In other art news

[andyg0404]

Hi,

Betty, at the very bottom of this post is a video depicting cats in art which I think you’ll like.

While the weather has been deplorable, now where have I heard that word used before, and my stomach is in knots awaiting the outcome of Tuesday’s election, I’ve gone on several museum visits which I’ve enjoyed.  As you’ll see in a Times article below, while the lack of patrons is very pleasant for me, it’s starkly bad for the museums who without patrons are again having to contemplate layoffs and furloughs as well as limiting exhibits. And it doesn’t appear our pandemic will be ending any time soon so it’s going to be a very unpredictable and difficult future for art. Also, with the cold weather and heavier coats required, it will be that much more uncomfortable as the coat checks are all closed so we have to either wear or carry our heavy coats. Not ideal conditions for spending an hour or two in the museum.

Several weeks ago I took a friend to the Met and we were there for about four hours. Once again there were no lines to get in and we were able to access the Making the Met exhibit also with no wait. Afterwards we did the sculpture court and the British galleries both with just a few other visitors. We ended up in the American wing and had it pretty much to ourselves the whole time. On the other hand I visited this morning and while there was no line to enter the museum, there was a line to get my ticket with no members only desk in sight. And this time, when I went upstairs to the second floor, there was a long line waiting for access to Making the Met. But galleries I visited were sparsely attended.

The following week I visited Questroyal American art gallery for their latest exhibition. As always it was a treat, many beautiful things from all the usual suspects. A nice addition to my enjoyment of the American wing. Here are a few of the things I enjoyed.

Sanford Robinson Gifford - The Column of St. Mark, Venice, Moonlight, 1870
https://www.questroyalfineart.com/the-column-of-st-mark-venice-moonlight/

Albert Bierstadt - Swiss Scene
https://www.questroyalfineart.com/swiss-scene/

  Martin Johnson Heade - Twilight in the Tropics, 1876
https://www.questroyalfineart.com/twilight-in-the-tropics/

William Trost Richards – Sunlit Coast, 1869
https://www.questroyalfineart.com/sunlit-coast/

Thomas Moran - Sunset, Amagansett, 1905
https://www.questroyalfineart.com/sunset-amagansett/

And last week I visited the Morgan library. 

Luckily I checked the website the day before I planned to visit as I learned that one has to reserve a ticket online, you can’t just show up at the door. I didn’t think I was going to be able to get the ticket as the website says they need 24 hours notice and I wrote to them late the day before. But they emailed my ticket fairly quickly which led me to believe that there wasn’t a great demand for tickets.

This proved to be true as I arrived at 10:28 AM, two minutes before opening, and when the doors opened there were 8 of us including me. I don’t think that number grew while I was inside. It was very pleasant. I hadn’t been in the library for a long time and didn’t remember the Tintoretto. It’s by Domenico, the son of Jacopo, and has been downgraded to Workshop of, but it’s a magnificent portrait.

Workshop of Domenico Tintoretto
https://www.themorgan.org/objects/item/160380

I did remember the Memlings and the Cranach pendant portraits.  This is one of the Memlings.

Hans Memling - Portrait of a Man with a Pink
https://www.themorgan.org/objects/item/160382

In the basement they exchanged the portrait of Mrs. Morgan by Sargent for one by Sorolla which I don’t think I’ve seen before.

Portrait of Frances Tracy Morgan
https://www.themorgan.org/objects/item/214103

Also in the basement, opposite the small paintings from the Thaw collection, they had some watercolors from the permanent collection which were lovely.

JMW Turner -  Lurleiberg.
https://www.themorgan.org/drawings/item/123382

John Martin - Diogenes Throwing Away His Cup -
https://www.themorgan.org/drawings/item/308972

David Roberts - The Valley of Jehoshaphat, Jerusalem
https://www.themorgan.org/drawings/item/315165

The main exhibit was David Hockney’s drawings, self-portraits and portraits of his friends, Celia Birtwell, Maurice Payne and Gregory Evans. I'm not mad for Hockney but I enjoy a lot of it. I don't consider it great art, but it can be fun and pleasing to the eye. He is incredibly prolific, but unlike Dali at least it's all really by him. The Birtwell crayon drawings were really very nice, colorful and flattering. Most of them are from his Foundation and other private collections. There are no images on the website but you can see a bunch of them at the links below.

