rest of the world.
Useful links:
www.ectos.is
www.ge-prize.ru
www.nmi.is
www.statoilhydro.com
www.sri.com
Useful links:
www.ectos.is
www.ge-prize.ru
www.nmi.is
www.statoilhydro.com
www.sri.com
Friday, April 18, 2008
Art Reflections In Dallas
The Goss-Michael Foundation's gallery in Dallas (USA) is a must-visit + they are showcasing works by Damien Hirst, including his 'Saint Sebastian, Exquisite Pain' — a black calf encased in a formaldehyde solution, its body pierced with arrows +++++++
Useful links:
www.gossmichaelfoundation.org
http://dallasmuseumofart.org
www.nashersculpturecenter.org
www.whitecube.com
Useful links:
www.gossmichaelfoundation.org
http://dallasmuseumofart.org
www.nashersculpturecenter.org
www.whitecube.com
Ólafur Elíasson
Olafur Eliasson is a Danish/Icelandic artist, who is well-known for his intellectually stimulating work of art, in my view, of a different kind, immersive and impermanent + makes you reflect and refract.
Useful links:
www.olafureliasson.net
www.moma.org
www.sfmoma.org
www.ps1.org
Useful links:
www.olafureliasson.net
www.moma.org
www.sfmoma.org
www.ps1.org
Jewelry Sales Training Program
I think the idea of providing custom sales training programs for jewelers (jewelry sales scenarios, role-playing, overview of sales styles, basic skills to overcome customer objections, guidance on competition, sales framework +++) by American Gem Society is brilliant + I wish there were similar programs tailored specifically for the culture-conscious jewelry sector in Asia, Europe, Africa and South America.
Useful link:
www.americangemsociety.org
Useful link:
www.americangemsociety.org
Corporate Social Responsibility Educational Program
During the annual congress in Dubai, 2008, CIBJO + United Nations have decided to create a foundation that will finance and administer a worldwide Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) educational program (s) for the benefit of the jewelry industry.
Useful links:
www.cibjo.org
www.un.org
Useful links:
www.cibjo.org
www.un.org
The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments
The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments by George Johnson finds beauty via science + it's a delightful book + I liked it.
The Cuboid Cut
(via Diamond Cuts in Historic Jewelry:1381-1910) Herbert Tillander writes:
The term Cuboid Cut has been given to diamonds which have all the six planes of a cube, even though they may contain combinations of the octahedron and the dodecahedron as well. Growth like this in the crystal was perhaps what first inspired cutters to produce these fancy shapes, though later Cuboid Cuts were probably also fashioned from rounded or oval dodecahedrons.
Depending on the outline of the rough, the girdle outline of a Cuboid Cut is either a regular or a slightly elongated octagon with four main square or rectangular facets in the crown sloping towards the girdle from the table. These facets, which form a cross, are separated from each other by triangular facets. The girdle, composed of eight high vertical facets, is very thick. The pavilion design is similar to that of one in a normal Table Cut. The culet is usually small and the same shape as the table. The table, the culet and four of the girdle facets form the cubic planes. The main facets correspond more or less to dodecahedral faces, and the triangular facets to octahedral faces.
Once they had achieved this original shape with very little loss of weight, some cutters ( such as the maker of the cuboid gem on the Burgundian Court Goblet) found that they had also, though probably by chance, produced a diamond of exceptional brilliance—such brilliance, in fact, that when I first saw the diamond on the Burgundian Goblet in Vienna, I thought it must be a modern replacement. Later, when I was allowed to study all the diamonds on the goblet, I was able to assure myself that this was indeed the original diamond and that it had never been replaced. The Cuboid Cut apparently became more popular than the Burgundian Point Cut in the fashioning of dodecahedral rough, but it did not survive nor evolve into any other design.
Hartley (1968) explained how to fashion, from synthetics, a Cross Brilliant. This is a design circular in outline, but with a square table—very similar, in fact, to the old Cuboid Cut. Hartley described it as being ‘very simple cut, but it has a surprising amount of brilliance’, and said that the table facet must be perfectly square adn 25-26 percent of the width of the stone. Perhaps the old Cuboid Cut has been revived!
The term Cuboid Cut has been given to diamonds which have all the six planes of a cube, even though they may contain combinations of the octahedron and the dodecahedron as well. Growth like this in the crystal was perhaps what first inspired cutters to produce these fancy shapes, though later Cuboid Cuts were probably also fashioned from rounded or oval dodecahedrons.
Depending on the outline of the rough, the girdle outline of a Cuboid Cut is either a regular or a slightly elongated octagon with four main square or rectangular facets in the crown sloping towards the girdle from the table. These facets, which form a cross, are separated from each other by triangular facets. The girdle, composed of eight high vertical facets, is very thick. The pavilion design is similar to that of one in a normal Table Cut. The culet is usually small and the same shape as the table. The table, the culet and four of the girdle facets form the cubic planes. The main facets correspond more or less to dodecahedral faces, and the triangular facets to octahedral faces.
