Regrettably I see it's time for the Winter Flickr

[Angela M...]

Thanks andyg for the usual info on your gallery visits. Japanese art is one of my favourites also and Hokusai in particular. I believe I mentioned before I read the story about his life.  As usual we are entertained by your photos and glad you put up a wonderful collection each week. Stay well and fit my friend.

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

We’re in the midst of a cold spell here, Thursday and Friday were very cold. Today is just a little better as the wind was less. On Friday I woke up to 18 degree weather and with the wind chill it was considerably colder. Still dry I’m happy to say. I had bad news on the snow removal front, my all around handyman who I’ve worked with for 20 years called to let me know he had hurt his back and had to close his business. He’s undergoing therapy and if it doesn’t solve his problem he will need an operation. So I have to find someone else to do it and I know they won’t be as reliable and definitely more expensive. I’m very sorry for him as he is such a nice guy, always cheerful with a smile on his face and he has a family and a house so I don’t know how he’s going to cope financially through this. A bad situation all around.

This week I was back at the Met for the current drawing rotation. This was really an oddball collection of different things that were for the most part not really to my taste. Much of it had to do with jewelry, drawings, watercolors and engravings of ear rings and finger rings and the sort. Here’s an example.

Design for an earring with a green scarab – Anonymous 19th Century French artist – to which I can only say, that’s interesting. I guess.
https://tinyurl.com/y8ajut7q

Design for a Poster or Advertisement for the Venetian Jeweler Pallotti - A. Melo (Italian, active early 20th century) –This at least has structure and color and some content.
https://tinyurl.com/y8rjvedh

Portrait of Catherine de Bourbon - Jan (Johannes) Wierix, 16th Century artist of the Netherlands – This was included because of the profusion of jewels arrayed around her. It’s an engraving so you should have some idea of the amount of work that went into creating it.
https://tinyurl.com/yc7dt84o

Barcarolle - Bernard Childs -  Then there were a number of abstract pieces by 20th Century artists using non-traditional methods like this one which was done using power tools.
https://tinyurl.com/y9rsmwpz

Distant Systems - Lesley Schiff – Or this very contemporary piece done on a laser jet printer. Neither of these especially moved me.
https://tinyurl.com/ybzb3wou

D from Sketches - Cy Twombly – I had to go to MOMA to find an image that was viewable. I confess I don’t understand this at all and I’m sure art critics must have praised it but to me it’s what someone might do absentmindedly on a note pad while on hold on the telephone. If you go to the second link with the descriptive essay from the Met you’ll see that it was what he was actually aiming for. I think you know my feelings about abstract art.
https://www.moma.org/collection/works/66235
https://tinyurl.com/ychrsdze

There were other things that I found to admire which I’ll show below.

Plates for the ‘Atlas Anatomico’ (unpublished) - Crisóstomo Alejandrino José Martínez y Sorli – 17 Century Spanish artist – These two etchings were supposed to be part of a book on anatomy by the artist which was never complete. He wanted to show how the bones of the body related to each other and made it function. The one is rather macabre which might be subtitled skeletons on parade.
https://tinyurl.com/y7pjsqea
https://tinyurl.com/y8r7mjew

The Triumph of Julius Caesar - Andrea Andreani – 16th/17th Century Italian artist – This is a large series of woodcuts based on paintings by Andrea Mantegna that he did for the ducal palace in Mantua in the late 15th Century. You can’t really see them here so I’ve copied two sections below. Andreani also hand colored several of the prints and the picture of Caesar in his chariot is one of those. I’m drawn to this as I’m a fan of Roman mysteries, that is, mystery novels set around the period that Caesar lived.
https://tinyurl.com/y8x3k59k

The Triumph of Julius Caesar [no.1 and 2 plus 2 columns], 1599
https://www.artsy.net/artwork/andrea-andreani-the-triumph-of-julius-caesar-no-dot-1-and-2-plus-2-columns

Sheet 9: Julius Caesar in his horse-drawn chariot
https://tinyurl.com/ybouegdl

The Nativity - Bartolomé Estebán Murillo – He’s a 17th Century Spaniard who I’m familiar with from my visit to the Hispanic Society as well as the Frick which owns a portrait and mounted an exhibition of self-portraits last year which I wrote about. The Met website refers to him as one of the best known of all Spanish artists. This is a religious theme.
https://tinyurl.com/ya7b3ylc

Man Wearing a Large Cloak and a Small Naked Man on His Head - Jusepe de Ribera – Yes, the title is a literal description of this rather bizarre drawing. Another 17th Century Spaniard who I also saw at the Hispanic Society and whose work occasionally shows up at the auctions.
https://tinyurl.com/yajseruy

Bather Drying Herself - Edgar Degas – And finally, the only really well-known name in this exhibit, the French Impressionist. This pastel is one of his studies of bathers which was a frequent topic along with his ballerinas.
https://tinyurl.com/ya9gjrhv

Not one of the more successful hangings in my opinion but I don’t like to miss any of the rotations as there are always some nice things in them as I’ve shown in the second half of my description.

Now it’s time for the Flickrs.

Andy G.

Asian Kids Drag – Explore the others

https://www.flickr.com/photos/69122743@N07/45602867445/

075817-112118

https://www.flickr.com/photos/167027157@N06/45116406085/

P1040033

https://www.flickr.com/photos/96984932@N06/40178492464/

Nancy Ball

https://www.flickr.com/photos/nancyball1/15830394611/

BMJ Best (30)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/129032696@N02/15966444535/

I’m ready Sir...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/150101413@N05/32218132868/

Sarah (6)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahlouisetaylor/44975885184/

20160606_79

https://www.flickr.com/photos/sissymaidjoslyn/26020163357/

tumblr_oetfeg9nzd1ukdxiso1_250

https://www.flickr.com/photos/100854647@N07/36282216353/

Little Red again :-)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/fairyboyprincess/32102289338/

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

Today is not as cold as it has been but we’re about to get a winter storm with predictions of snow, sleet and rain today into tomorrow. Predictions aren’t always accurate and so far the prediction is for snowfall under five inches so I hope there won’t be large accumulations. The forecast also says it will warm up into the 40’s and rain which in theory will make it go away. But Monday, as Betty mentioned about Buffalo, it will be in the single digits with a wind chill factor of 17 degrees below zero. Unfortunately I have no choice but to go out in it as I have a doctor’s appointment. Not looking forward to that at all.

I was back at the Met this week for some more Asian art. Things have slowed down considerably insofar as exhibits I want to see at the Met. I really don’t have any desire to see their big new Abstract art exhibit. In addition to my indifference to much of it Roberta Smith in the Times roasted it. My brother, who enjoys this type of art, felt her review was extreme but said he was disappointed as well. There is a Chinese exhibit which I definitely will visit but in looking at upcoming exhibitions in the first Quarter there are only two that appeal to me, The Tale of Genji: A Japanese Classic Illuminated and Monumental Journey and The Daguerreotypes of Girault de Prangey. Genji is something I’m looking forward to.