This is a self-portrait from when he was 16 or 17. Precocious boy.
https://thedavidhockneyfoundation.org/artwork/116

Celia, Carennac, August 1971 – This was my favorite image of Celia, I love the coloring and her relaxed pose.
https://tinyurl.com/yytem3el

This is a link to Art Summary, with multiple images from the exhibit.
https://tinyurl.com/y2ueaswk
This is a review from the Guardian with images.
https://tinyurl.com/wxnznjr

This exhibit also ran at the National Gallery in England and here is a short video displaying much of the art. I think the Morgan was a smaller version as there were a few things in this show that I don’t remember seeing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B002XJkTO2w&feature=youtu.be

This exhibit also ran at the National Gallery in England and here is a short video displaying much of the art. I think the Morgan was a smaller version as there were a few things in this show that I don’t remember seeing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B002XJkTO2w&feature=youtu.be

I was there about an hour and glad I went.

Before the mouse died on my computer I had a number of articles saved in my Outlook, but since I had to switch to my old machine I have no access to them. These are two articles I’ve come across in the last few weeks. 

This is from the Times. I’ve also linked to an art blog in case the Times denies access. As I mentioned above, it speaks of the dire circumstances museums are experiencing with the restrictions limiting visitors.  To paraphrase the lady in the last line of the article, it’s bad for the museum but good for me.

How long can NYC museums survive at 25% capacity?
 https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/26/arts/design/nyc-museums-covid-capacity.html
https://artdaily.com/news/129552/How-long-can-NYC-museums-survive-at-25--capacity-

I’ve always loved seeing cats in paintings and this 24 minute video from the Met shows, with images from their collection, how cats have been depicted down the ages in art.

Watch: A Very Weird Short Film About the History of Cats in Art at The Met
https://www.kqed.org/arts/13886425/watch-a-very-weird-short-film-about-the-history-of-cats-in-art-at-the-met

And here are the most recent Cocktails with a Curator from the Frick.

Cocktails with a Curator: Romney's "Lady Hamilton"
https://tinyurl.com/yxuzjnvf

Cocktails with a Curator: Bertoldo's "Pazzi Conspiracy" Medal
https://tinyurl.com/y432qpmm

And here are a few Flickrs for those non art lovers.

Andy G.

Happy Satin Sissy
https://www.flickr.com/photos/155197071@N05/50346784202/

maid to pleasure
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jessicasatin79/50393672222/

Halloween is Crossdresser Christmas!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mishamonroe/50555036666/

I hear you knocking but you can't come in. Only joking Punters follow me to my boudoir.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/frillyknicks/50472055218/

4917
https://www.flickr.com/photos/28339425@N08/50406751306/

[Betty]

Thanks, I enjoyed the cat art. I shared it on my Facebook page, & nobody clicked a "like" or shared it... I guess many people have no taste for art at all. If I just post a snapshot of a kitten, I can get 10 "likes" to it.

[andyg0404]

Hi,

I went to an outstanding exhibition the other day:
Church & Rothko – Sublime
September 30 – December 12, 2020
MNUCHIN GALLERY
45 EAST 78 STREET

If you enjoy the landscape art of the Hudson River painters and live in the New York metropolitan area you should definitely try to attend.

Robert Mnuchin, the owner of the gallery, is the father with the very unfortunate son and daughter in law, but don’t hold that against him. This was an odd show for me pairing Mark Rothko, who has become a running joke with my brother and me as he thinks he’s a genius and I just don’t get it, and Frederic Edwin Church, a brilliant Hudson River painter of the 19th Century who is a magnificent landscape artist and one of my favorites. It was by appointment only through their website and the calendar was set up in 30 minutes blocks.
I arrived at 11AM and was buzzed in. It was just me and a guard. It’s a small gallery, two floors with three rooms. I circled each floor three or four times and was done after about 25 minutes. During that time, I pretty much had the place to myself, three people arrived at different points but none of them were ever in the same gallery as I was.  It was a magnificent exhibit; there were 23 paintings by Church. I really only paid attention to them and they were spectacularly beautiful.  I loved all of them, but I thought the three below were especially fine. When I was leaving the young woman at the front desk told me I had an appointment for the following Wednesday and did I want to keep it. I was very surprised and asked if I had made two appointments and was told no. I apologized and explained I was an old man and had screwed up. I can’t imagine how I did it as they sent me a confirming email. I guess I was lucky they let me in.