Once they had achieved this original shape with very little loss of weight, some cutters ( such as the maker of the cuboid gem on the Burgundian Court Goblet) found that they had also, though probably by chance, produced a diamond of exceptional brilliance—such brilliance, in fact, that when I first saw the diamond on the Burgundian Goblet in Vienna, I thought it must be a modern replacement. Later, when I was allowed to study all the diamonds on the goblet, I was able to assure myself that this was indeed the original diamond and that it had never been replaced. The Cuboid Cut apparently became more popular than the Burgundian Point Cut in the fashioning of dodecahedral rough, but it did not survive nor evolve into any other design.
Hartley (1968) explained how to fashion, from synthetics, a Cross Brilliant. This is a design circular in outline, but with a square table—very similar, in fact, to the old Cuboid Cut. Hartley described it as being ‘very simple cut, but it has a surprising amount of brilliance’, and said that the table facet must be perfectly square adn 25-26 percent of the width of the stone. Perhaps the old Cuboid Cut has been revived!
Realism And Impressionism In France
(via The Outline of Art) William Orpen writes:
4
Camille Pissarro (1830-1930) was born at St Thomas in the Danish West Indies and came to Paris with his parents when he was twenty five. He became a pupil of Corot, and his earlier works show the influenec of Corot as regards style and color and of Millet in subject adn drawing. He was the eldest of the Impressionists, being two years older than Manet; but throughout his life Pissarro was an ardent student, never ceasing to investigate and experiment, always ready to listen to the theories and to observe the practice of a junior who claimed to have discovered a new truth. Though darker in color than his later work, a small landscape now in the Musée des Arts Decoratis at Paris, painted by Pissarro in 1869, shows that even at this time he was experimenting in the division of tones. Unfortunately nearly all the earlier paintings of Camille Pissarro are lost, for his home and studio were in the line of approach of the destroying Prussians in 1870. Owing to the war Pissarro and Monet came to London in 1871, and there they saw the later paintings of Turner, which confirmed their ideas about color and encouraged them to paint brighter and still brighter.
Claude Monet was ten years younger than Pissarro. Though born in 1840 at Paris, where his father was a merchant, he spent much of his boyhood at Havre, where he learnt a good deal about painting from Boudin. After completing his military service in Algeria, Monet returned to Paris and entered the studio of Gleyre. Here he formed a close friendship with two fellow students, Renoir and Sisley, and became acquainted later with Manet, as has already been related. Monet’s earliest paintings, however, are not lighter than those by Boudin and Corot, and he was first influenced by these and others of the Barbizon School.
Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) was born at Limoges, where his father was a tailor in a small way of business, and at the age of thirteen young Auguste began to earn his living as a painter on porcelain. This early apprenticeship left a certain trace on his art which was always decorative adn evel elegiac in spite of its later realism. In time Renoir saved up enough money to go to Paris and become a pupil of Gleyre, but while his friends were landscapists Renoir was first and foremost a figure painter.
Alfred Sisley (1839-99) was born in Paris of English parents, and his development was parallel to that of Monet, whose work his own pictures closely resemble. We may say that all these young men, together with Pissarro, were discontented with the state of painting before 1870. They looked at their pictures and they looked at Nature; but while they realized how far their painting fell short of their intention, they had not yet found the way to secure greater brilliancy and truth. That way was discovered during the ‘seventies, after Pissarro and Monet had seen the Turners in London and returned to Paris. It is possible to exaggerate the influence of Turner on the new movement, for it had really begun earlier with Delacroix, but the sight of the Turners undoubtedly hastened its accomplishment as far as Pissarro and Monet are concerned. Not the beginning of Impressionism, but the first public revelation of Impressionism, was an exhibition held at Nadar’s galleries, Boulevard des Capucines, in 1874. Here were gathered together works by many of the ‘rejected’ of 1863, Manet being the best known of them and generally considered the leader of the movement, and also works by new adherents to Impressionist doctrine. The exhibitions provoked much controversy, but it was sufficiently talked about to be something of a success, and thereafter for several years a Salon des Impressionistes was an annual event. But in 1874, the science of color was still in its infancy, and if the exhibitors were ‘Impressionists’ they were not all ‘luminists’. Even Renoir’s famous picture of people in a theatre box, painted about this time, is sombre in color, in comparison with the scintillating canvases he was to paint later.