This is a very long introduction to this week’s topic. It’s an article that appeared online in 2016 and I’m copying it in its entirety because if I just put in the URL it’s likely that most people will hit a paywall and not be able to read it.  It concerns a previous exhibition at the Met that is related to the current one I am discussing.
“Rajput Paintings at the Met
With ‘Divine Pleasures,’ a former curator’s private collection goes public
Steven M. Kossak began collecting the way many others do: first, rocks and butterflies, then coins and stamps, and eventually fine art, starting with old-master prints.
Then he took a different turn, going back to school at 36 to earn a graduate degree in art history, joining the Metropolitan Museum of Art as a research assistant, and ascending to full curator in the Asian Art department.
It was an excellent hire, one still paying dividends a full decade after his departure. On June 14, the Met will open “Divine Pleasures: Painting from India’s Rajput Courts—the Kronos Collections,” an exhibition of nearly 100 works Mr. Kossak bought for himself. Worth millions of dollars, they are a promised gift from Mr. Kossak and his family.
As a collector, Mr. Kossak said, he had grown infatuated by these playful paintings, which were made in the small kingdoms of northern India from the 16th to 19th centuries. Inspired by Hindu myths and poetry, the imaginative, detailed scenes of love and life among the gods are painted on paper in opaque watercolors and ink.
Their vibrant hues—reds, yellows, blues, golds, whites raised to simulate pearls and greens made with beetle-wing casings to sparkle like emeralds—are matched by their colorful titles. They include “Krishna and the Gopas [Cowherds] Huddle in the Rain” and “Krishna Swallows the Forest Fire.”
Each one, he said, was bought because it evoked a visceral emotional response. “It’s lightning-bolt recognition across the board,” he said.
“They pack a wallop in content, style and beautiful color,” said Vishakha Desai, an Asian-art scholar and president emerita of the Asia Society. “You can enjoy them whether you know the content or not. Any museum would want this.”
Mr. Kossak’s paintings also fill a gap in the Met’s vast collections. Like other museums, it privileged India’s more subdued, Persian-influenced Mughal paintings over indigenous work from the north.
Mughal paintings were popular with wealthy collectors, foreign royalty and Russian czars, and museums followed suit, said Milo C. Beach, an Indian-art specialist and former director of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the Freer Gallery, the Smithsonian’s museums of Asian art. In contrast, he added, Rajput paintings are more colorful and reflect what can still be seen in India today: “It’s a much more alive kind of painting.”
“Because of this gift,” he continued, “the Met will be unrivaled in Rajput paintings among American museums.”
Mr. Kossak began collecting Indian paintings in the late 1970s, and the core of his collection, purchased largely from dealers and sometimes in clusters, was formed before he joined the Met’s staff.
While at the museum, from 1986 to 2006, he did what he could to form a substantial Rajput collection. But, he said, “When the Met couldn’t afford it, I bought it.”
There was no conflict because the Met knew and acquiesced.
“The basic rule at the Met then was one of trust,” said Philippe de Montebello, the museum’s director at the time. “He would have brought it to the attention of the museum, and said ‘If you’re not going to go after it, then I will.’ ”
“That’s about as good an arrangement as you can possibly have,” said Mr. Beach.
Born to wealth, Mr. Kossak never had to earn a living. His spacious Midtown Manhattan apartment, with an East River view, is filled with art from his many collections: African, Oceanic, pre-Columbian, Asian sculptures and prints.
Before being moved uptown to the Met, some Rajput paintings hung on his walls; others, unframed and loose, were enjoyed hands-on, allowing the close inspection and intimate experience their former royal owners would have enjoyed.
Mr. Kossak, credited by many for having, in art-world parlance, “a great eye,” started visiting museums and taking painting classes as a child and buying prints in high school.
He studied studio art at Yale, then earned a master’s degree in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art, making work, he said, that was “figurative, realist.”
He no longer paints, but he plays the cello, which he also studied. His instrument of choice was made by the great Venetian luthier Domenico Montagnana, purchased after he sold his Stradivarius. He prefers the darker timbre and friendlier feel of the Montagnana.
Mr. Kossak hasn’t had the Rajput collection valued, he said; tax deductions can’t be taken until the paintings are physically transferred to the Met. Early on, he would have paid less than $50,000 for one of these paintings, sometimes much less. Now, dealers say, many fetch $500,000 to $800,000, and the rarest masterpieces go for a few million dollars each.
Mr. Kossak estimates the value of his gift today at $15 million to $20 million.
To accompany the exhibition of his works, the Met is presenting a concurrent show of 22 of the many Indian paintings it acquired under his guidance: “Poetry and Devotion in Indian Painting: Two Decades of Collecting” is, appropriately, a celebration of his tenure there.”

Now you know the background to the current exhibit. It’s a remarkable bequest Kossak is making assuming he doesn’t change his mind and his will before he passes away. As I mentioned in one of the auction posts the Seattle Art Museum was under the impression they were going to get Barney Ebsworth’s American art collection and his heirs sold it through Christies.
The title of this exhibit is Seeing the Divine: Pahari Painting of North India. It’s taken a while for me to cultivate my taste for Indian art which is very distinctive but I’ve come to appreciate its beauty and how much detail goes into it. I think it was the exhibit in 2016 when I first decided to give it a try. My brother had recommended it highly and I think I was ready to enjoy it having cultivated a taste for other Asian art at that point.
This is the press release from the Met website describing the exhibit.  The illustration in the release is, Devi in the Form of Bhadrakali Adored by the Gods. It was created in the 1660’s/70’s and in the second link you can read the essay. The image in the press release is larger and you can see all the jewelry as well as the small severed head in the hand of a God on the left brought as an offering.
https://www.metmuseum.org/press/exhibitions/2018/seeing-the-divine
https://tinyurl.com/yb7cmx2b

This is a link to Google books as redirected from the Met website with an online version of the print catalog for the 2016 exhibit. It says it’s a partial preview but it seems to have a large portion of the book available and offers an extensive overview and discussion of the items with illustrations and explanatory text for everything from that exhibit. Ten of the images are also in the current exhibition.

Divine Pleasures: Painting from India's Rajput Courts, The Kronos Collections
https://tinyurl.com/y73qwjgq

Below are three reviews of the current exhibit, all with images. The first has a slide show of five images which if you’re patient will advance by themselves.
https://www.blouinartinfo.com/photo-galleries/seeing-the-divine-pahari-painting-of-north-india-at-metropolitan

This one has images as well including an additional one
https://www.apollo-magazine.com/art-diary/seeing-the-divine-pahari-painting-of-north-india/

http://www.dailyexcelsior.com/pahari-paintings-to-go-on-display-at-prestigious-metropolitan-museum-of-art/

Below are a few more images I’ll link to. Read the essays on the website for insight as to what the image represents.

"Varaha, the Boar Incarnation of Vishnu, Saves the Earth" - Vishnu is one of the principal deities of Hinduism, and the Supreme Being or absolute truth in its Vaishnavism tradition. He is reincarnated as ten primary avatars to restore cosmic order. When there is an additional link the second one is a larger image.
https://tinyurl.com/yatut6ur
https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/662726/1416779/restricted

Devi in the Form of Bhadrakali Adored by the Gods – Devī is the Sanskrit word for "goddess – This is an explanation of what we’re looking at from the website, “Bhadrakali has the ritual marks, third eye, and crescent moon associated with Shiva, her consort and male energy. Bhadrakali is accompanied on her left by three forms of Kali (so identified by the short Hindi labels written in the border), wearing leopard skins and holding two swords, a trident, a severed head, and two skull¬ cups filled with blood or wine. On her right is the Afro-bedecked Bhima, the consort of a terrifying incarnation of Shiva, also wearing a leopard skin and holding a sword and skull¬ cup. Standing next to Bhima is the fire¬encircled figure of Vahni¬priya, the beloved of Agni, the god of fire. And kneeling in the foreground are two diminutive, snake-garlanded minions of the great god Shiva, offering libations to Bhadrakali, and dropping flowers on her feet. All of these attending deities jostle for space around the margins, creating a dense, overlapping mass of figures barely contained by the wide border that encircles.” It’s a very crowded frame with enormous detail and quite macabre.
https://tinyurl.com/yb7cmx2b
https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/662738/1416791/restricted