This is a link to the Mnuchin website; if you scroll down there's a slide show of everything in the exhibit. If you flip through it you'll see 17 paintings by Church and 9 by Rothko.  I would have linked to several which I thought were especially beautiful but the website doesn’t allow separating the slides individually.

https://www.mnuchingallery.com/exhibitions/church-rothko#tab:slideshow;tab-1:slideshow;slide-1:2;slide:10

The previous week I visited Forum Gallery for an exhibition by Rance Jones, a photorealist Contemporary artist. This is a series of watercolors he created in Cuba. I emailed on Friday to ask about attending and didn’t hear back so I decided to take a chance and just go. I arrived at the Gallery and it was completely boarded up due to the election, but there was a phone number saying to call for access which I did. I even remembered how to use the phone. I was directed to 58th Street and was brought in the back way. It was a lovely exhibit, I’ve seen his work before and it’s quite good. On the way out I was chatting with a woman I believe to be the manager and I asked if the small watercolor I saw in a case was by Reginald Marsh and was quite pleased when she said yes. I told her I had a bound volume of the Daily News from the 20’s which had cartoons by Marsh, something she hadn’t heard. When I got home I sent her a copy of a review from the Daily News of the 2012 exhibit of Marsh at the NY Historical Society which mentions the connection. It was a wonderful exhibit that explored his entire career. This is a link to the Forum website with a slideshow of Jones paintings.
https://www.forumgallery.com/exhibitions/rance-jones-the-lingering-revolution?view=slider#1

I especially like the one below. I thought the drawings on the wall were wonderful and the sunlight across them really special.

Rance Jones – Administrator
https://images.fasosites.com/68382/3684712l.jpg

This is a link to the Marsh exhibit which will give you a taste of his work as there are five images displayed.
https://www.nyhistory.org/swingtime

In other art news.

Here’s a tidy little video from Sotheby’s, just over a minute, with some lovely portrait artwork from Fragonard.

Fragonard’s Fascinating Painted Portraits
https://youtu.be/oTErl1vs1rs

This is a long, well-illustrated article from Smithsonian magazine on the artist Rosa Bonheur. She’s fallen out of favor due to her painting in a realist fashion at the time of Impressionism, but she was a magnificent artist as you can tell from her immense painting, The Horse Fair, which is owned by the Met. It’s about 22x8 ft. and this is a link to it.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/435702

The Redemption of Rosa Bonheur
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/redemption-rosa-bonheur-french-artist-180976027/

Here are the latest Cocktails with a Curator from the Frick. This small painting by Chardin was the first still life in the Frick collection and was acquired at the end of the Second World War.  The Tiepolo was one of the last paintings acquired by Mr. Frick and in 2019 was the center of an exhibition about it and two other surviving paintings by the artist; sketches for frescos in a castle in Italy that was destroyed when the Allies bombed it during World War II. 

Cocktails with a Curator: Chardin's "Still Life with Plums"
https://tinyurl.com/y56d54ym 

Cocktails with a Curator: Tiepolo's "Perseus and Andromeda"
https://tinyurl.com/y4nm864l

This is a great article showing six wonderful paintings.

6 Surprising Secrets Behind Western Art History’s Most Revered Paintings, From Van Gogh’s Portrait of His Doctor to Van Eyck’s Ghent Altarpiece
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/famous-paintings-surprising-secrets-1922583

Nice, well-illustrated article on Monet.

Monet’s Magical Nuances: How the Impressionist Became a Worldwide Star
https://www.artnews.com/feature/claude-monet-who-is-he-famous-works-1234576473/

I only discovered Wayne Thiebaud in the last few years when I saw his work at the auctions. He's a contemporary artist who's known for his paintings of cakes and pies and other odd things. I find them charming. Below is a nice interview with him; he turned 100 years old on November 15th. 

