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Monthly Archives: March 2009

Incredible Kinetic Sculpture

Kinetic Sculpture from the BMW museum.

The Original Michael Jackson

It is frightening to think that MJ has been around this long. This is an Egyptian stature in the collection of the Field Museum in Chicago.

Elvis

The question is not, “Is Elvis still alive?” The question is “When will he ever die?”
This is a genuine 2nd Century Roman acroterion—an architectural ornament often seen on sarcophogi.

I Scream for Ice Cream

Incredible Medical Portraits—Not For the Squeamish

Peter Parker was a medical missionary to China in the 1830s, treating ophthalmic diseases and surgically removing tumors. He had portraits of many of his patients painted by Lam Qua, a Western-trained Chinese artist, to serve as instructional material. The one above depicts a massive chest wall tumor: This site hosts medical illustrations from the Peter [...]

Madonna of the Goldfinch—Why We Love Restorations

The Madonna and the Goldfinch is shown before, during and after restoration. Experts had to use X-rays and microscopes to restore the masterpiece to its former glory. (Reuters)The Renaissance masterpiece Madonna of the Goldfinch, by Raphael, will be on public view in Florence, Italy, for the first time in 10 years after a painstaking restoration.
“We will celebrate it [...]

“Barnumville” by Matt Hoyle.

Matt Hoyle’s photographic collection called “Barnumville,” contains portraits of circus performers. In his work, he combines, it seems to me, a technical mastery similar to Irving Penn with a poignant  lens reminiscent of the “outsider” portraits of Dianne Arbus.

Kunstformen der Nature

 

The “Artforms of Nature” were drawn by Ernst Haeckel in the 19th century. He discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including phylum, phylogeny, ecology and the kingdom Protista.  There are 100 detailed plates on this Wiki page. Click them to [...]

Two Press Photos About Winter I Couldn’t Resist

Top: A woman walked through the snow-covered village of Bedretto, Switzerland, Thursday after a heavy snowfall. (Fiorenzo Maffi/Reuters)
Bottom: Uncredited on the web.

Graffiti for Nighttime