Krishna Steals the Clothing of the Gopis (Female Cowherds) – This is done in fun, not maliciousness, and when Krishna tells the Gopis he will not return their clothes unless they come to him they do so not in embarrassment but due to their reverence for his holiness.
https://tinyurl.com/ycbjvr9k
https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/662737/1416860/restricted

Indra Worships the Elephant-Headed God Ganesha, Seated on a Throne – Ganesha is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon. He is the God of luck and good fortune and readily identifiable by his elephant head.
https://tinyurl.com/yajz36gp
https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/659913/1554937/restricted

The Poet and Author of the Gita Govinda, Jayadeva, Visualizes Radha and Krishna -  The Gita Govinda has been called a woodland epic, as well as a lyrical, dramatic poem. It is sung every day at the great temple of Jagannatha (a form of Krishna) at Puri, a famous pilgrimage site in Orissa. This painting is the last image in a folio illustrating Jayadeva’s poem.
https://tinyurl.com/y742devq
https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/662785/1417873/restricted

Krishna as a Child Stealing Butter – This is a lovely tableau of a scene of childish mischief by the God who has been brought to earth by his father to save him from evil demons.
https://tinyurl.com/y7ue7fss
https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/662776/1417929/restricted

I have a feeling some of you aren’t going to be particularly taken with this post and I understand. I mentioned that it took me some time to warm up to it but if you look closely, and that may be difficult on the web, you can see that these really are very beautiful. Reading the commentary to understand the significance of what we’re seeing helps as well.

In other art news, several articles and videos from Christie’s and Sotheby’s.

Better than Turner? The brief and brilliant career of Thomas Girtin
https://www.christies.com/features/The-Life-of-Thomas-Girtin-9651-1.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9651

Hidden Treasures: Monet’s Saule pleureur et bassin aux nymphéas
https://www.christies.com/features/Monet-Saule-pleureur-et-bassin-aux-nympheas-9635-3.aspx

Edward Hopper's Ground Swell, an American Portrait of Freedom and Possibility
https://tinyurl.com/ybxqr2o7

Marie Antoinette’s Personal Portraitist and the Unlikely Painting of an Indian Ambassador
https://tinyurl.com/y93qstr7

And now, what else, the Flickrs.

Andy G.
1920 Crossdressing Father and Daughters – More in folder if you can wade through it

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dianafranklin-ellis/39751489993/

Fifties glamour girls!!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/81674904@N07/46684222491/

Gold 97

https://www.flickr.com/photos/19712934@N00/28484421807/

Jan and Steph, the Terrible Twins at Stephanie's in Blackpool

https://www.flickr.com/photos/142877968@N07/43708224735/

Sissy Pet

https://www.flickr.com/photos/sissypet12/45307713225/

Turned into a sissy little girl forevermore by Auntie Mary

https://www.flickr.com/photos/165666455@N05/42430232135/

Cleavage!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/claudiatmuk/10102086434/

Pvc baby doll.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/21134240@N03/45459686132/

Sarah (27)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahlouisetaylor/45650062512/

842dcf0f72adf7db345c8950b1b0ef0d

https://www.flickr.com/photos/146827757@N06/39332393510/

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

It's an early Flickr as I'm taking a friend out to the auction houses, something I'll write about in a few weeks.

I went back to Met again for the Chinese exhibit I mentioned I wanted to see. It’s the first rotation of, Children to Immortals: Figural Representations in Chinese Art. Unlike most of the Chinese exhibitions I’ve seen, instead of scrolls and screens, most of the art is objects, dishes, vases, figurative sculptures, etc. made from different materials. The items that aren’t carved all have exquisite art painted on them, some in bright colors and some in black and white.

This is from the Met’s press release.

“The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s new exhibition Children to Immortals: Figural Representations in Chinese Art explores how Chinese artists captured the inner spirit (chuanshen) of the subjects they portrayed. Featuring more than 130 objects in various media created between the Song (960–1279) and the Qing (1644–1911) dynasties—including textiles, lacquer, jade, ceramics, wood, bamboo, metalwork, and more—the exhibition illuminates this central aspect of figural representation in Chinese art with works drawn primarily from The Met collection. Included are many masterpieces, such as the gilt-brass sculpture Daoist immortal Laozi, by Chen Yanqing (active 15th century), and rarely shown objects. 

Rather than emphasize accurate anatomical renderings, Chinese artists sought to capture the “life energy” of their subjects.  Organized thematically, the exhibition consists of three sections: Children at Play, with works depicting children, primarily boys, engaged in various activities, such as riding hobbyhorses, flying kites, and playing hide-and-seek; History, Legend, and Idealized Life, with works depicting grown-up, elegant men and women in idealized settings or taken from historical tales; and Land of the Immortals, with figures representing deities from Buddhism and Daoism.”

This is the overview to the exhibit
https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2018/children-to-immortals

This is a link to all the objects.
https://tinyurl.com/ycj4y47z

These are some of the notable items in the exhibit. Be sure to click on the images to enlarge them when possible.

Children playing in the palace garden – A scroll with a scene of children frolicking in the outdoors, a bit faded but otherwise quite nice. It’s the kind of behavior children no longer engage in in our society which is regretful.
https://tinyurl.com/y7pnwzox

Tray with women and boys on a garden terrace – This is done in red lacquer and the process is explained in a 90 second audio file on this page if you scroll down. It’s basically shellacking wood multiple times and then carving the image in the shellac. There were a number of red lacquer images in the exhibit.
https://tinyurl.com/yapuj3fr

Panel with boys at play – Children at play were a popular theme in Chinese art, especially boys, as they were the hope of the rulers for heirs to continue the reign. This is a tapestry which I imagine took an enormous amount of time to complete.
https://tinyurl.com/y9rq528k

Vase with children at play – I imagine vases like these were ceremonial as they seem a little too fine for everyday use. This is a link to an explanation of how the potters created these images that we see. https://www.jayneshatzpottery.com/JAPANESE-OVERGLAZE-ENAMELS.html
https://tinyurl.com/ybflqpuy

God of Longevity (Shoulao) and boy – This is a hanging scroll while the second image is a bamboo sculpture. Shoulao is the God of longevity and this link describes his appearance.
http://gotheborg.com/glossary/shoulao.shtml
https://tinyurl.com/ybdtfxsy
God of Longevity (Shoulao) with children – I can only marvel at the talent needed to carve something like this.
https://tinyurl.com/y9epynfa

Panel – This is a colorful tapestry showing an elderly couple surrounded by their family who are gathered to honor them for a birthday.
https://tinyurl.com/y7nfjvfj

Tray with scholars – This is made of black lacquer and appears to be painted rather than carved.
https://tinyurl.com/yc2xsa76

Plate with scholar and plum branches – These are three delicate painted plates, one in black and white and two in color. Something pleasant to look at as you eat your meal I suppose.
https://tinyurl.com/y94k3ljl
Plate with a drunken scholar and an attendant
https://tinyurl.com/y84djtl3
Dish with scene of a woman and children
https://tinyurl.com/ydacp9j9

Platter with story of Pan An – This colorful plate recounts a visit from the famous writer who when he appeared was showered with fruit by his admirers.
https://tinyurl.com/y7h4z4js

Dragon-boat festival performance – This is a fairly large tapestry which you can see in its entirety as well as in sections. It’s a busy scene with lots to see.
https://tinyurl.com/y9ujkxc7

Daoist fairy with attendant on a raft – There were a number of Jade carvings of which this is an example. Like the bamboo sculpture it’s a remarkable achievement. As someone who loves art I regret my total lack of ability to create any. But I’m pleased that I live where I have easy access to so much great art.
https://tinyurl.com/ydgnamrz

Below are two reviews with images. In both you’ll see some images I’ve linked to above.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/conveying-inner-spirit-figural-representations-in-chinese-art_2749055.html
https://medium.com/@tiffanikate/children-to-immortals-figural-representations-in-chinese-art-49d9b5766a02

I look forward to the second rotation which will be in place sometime in early June.