Realism And Impressionism In France (continued)
4
Camille Pissarro (1830-1930) was born at St Thomas in the Danish West Indies and came to Paris with his parents when he was twenty five. He became a pupil of Corot, and his earlier works show the influenec of Corot as regards style and color and of Millet in subject adn drawing. He was the eldest of the Impressionists, being two years older than Manet; but throughout his life Pissarro was an ardent student, never ceasing to investigate and experiment, always ready to listen to the theories and to observe the practice of a junior who claimed to have discovered a new truth. Though darker in color than his later work, a small landscape now in the Musée des Arts Decoratis at Paris, painted by Pissarro in 1869, shows that even at this time he was experimenting in the division of tones. Unfortunately nearly all the earlier paintings of Camille Pissarro are lost, for his home and studio were in the line of approach of the destroying Prussians in 1870. Owing to the war Pissarro and Monet came to London in 1871, and there they saw the later paintings of Turner, which confirmed their ideas about color and encouraged them to paint brighter and still brighter.
Claude Monet was ten years younger than Pissarro. Though born in 1840 at Paris, where his father was a merchant, he spent much of his boyhood at Havre, where he learnt a good deal about painting from Boudin. After completing his military service in Algeria, Monet returned to Paris and entered the studio of Gleyre. Here he formed a close friendship with two fellow students, Renoir and Sisley, and became acquainted later with Manet, as has already been related. Monet’s earliest paintings, however, are not lighter than those by Boudin and Corot, and he was first influenced by these and others of the Barbizon School.
Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) was born at Limoges, where his father was a tailor in a small way of business, and at the age of thirteen young Auguste began to earn his living as a painter on porcelain. This early apprenticeship left a certain trace on his art which was always decorative adn evel elegiac in spite of its later realism. In time Renoir saved up enough money to go to Paris and become a pupil of Gleyre, but while his friends were landscapists Renoir was first and foremost a figure painter.
Alfred Sisley (1839-99) was born in Paris of English parents, and his development was parallel to that of Monet, whose work his own pictures closely resemble. We may say that all these young men, together with Pissarro, were discontented with the state of painting before 1870. They looked at their pictures and they looked at Nature; but while they realized how far their painting fell short of their intention, they had not yet found the way to secure greater brilliancy and truth. That way was discovered during the ‘seventies, after Pissarro and Monet had seen the Turners in London and returned to Paris. It is possible to exaggerate the influence of Turner on the new movement, for it had really begun earlier with Delacroix, but the sight of the Turners undoubtedly hastened its accomplishment as far as Pissarro and Monet are concerned. Not the beginning of Impressionism, but the first public revelation of Impressionism, was an exhibition held at Nadar’s galleries, Boulevard des Capucines, in 1874. Here were gathered together works by many of the ‘rejected’ of 1863, Manet being the best known of them and generally considered the leader of the movement, and also works by new adherents to Impressionist doctrine. The exhibitions provoked much controversy, but it was sufficiently talked about to be something of a success, and thereafter for several years a Salon des Impressionistes was an annual event. But in 1874, the science of color was still in its infancy, and if the exhibitors were ‘Impressionists’ they were not all ‘luminists’. Even Renoir’s famous picture of people in a theatre box, painted about this time, is sombre in color, in comparison with the scintillating canvases he was to paint later.
Realism And Impressionism In France (continued)
Hormones And Market Crises
I found the article Hormones may fuel market crises @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7342923.stm interesting because the Cambridge University team found testosterone levels were directly linked to the profit City of London traders made during trade sessions.
I think the diamond/colored stone dealers + auctioneers worldwide are no different from City of London traders + the team should have gone the extra mile to conduct similar research in diamond bourses + colored stone markets + auction houses worldwide to learn a bit more about testosterone levels + the impact.
Useful links:
www.nasonline.org
www.cam.ac.uk
I think the diamond/colored stone dealers + auctioneers worldwide are no different from City of London traders + the team should have gone the extra mile to conduct similar research in diamond bourses + colored stone markets + auction houses worldwide to learn a bit more about testosterone levels + the impact.
Useful links:
www.nasonline.org
www.cam.ac.uk
Kurt Masur
Kurt Masur is a German conductor, noted for his interpretation of German Romantic music, is one of the most widely admired and respected musicians of his generation + I think there is brilliance and that otherness in his music, which I like.
Useful link:
www.kurtmasur.com
Useful link:
www.kurtmasur.com
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Champagne Diamonds Update
The world's largest supplier of champagne diamonds has released its latest range of champagne diamond promotional materials @ http://www.riotintodiamonds.com/ENG/media/media_releases_1078.asp
Useful link:
www.riotintodiamonds.com
Useful link:
www.riotintodiamonds.com
Art Update
(via NYTimes) I liked the video art collections at Ubu + Franklin Furnace’s online archive
They were educational + entertaining.
Useful links:
www.ubu.com
http://www.ubu.com/film
http://acorn.forest.net/franklin/search.html
They were educational + entertaining.
Useful links:
www.ubu.com
http://www.ubu.com/film
http://acorn.forest.net/franklin/search.html
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