And now it must be time for the Flickrs.

Andy G.

Frilly Dress And Pantyhose

https://www.flickr.com/photos/166654743@N04/46293601602/

HARD TO IMAGINE . . . EVERYONE IN THESE PICS WERE BORN MALE

https://www.flickr.com/photos/73087894@N08/46288114241/

DSCN0770

https://www.flickr.com/photos/60660709@N04/43534755575/

I wanna be a princess_♥︎

https://www.flickr.com/photos/saki_75153/45292511365/

IMG_20171221_194444

https://www.flickr.com/photos/44815144@N07/44153975515/

2018-02-27_11-05-37

https://www.flickr.com/photos/125427358@N02/39814877214/

Hi? I’m Kristy, Korean Crossdresser.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/153853850@N04/38229914612/

Urban Lights Cover

https://www.flickr.com/photos/vivianchen05/38203453651/

2018棚拍_180925_0031

https://www.flickr.com/photos/crystal_ringring/44902565052/

622

https://www.flickr.com/photos/lilyblinz/30515887027/

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

It was 10 degrees when I went for my walk this morning which wasn’t too bad, at least in comparison to what we’ve been experiencing. And it warmed up into the thirties with the forecast temperature only increasing as the week goes on culminating in a possible temperature of 60 degrees. Both groundhogs, Punxsutawney Phil and Staten Island Chuck, predict an early spring to which I can only say, God I hope so. In the papers it said Phil’s predictions aren’t so accurate being right 40% of the time while Chuck is right 80% of the time. Maybe since both call for early spring this year there’s a 120% possibility it will happen. Of course math was never my best subject.

It was a cold morning but not unbearable when I walked downtown to the Whitney Museum to see the Andy Warhol exhibit, Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again.  I had no plans to see it as he is not someone I particularly care for but there really wasn't anything up that I hadn't already seen. This exhibit did not change my mind. It’s the first retrospective of his entire career since 1989 and it’s a major compilation filling three floors of the museum. This is a link to the Whitney website with an overview, three videos and audio clips. There are also 19 sections, each with a descriptive essay and then the art from that section. https://whitney.org/Exhibitions/AndyWarhol  You can see it had the iconic works, the Brillo boxes, the Jackie O’s, the Elvises and other things I think most people associate with him.

I’ll discuss some of the things that were of interest to me. 

In the 50’s he was a commercial artist doing illustrations for shoe companies and other work for hire. He clearly had artistic talent as well as a keen eye for marketing both his work and himself. And I can’t argue that he changed the way the world looks at art.

This is an example of a magazine spread on shoes that he illustrated for Life Magazine.
https://whitney.org/uploads/image/file/822718/large_final_ARCHIVAL_062-WEB.png

This is a New York Times ad for a television show that ran on September 13, 1951, “The Nation’s Nightmare” with the graphic illustration by Warhol. It was also used on the broadcast when it was released as an album.
http://www.warholstars.org/nowhere/nations-nightmare.jpg

I find this and the magazine illustration interesting as I’ve always enjoyed artists who started in this field such as Edward Hopper. Back in 2014 I visited the Museum of the City of New York for an exhibit of commercial art by Mac Conner who at the time was 101 years old and believe it or not is still alive today at 106. I very much enjoyed the art for his magazine covers. This link is to an article from the Times about the exhibit with a few examples.
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/29/business/media/paying-homage-to-an-illustrator-from-the-industrys-golden-era.html

I have a TV Guide from the early 50’s with an article on television title cards that shows one Warhol created. Unfortunately I didn't make a point of noting which one it is and when I looked for it was unable to find it. This is a link to a website that discusses this period in his life and notes his eagerness to get involved in title cards as he felt it would bring him publicity and make him famous. The site quotes him in response to the question, do you want to be a great artist as saying, “No, I'd rather be famous." He certainly achieved that.  http://www.warholstars.org/warhol1/4imperfection.html The link is to page 4 of a timeline about him and you can go back to the first page and then move forward to learn more.

How many people remember hand created title cards on early television shows? This is a short video that illustrates the concept.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGatTSb6A90&t=3s

This is another thing that intrigues me, a very large hand painted facsimile of a front page from the New York City tabloid, the New York Mirror. This is a link to a review of an exhibit at the National Gallery in Washington that focused on his newspaper headlines.
https://www.npr.org/2011/09/26/140772086/andy-warhols-headline-sensationalism-always-sells

It occurred to me there weren't many people attending the exhibit who had actually seen that newspaper or even heard of it. It was a poor competitor to the New York Daily News, the dominant tabloid newspaper for so many years in New York that is now unfortunately just a shell of itself due to the massive reduction of staff that new management instituted in recent times. The Mirror went out of business in 1963 the year after the painting. We never had the Mirror or the Journal American in my house when I was a child, taking the Times, the News and the New York Post which was a bastion of liberalism back then. This frustrated me as a child because they both had wonderful Sunday funnies. I’ve been saving the News funnies since the late 1970’s and wish I still had the ones from the 50’s and 60’s.  The Journal actually had a color comics section on Saturdays as well as Sundays. But even at 11 I knew I wanted a copy of the last edition of the Mirror which I was unable to locate. Lots of people saved it as I think is proved by all the copies that are available on EBAY. I subsequently obtained a copy from that source, twice I think since I forgot I had already done so but that worked out because the first copy I got was a much thinner edition than the subsequent one. Back then newspapers printed multiple editions each day with updated stories. The headlines for that issue were about Joe Valachi the Mafia boss. 

I’m frustrated as an adult that I haven’t been able to find a bound volume of the Mirror or the Journal American. I have a volume of the New York American but neither the New York Journal nor the combined paper. I have the Herald, the Tribune and the Herald Tribune, The World, The Sun, The World Telegram and Sun but not the Telegram or The World Telegram. Nor The World Journal Tribune although I have the first edition, first Sunday edition and the final edition. Multiple copies of the Daily News and New York Times. Two copies of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, several of the New York Post as a broadsheet but not as a tabloid, New York Compass but not the New York Star, two copies of PM, The Kansas City Star and The Chicago Tribune. No New York Graphic either. Of the ones I don’t have, in the 17 years I’m on EBAY I only saw one Daily Mirror volume which was in poor condition and went for over $400. So I’m frustrated but I continue to look. I’m curious to know how many board members have ever even heard of these newspapers. I guess if you didn’t live in the New York City area you might know a few of them that had a National reputation but unless you’ve been around for a while like me you’re probably too young to remember all the others.

Andy Warhol - Ethel Scull 36 Times, 1963. Silkscreen ink and acrylic on linen, thirty-six panels: 80 × 144 in – I remember the Sculls, she and her husband Robert, were major art collectors in the 70’s, buying contemporary artist’s works. After 30 years of marriage they had a rancorous divorce and then fought over their collection which Robert had claimed sole credit for acquiring. After long litigation she was awarded a 35% share in the collection and met with her former husband to divide the works. This is from her obituary in the Times, “By the flip of a coin, Mrs. Scull won one of the most important, Jasper Johns's 1959 ''Out the Window.'' Later that year she sold it at auction for $3.63 million, then the highest amount paid for a work by a living artist.” But it then goes on to say that she managed to spend it all in a profligate way and her social life was curtailed. I’m fairly certain I have an old issue of New York Magazine that did a feature article on them during their heyday.
https://artssummary.files.wordpress.com/2018/11/86_61a-jj-cropped1.jpg

Bonwit Teller window display featuring artwork by Andy Warhol – In the window you can see his hand painted Superman painting which I’ve also separately linked to below as well his Dick Tracy painting. I always resented the depictions he, Roy Lichtenstein and the other Pop artists did based on comic book icons. I felt it ripped off the art done in the comics which was never considered art by critics and because it was now being displayed by other than commercial artists was considered “art.” Things have changed greatly in the many years since and graphic novels and comic book artists are accorded respect their predecessors could only dream of.
https://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/bonwit-teller-window-display-featuring-artwork-by-andy-warhol
https://theartstack.com/artist/andy-warhol/superman-1961
https://artimage.org.uk/6121/andy-warhol/dick-tracy--1960

This video which is almost an hour is a walk through the exhibit with commentary by the artist James Kalm.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_loodakVuE

These are two in depth reviews of the exhibit with many illustrations, one from Art net and the other the NY Times. On the Times page are four more links to current articles about him.
https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/andy-warhol-whitney-review-1400113

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/08/arts/design/warhol-review-donna-de-salvo-whitney-museum-celebrity-portrait.html

Well I see I did an awful lot of reminiscing without really commenting that much on Warhol but as I said at the beginning, he’s not someone I think very highly of and I continue to be astounded that he has retained a reputation with his works selling in the millions to the current day. There is no accounting for taste.

While I was at the museum I did enjoy visiting the permanent collection up on the 6th Floor again with a number of paintings that weren't on display the last time I visited including a Hopper and a beautiful O'Keeffe which are linked to below. Always a treat to see Hopper, there were five or six in total.
https://whitney.org/artworks/5874
https://whitney.org/WatchAndListen/1095

In other art news this looks interesting.
A New Project Uses Watercolors to Picture the World Before Photography—and Reveals the Devastating Effects of Climate Change
The Watercolour World makes the case for these fragile images as a vital intellectual resource.
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/watercolor-climate-change-1453591
And now for those who waded patiently through my nostalgia now let’s go to the Flickrs.

Andy G.

Closeted but Happy

https://www.flickr.com/photos/60741642@N06/46815607362/

same day different styles

https://www.flickr.com/photos/52912530@N04/31604940337/

i went outside for a change. goodbye 2018

https://www.flickr.com/photos/158556074@N05/32672155798/

The bride - the girl in white

https://www.flickr.com/photos/146436560@N03/41578919581/

But why can't I be a Disney Princess too?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tranniefun/41294324471/

075716-121818

https://www.flickr.com/photos/167027157@N06/44643989620/

IMG_4472

https://www.flickr.com/photos/168369595@N05/44402937830/

someone unwrap me

https://www.flickr.com/photos/158274655@N05/45544997025/

Me and friend Jasmine

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ninajay/44472247950/

Al7

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jodiexfemme/30774038057/

[Betty]

There's a 50/50 chance of the Ground Hog getting it right. Yet statistics show he's only right 37-39% of the time. That means you'd get better luck & more accurate results more often by just flipping a coin or making a wild guess.

I'll bet in my town, we'll still see snow through March, but also more likely through early April too. But that wasn't typical until the late 1990s. We've had some chilly rainy Saint Pat's day before the 1990s, but I don't recall any ice or snow on the ground before the mid 90s.

It's a good thing that we can see all the wonderful art you present to us, to see from our warm home, while you're still braving the elements.

It's sad though that 70% of all internet traffic these days -- even at Betty's is on a phone. They really can't appreciate great art even on a 6 inch screen boasting 2-4K bullshyt resolution at 120 frames per second. It's all a scam to force you to pay for more data bandwidth & speed that they don't actually deliver most of the time anyway. They want you to pay more while providing less by fooling you with pointless big numbers.

Use a computer to see art nice, not a phone or hyped up tablet.

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

Since I retired I seldom go into the City on Saturday but I decided to go today as it looks like next week the weather does not look promising. It was very windy and cold on the walk up. I remembered to check the subway advisories so I knew in advance that the C train wasn’t running and I’d have to go to Broadway on the way home. I was crossing Madison Avenue when I saw the crosstown bus turn and go uptown which made we wonder why. I got to Fifth Avenue and there was a sign saying to catch the bus at Madison and then I saw the 79th entrance to the park was closed. I walked up to the Met and went inside and there was a mob of people. The entire ticketing area was jammed with dozens of people on both the member and general admission lines and also at the automatic machines while the coat check was similarly busy. I decided I didn’t want to deal with it and left. I got outside and realized I should use the bathroom first so I went back in and when I was exiting the second time I asked an official if there was some special event. He rather sullenly just said Lunar New Year.  I Googled it and you can see what I was up against here. Just my luck.
https://www.metmuseum.org/events/programs/met-celebrates/festivals-and-special-programs/lunar-new-year-2019  It occurs to me that if this happened before I retired I probably would have arrived at opening time and been out of the museum before all this began. Now I hope at least one day next week is temperate so I can go back.

Earlier this week I visited Sotheby’s for their Old Masters auction previews. A veritable ocean of art spread across 6 floors with many beautiful paintings, drawings and sculptures. One section was devoted to The Female Triumphant and below is an article describing what that represents. It mentions the different artists whose works are being auctioned along with some illustrations, one of which is Angelika Kauffmann’s portrait of Royal children that I link to below. At the bottom are links to other artists in the sale.

Masterworks by Trailblazing Female Artists Spanning the 16th through the 19th Centuries
https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/masterworks-by-trailblazing-female-artists-spanning-the-16th-through-the-19th-centuries?locale=en

Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun – This is a magnificent, full size portrait of a very impressive individual. It’s even more impressive when you see it hanging in the gallery. I’ve written many times about Le Brun and the brilliant exhibit of her work at the Met.
PORTRAIT OF MUHAMMAD DERVISH KHAN, FULL-LENGTH, HOLDING HIS SWORD IN A LANDSCAPE
https://tinyurl.com/y8bf6xqv

Marie Antoinette’s Personal Portraitist and the Unlikely Painting of an Indian Ambassador – This is a video that describes Le Brun’s painting of the Ambassador.
https://tinyurl.com/ycr64t2h

This is an article on the results of the auction. You can see the portrait set a record price.

A Painting by Élisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun Sold for $7.2 Million at Sotheby’s, a New Record for a Female Artist From Before the Modern Era
https://tinyurl.com/ybzhhltg

Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun – This is a lovely pastel portrait by the same artist who painted the Indian Ambassador
PORTRAIT OF MRS. SPENCER PERCEVAL, NÉE JANE WILSON (1769-1844), BUST-LENGTH
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.51.html

Angelika Kauffmann, R.A. - Kauffman is another important female artist and this is a sentimental portrait of Royal Children.
PORTRAIT OF THREE CHILDREN, ALMOST CERTAINLY LADY GEORGIANA SPENCER, LATER DUCHESS OF DEVONSHIRE, LADY HENRIETTA SPENCER AND GEORGE VISCOUNT ALTHORP
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.52.html

Claude-Joseph Vernet - There were a number of paintings on copper of which this Vernet is an example. You can’t see it on the computer but these paintings glow, they don’t need to be illuminated, it’s like they’re back lit.
A MEDITERRANEAN PORT AT SUNSET, WITH A FISHERMAN IN THE FOREGROUND AND A COUPLE AT LEFT WALKING ALONG THE ROCKY COAST
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.69.html

Charles Maurin – The Divine Sarah, the famous stage actress.
PORTRAIT OF A LADY (PRESUMED TO BE SARAH BERNHARDT)
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/european-art-n10009/lot.455.html

Thomas Gainsborough, R.A. – This is an impressive portrait by Gainsborough which surprisingly, to me anyway, had a pre-sale estimate of $80-$120K which I find low for such a famous artist. It sold for $93.7K.
PORTRAIT OF EDWARD WILLES (1723-1787), THREE-QUARTER LENGTH, WEARING JUDGE'S ROBES AND WIG
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/old-master-paintings-day-sale-n10008/lot.284.html

Jean Béraud - This street scene by Beraud caught my fancy because of his suggestion of wind. The woman’s dress and scarf and the men holding on to their hats describe a very windy day.
LE PONT DES ARTS PAR GRAND VENT
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/european-art-n10009/lot.402.html?locale=en

Joachim Anthonisz. Wtewael – My brother upon seeing this said it will bring a fortune as he is a hot artist and it’s spectacular although he didn’t think it one of his best.  As it turns out it fell in the midrange of the presale estimate.
A BANQUET OF THE GODS
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.53.html

Pieter Claesz – This painting was on display at the Met for 10 years and I’m sure they’re very disappointed that it went up for auction rather than being donated to the museum. The presale estimate on this was $700K-$900K and it sold for $2.535M.
STILL LIFE OF LEMONS AND OLIVES, PEWTER PLATES, A ROEMER AND A FAÇON-DE-VENISE WINE GLASS ON A LEDGE
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.22.html?locale=en

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo - THE PIETÀ – Murillo is someone I’ve seen in the auctions as well as at the Hispanic Society. This painting far outdid its estimate of $70K-90K closing at $399K. It’s also painted on copper which really adds life to it when seen hanging in place. Its provenance goes back to the first purchaser in the 17th Century.
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.32.html

Jan Brueghel the Elder - STILL LIFE OF ROSES AND OTHER FLOWERS IN A BOWL AND A VASE, ON A LEDGE – This is a small painting, roughly 5”x8”, which is rare for Brueghel as he usually worked on much larger canvases. It’s also on copper which makes the colors of the flowers vibrant. “Reasonably” priced it went for $118.75K
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/old-master-paintings-day-sale-n10008/lot.130.html

Orazio Gentileschi - THE FALL OF THE REBEL ANGELS – This was painted on alabaster, a marble like substance used in sculpture. In this case it behaves like copper in lighting up the painting. Orazio is the father of Artemisia who is one of the female artists mentioned in the articles above. Her painting is just below.
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.14.html

Artemisia Gentileschi - SAINT SEBASTIAN TENDED BY IRENE – Sotheby’s had suggested that this would bring great interest but it sold for only $15K above the high estimate.
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007/lot.45.html?locale=en

Old Master Drawings were also auctioned off and there were some notable ones. I’ve listed three below and if you click on the results link you can see everything in the auction.

Sir Peter Paul Rubens - NUDE STUDY OF A YOUNG MAN WITH RAISED ARMS – This sold for well over the $3.5M high estimate. This is commentary on it from the article above on the auction results. “A work on paper by the Flemish Baroque master Peter Paul Rubens sold for a record $8.2 million, but it was marred by some controversy. Nude Study of a Young Man with Raised Arms was part of the Dutch royal collection and it sold abroad to a private buyer despite criticism from museums in the Netherlands that felt they should have been given the chance to buy the important work.”
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/old-master-drawings-n10006/lot.15.html

Raffaello Sanzio, called Raphael - A STANDING SOLDIER IN ARMOR SEEN IN PROFILE – This is a newly discovered drawing and Sotheby’s had high hopes for it but it sold just below the low estimate at $795K
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/old-master-drawings-n10006/lot.23.html

Jan Josefsz van Goyen - PEASANT COUPLE BEFORE A LARGE THATCHED COTTAGE – This is just something I liked, there were several rural scenes from van Goyen all of which are very beautiful. The lot essay describes it as a “charming snapshot of daily life.”
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/old-master-drawings-n10006/lot.94.html

This is the link for all the results from the Master Paintings Evening Sale.
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/2019/master-paintings-evening-n10007.html?locale=en

This is the link for all the results from the Master Paintings Day Sale.
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/2019/old-master-paintings-day-sale-n10008.html

This is the link for all the results from the Old Master Drawings Sale.
http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/2018/old-master-drawings-n10006.html?locale=en

And in other art news here are four articles from Christie’s, two with brief videos, and a brief video from Sotheby’s.

https://www.christies.com/features/Caillebotte-Signac-and-Sailing-9675-1.aspx?sc_lang=en
Signac, Caillebotte and their joy at being on the water

https://www.christies.com/features/Matisse-and-his-models-9657-1.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9657
Hidden Treasures: Matisse and the models who inspired him

https://www.christies.com/features/Revealed-and-obscured-Le-lieu-commun-by-Rene-Magritte-9572-3.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9572
Revealed and obscured — Le lieu commun by René Magritte

https://www.christies.com/features/The-moment-Picasso-had-to-face-up-to-himself-in-the-mirror-9676-3.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9676
The moment Picasso ‘had to face up to himself in the mirror’ 

Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus, The Original Blond Bombshell
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dYAa5hjEZg&feature=youtu.be

Now let’s visit the Flickrs.

Andy G.

27314406679_3ac95b6994_b Nathlie is fully dressed in his blue & white satin dress long black wig & a beautiful smile

https://www.flickr.com/photos/134423281@N06/39323455630/

Pretty kissable sissies

https://www.flickr.com/photos/138690271@N03/46040611541/

I think I just might be able to get used to being a "glamour girl" if I work hard enough at it every day!! hehe DSC00177 (2)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/37413172@N04/46025232752/

I like dressing like a girl

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152796253@N08/46060543735/

DSCF0446 2

https://www.flickr.com/photos/141885957@N04/46561479922/

Allison Catalina

https://www.flickr.com/photos/alicat366/46586854152/

Susan Louise Fox 224

https://www.flickr.com/photos/155501406@N06/45713282405/

Silk floral dress, bare legs and sequin ballerinas

https://www.flickr.com/photos/161596142@N07/45990194314/

Sissy School...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/145401144@N06/39728492513/

332311

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152802635@N05/42515676495/

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

More odd weather this week, yesterday it was 66 degrees, earlier in the week it was in the 30’s and we got some snow. Today it’s cold again but dry. You never know what to expect but if we can get through the rest of the winter without significant snowfall I will be happy.

This week I visited Christie’s for their Old Master Prints and Old Master and British Drawings. I thought it was an exceptionally fine collection which included 21 of Rembrandt’s etchings. I’ve linked to several but at the end of this post I’ve linked to the Christie’s website with all of the items in the auctions and you can visit to see all the others. I was familiar with many of them from either other auctions or exhibitions but I can’t remember coming across these three.

REMBRANDT HARMENSZ. VAN RIJN - A Scholar in his Study ('Faust')
https://tinyurl.com/ybjpdwef

REMBRANDT HARMENSZ. VAN RIJN -Self-Portrait with Saskia
https://tinyurl.com/yceb8all

REMBRANDT HARMENSZ. VAN RIJN - Saskia with Pearls in her Hair
https://tinyurl.com/y9rfssly

10 things to know about Albrecht Dürer – This is an article from Christie’s about the artist. Below are several samples from the sale.
https://tinyurl.com/yboxa7a3

ALBRECHT DÜRER - The Crucifixion with the Virgin and Saint John – These are wonderful but like the sample from Master E.S. they aren’t the kind of thing I would want to hang on my wall. There are many beautiful prints in this collection, things that as I stand in front of them I think to myself I would love to wake up every morning and see this waiting for me to open my eyes. The Rembrandt’s come into that category.
https://tinyurl.com/ycylva9d

ALBRECHT DÜRER - The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, from: The Apocalypse
https://tinyurl.com/y967s4fs

Who was the Master E.S. — and what does this rare print reveal? – This is another article from Christie’s and it discusses the print below.
https://tinyurl.com/yagbwuq4

MASTER E.S. - The Madonna of Einsiedeln: Large Version
https://tinyurl.com/y926etx5

10 things to know about Goya – And another article from Christie’s with information on the artist. I’ve chosen several examples below.
https://tinyurl.com/ybytdl3j

FRANCISCO DE GOYA Y LUCIENTES - Fiero monstruo! (Fierce Monster!)
https://tinyurl.com/yaryvq2w

FRANCISCO DE GOYA Y LUCIENTES - El amor y la muerte & Nohubo remedio (Plates 10 & 24 from: Los Caprichos)
https://tinyurl.com/y9z2ejjg

Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues - Two narcissi and a columbine, a dragonfly and a stag beetle. – I was unfamiliar with de Morgues so I’ve truncated a little of his history from the lot essay. This is one of five bright and delicate depictions of flora and fauna by the artist. French by birth he was sent to Florida by the King as a cartographer but had to come home when the Spanish took over the French colony. Then owing to his being a Hugenot he wound up in England as an exile where he came under the protection of Sir Walter Raleigh. That’s how these drawings, part of a much larger set, wound up in Britain. More good examples of art that pleases the eye and something you could have on your wall and look forward to seeing every day.
https://tinyurl.com/y85pz45x

Pancrace Bessa - A branch of pears (i); A branch of quinces (ii) – Like the above, a beautiful watercolor.
https://tinyurl.com/y86ylly7

Alessandro Zezzos - A young peasant woman – An artist I’m unfamiliar with but I was taken by the beauty of this portrait.
https://tinyurl.com/y9f48vka

Joseph Mallord William Turner, R.A. - Lake Lucerne, with the Rigi – There’s a long lot essay for this lovely watercolor, one that was part of his output late in his career and life.
https://tinyurl.com/y8v3jh9a

JEAN-ETIENNE LIOTARD - The Large Self-Portrait – One of my favorites, I know I’ve discussed his exhibit at the Frick numerous times but it still remains one of the best I’ve ever attended. Only occasionally do I get to see one of his works up for auction.
https://tinyurl.com/ycato3ul

JAMES ABBOTT MCNEILL WHISTLER - The Two Doorways – Another favorite, this is the only Whistler in the sale and it’s one I’ve seen before in exhibits. This is from his first Venice set and the Met owns a copy. This disappeared from the website but I was able to come up with the same etching from a 2007 auction.
https://www.christies.com/lotfinder/Lot/james-mcneill-whistler-the-two-doorways-from-4986393-details.aspx

CLAUDE GELLÉE, CALLED CLAUDE LORRAIN - Le Bouvier – Le Bouvier translates as the herdsman and that’s what we see in this bucolic image of cows grazing in the woods by the river. Very calm and serene.
https://tinyurl.com/y9orlnj6

Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto  - A capriccio with an ancient tomb monument to the left, and a watermill to the right. – I can’t remember seeing many of his drawings but the lot essay says he started creating them to attract a new market when his painting commissions declined. Unlike his grand scenes of the canals of Venice and the Doge's Palace, this is one of his architectural fantasies.
https://tinyurl.com/ydfrznhg

Old Master Prints – This is the full listing on everything in the auction with realized prices where items sold.
https://www.christies.com/old-master-prints-27909.aspx?lid=1&dt=160220190425&saletitle=

Old Master and British Drawings – This is the full listing on everything in the auction with realized prices where items sold.
https://www.christies.com/old-master-and-british-27772.aspx?lid=1&dt=040220191130&saletitle=

Lots of beautiful things here, very glad I was able to go.

In other art news, four stories and videos from Christie’s and one from Sotheby’s.

The video of the Irving’s apartment looking over Fifth Avenue and the Metropolitan Museum is really impressive. An absolutely beautiful place to live. .

Prized Asian art from the home of Florence and Herbert Irving
https://www.christies.com/features/Inside-the-Irving-Collection-of-Asian-art-9678-3.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9678

Hidden Treasures: Nature morte de pêches et poires by Paul Cézanne
https://www.christies.com/Features/Cezanne-Nature-morte-de-peches-et-poires-9658-3.aspx

Vibrancy, harmony, sensuality — The art of Henri Matisse
https://www.christies.com/features/Guide-to-Henri-Matisse-9680-1.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9680

Signac, Caillebotte and their joy at being on the water
https://www.christies.com/features/Caillebotte-Signac-and-Sailing-9675-1.aspx?sc_lang=en

A Vision of Venice Through the Eyes of Claude Monet
https://tinyurl.com/y4s3dqmy

Now let’s see some beauties at the Flickrs.

Andy G.

Halloween History (Herstory)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/lisamcd/33000977608/

Sissy Maid Whore to expose

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jerlee42/39753935243/

Sissybrianna in her new pink dress

https://www.flickr.com/photos/sissybrianna/44708969560/

So sissy!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/14515130@N07/27931686578/

LFF

https://www.flickr.com/photos/87097249@N03/45693336985/

20170428_195416

https://www.flickr.com/photos/slavejane/45279969944/

DSC01483

https://www.flickr.com/photos/143416638@N05/42356436510/

From the vaults....

https://www.flickr.com/photos/36751344@N02/46676605261/

1543597449464

https://www.flickr.com/photos/135809499@N02/46069279292/

002

https://www.flickr.com/photos/122472945@N05/14688679905/

[sissybaby34]

Wow Andyg, what a sissy extravaganza we have this week. I have to say I will be spending some time looking through those pages, they are pushing all my buttons that's for sure. Thank you for all your hard work. I always look forward to Saturday evening (i'm in the UK) to see what delights you will be posting.

[andyg0404]

Hello everybody and welcome back to My Weekly Flickr.

A little snow this week but nothing significant and another day in the 50’s. It’s supposed to rain tonight but I’m hoping it holds off as I’m meeting my brother for dinner. I walk to the restaurant so no rain will be a bonus.

This week finds me back at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the recently opened current rotation of the drawing corridor, Selections from the Department of Drawings and Prints: Leonardo da Vinci. 2019 is the 500th anniversary of da Vinci’s death and there will be many exhibits around the world to commemorate it.  This exhibit really came out of nowhere, I don’t ever remember reading an article about the quarterly rotations. And the last one was nothing to really speak of so when I saw this article it quickly caught my attention.

Four Fragile and Rarely Shown Drawings by Leonardo da Vinci Are Going on View at the Met This Month
The quartet is being shown together for the first time in more than 15 years.
https://tinyurl.com/yc4w89p7

This is a link to the Overview page describing the art on display.
https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2019/drawings-and-prints-leonardo-da-vinci

If you read the overview you’ll find this to be a rather eclectic selection broken into several different segments. The four works by da Vinci accompanied by a number of works that copy or mimic his work. Engravings by Albrecht Dürer and late fifteenth Century artists. Then in a complete change, paintings by Edward Penfield for the covers of Harper’s magazines from the turn of the 20th Century as well as illustrations by Winslow Homer from the weekly Harper’s magazine and caricatures by the political cartoonist Thomas Nast. And prints from the early career of Peggy Bacon, a 20th Century American printmaker, illustrator, painter and writer. Her prints in this exhibit are done in drypoint which Wikipeda explains as, “… a printmaking technique of the intaglio family, in which an image is incised into a plate (or "matrix") with a hard-pointed "needle" of sharp metal or diamond point.”

Below are examples of what I saw.

These are the four da Vinci drawings that have been brought out from the archives. They are all very small, the Head of a Man in Profile is roughly 2”x4”, and viewing them on the screen is helpful as you can enlarge them and enjoy the detail. It goes without saying to enlarge all of these images, I was surprised that the Met didn’t offer magnifying glasses, something they’ve done many times before. Perhaps they will at a future date, I visited on opening day.

The Head of the Virgin in Three-Quarter View Facing Right
https://tinyurl.com/y6uzwo8b

Compositional Sketches for the Virgin Adoring the Christ Child, with and without the Infant St. John the Baptist; Diagram of a Perspectival Projection (recto); Slight Doodles (verso)
https://tinyurl.com/ya6e9fgr

Head of a Man in Profile Facing to the Left
https://tinyurl.com/y9d5psd4

Allegory on the Fidelity of the Lizard (recto); Design for a Stage Setting (verso)
https://tinyurl.com/y8u5yabx

These are works done in imitation of da Vinci.

Rembrandt - The Last Supper, after Leonardo da Vinci
https://tinyurl.com/ycvj2az5

Wenceslaus Hollar - A young man caressing an old woman
https://tinyurl.com/ybsvwhdt

Wenceslaus Hollar - Five grotesque heads, including an elderly man with an oak leaf wreath
https://tinyurl.com/y7vsw2wt

Albrecht Dürer - “The First Knot”. Interlaced Roundel with an Oblong Panel in its Center
https://tinyurl.com/yb99z594

Attributed to Giovanni Francesco Melzi - A Grotesque Couple: Old Woman with an Elaborate Headdress and Old Man with Large Ears and Lacking a Chin
https://tinyurl.com/ybz7pxoc

These are drawings that have no direct relation to da Vinci.

Giovanni Battista Palumba - Leda and her children playing with the swan, with a Roman temple in the background
https://tinyurl.com/yb8popzz

Master ES - The Letter E, from The Alphabet
https://tinyurl.com/yaxb82oa

There were half a dozen prints from Peggy Bacon, an American printmaker, illustrator, painter and writer. This is a link to her Wikipedia page. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peggy_Bacon

John Sloan's Lecture – Sloan was an early 20th Century American painter of the Ashcan school who also lectured. Bacon was a contemporary and friend. I was able to pick up a larger image from MOMA. MOMA doesn’t limit reproduction or enlargement on her prints which the Met does although I can’t say why.
https://www.moma.org/collection/works/71738

The Patroness - This is a rather ironic title of a drypoint print in which she “depicts herself leaning over a chair to show her effort at pet portraiture to a wealthy but unaesthetically sophisticated patron, whose cosseted cat’s toys and food litter the floor.” That quote is from American Women Modernists: The Legacy of Robert Henri, 1910-1945 which I picked up from Google books.
https://www.moma.org/collection/works/71854

These are several of Homer’s prints from Harpers. They were familiar to me from the oil paintings he subsequently created which I’ve linked to below each print.

The Army of the Potomac – A Sharp-Shooter on Picket Duty – From a Painting by Winslow Homer, Esq. (Harper's Weekly, Vol. VII)
https://tinyurl.com/y776vusk
Sharpshooter – Portland Museum of Art
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Winslow_Homer_-_Sharpshooter.jpg

Snap-the-Whip – Drawn by Winslow Homer (Harper's Weekly, Vol. XVII)
https://tinyurl.com/y987azxd
Snap-the-Whip – Metropolitan Museum of Art
https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/50.41/

"Dad's Coming!" – Drawn by Winslow Homer (Harper's Weekly, Vol. XVII)
https://tinyurl.com/yaemgn39
“Dad’s Coming” – The National Gallery of Art
https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.79891.html

These are examples of Thomas Nast’s work.

Portrait of the Artist – He would have been 44 years old in this lithograph and was close to the end of his relationship with Harpers due to the death of the publisher and political disagreements with his editor. You can read about it at the Wikipedia biography. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Nast
https://tinyurl.com/yb2z5fb3

A Group of Vultures Waiting for the Storm to "Blow Over"–"Let Us Prey" (from Harper's Weekly) – This is a caricature of Boss Tweed, the Democratic boss of Tammany Hall and the leader of the crooked politicians who stole millions of dollars from New York City.
https://tinyurl.com/ybaufl82

Mad Magazine – This is the cover of Mad magazine number 26 which used the above engraving on the front cover. In early Mad magazines the publisher used public domain work along with his hire for work artists. I would guess this was my first encounter with Nast. Mad was a great publication and gave kids their first exposure to culture and the oddities of adult life. My collection covers the first 24 years of the magazine.
https://d1w8cc2yygc27j.cloudfront.net/6736425959883459971/-2295313943573775761.jpg

"What are You Laughing at? To the Victor Belong the Spoils" (from Harper's Weekly) – This is a cover illustration of Tweed.
https://tinyurl.com/y8nvtdpw

Below are a few of Edward Penfield’s covers for Harper’s. They usually had people reading or holding or carrying a magazine. I’ve always enjoyed magazine illustrations which have become big collectibles as you see art from Norman Rockwell, J.C. Leyendecker and N.C. Wyeth among others at the auctions.

Harper's: January 1895
https://tinyurl.com/y9d4yyy4

Harper's, Christmas 1894
https://tinyurl.com/yd4d5qzz

And that’s a sample of everything from the exhibit, as I mentioned an eclectic grouping that I found very enjoyable.

In other art news here’s an article on Degas from Christie’s

The life and art of Edgar Degas
https://tinyurl.com/yysxae2a

And now a collective grouping from the Flickrs.

Andy G.

dress mom – I can’t remember for sure but I think this is one of Daphne’s cartoons.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/15320185@N06/40140579143/

Princess testing

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rgaines/43444297100/

GNO

https://www.flickr.com/photos/lisamcd/45979772322/

acu (89)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jessica_dresser/42608991434/

R080

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ashley_stevens/45873504865/

ad80d9a2-e9e1-4ac7-81a2-685320afdf96

https://www.flickr.com/photos/146601549@N03/40234592635/

Red dress and blonde

https://www.flickr.com/photos/valentina_rossi/39815101923/

tdTFrN

https://www.flickr.com/photos/161737682@N07/45888165745/

Anna at home

https://www.flickr.com/photos/nordic_angel/46851698632/

429902549282893040_account_id=1

https://www.flickr.com/photos/valentina_rossi/31528649877/