‘Enjoy It When You Have It, But Don’t Have Too Much’: Artist Wayne Thiebaud on How to Savor Cake While Staying Healthy at 100 Years Old
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/wayne-thiebaud-at-100-1920403

This is an interesting review from the New York Review of Books on an exhibition of Turner’s paintings at the Tate in the U.K. Turner was anything but a climate change denier as he chronicled the damage the Industrial age was doing to the environment early on. The article is lavishly illustrated and one of the illustrations is also a slide show allowing you flip to two other paintings.

J.M.W. Turner, Radical Critic of the Anthropocene
https://tinyurl.com/y3qrlduw

And now here’s a brief Flickr selection.

Andy G.

Belated happy halloween wishes!!!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/klaudiaj/50559340266/

Vintage 35 yo Wedding Dress
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ginacatt/50033107287/

IMG_6912
https://www.flickr.com/photos/bomi4/24829864747/

DLV 2018 - Thursday Dinner
https://www.flickr.com/photos/vivianchen05/41775262562/

Well, if I'm going to be...
https://www.flickr.com/photos/61636721@N06/50539544453/

[andyg0404]

Hi,

Hope everyone on the board had a good Thanksgiving. I’m having my free Shop Rite turkey for dinner tonight.  I’ve mentioned that time has more or less lost all meaning for me since I’ve retired; this week was a good example. All week I wasn’t sure what day it was. I think part of this is due to the fact that I’ve always followed a routine. When I was working, I had my Monday to Friday routine and then my Saturday and Sunday routine. Now my routine never changes so there’s no difference between a weekday and a weekend day. And when you’re retired you no longer spend time during the week looking forward to the weekend, every day is the weekend. The one thing I’m really not looking forward to is the winter, which I really hate. I’m hoping it’s a mild one. I was going to say so far it has been, but I realized winter won’t start for another month. The worst is yet to come.   

Anyway, along with a few recent clips, these are the articles that were stuck on my computer while I was locked out of it. If you look at nothing else below be sure to check out the very first item, which is really something special.

The Mauritshuis in Amsterdam has put the museum online and you can do a virtual tour. This is a link and it’s an amazing experience. Take the brief introductory tour which ends in the room that has three Vermeer’s. You can zoom in close enough to read the labels on the walls. In the lower left you can click on each room on the first and second floors. I've already explored two rooms and plan to go through the museum room by room. The quality of the images and ability to zoom in are remarkable and it's the easiest interface I've come across. I've always had trouble moving around virtual tours, but this one couldn't be simpler. Of course, I'd love to visit all the wonderful museums around the world, but I'm realistic enough to know that probably won’t happen. If I was to win the lottery, I would look for someone willing to take a long trip with me, but I'm not counting on the lottery either.
https://tinyurl.com/y5sbuxdy

This sad article analyzes Millais's painting of Ophelia and also tells the how it almost caused the death of the model from pneumonia, who lived but died an early death due it. She married Dante Gabrielle Rossetti and last year I sent out an article from Sotheby’s on their relationship and her death.

The Tragic ‘Ophelia’ Epitomized Pre-Raphaelite Beauty. Here Are 3 Facts You Might Not Know About the Mesmerizing Painting
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/john-everett-millais-ophelia-3-facts-1912391

This 29-minute video from the Frick expands on the articles I’ve sent earlier concerning employees in the Frick household. In this case, Minerva Stone, the housekeeper and Ruth Berlin, a chambermaid.

Untold Histories
https://tinyurl.com/y2k7sgn8

This was posted after the VP debate and is a fun article. Right at the top it points out that flies in art represent corruption and rot. Very apropos for this administration.  “So, a fun art history fact! Flies are used to represent rot, wasting away, decay, death, melancholia. A fly hovering over a church official or nobleman indicates disfavor with the king or corruption and dereliction of duty.”

We Spy a Fly! Here Are 12 Artworks With Cameos by the Insect That Played a Starring Role in the US VP Debate
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/flies-in-art-history-1914157

In an earlier email I mentioned seeing Starry Night and this is a nice little 7 minute video from PBS on the painting and its creator.

Better Know: The Starry Night
https://tinyurl.com/yysj4vf6

If Christie’s wasn’t by appointment only I would visit so as to see this auction preview. Feldstein owned several van Ruisdaels, Salomon and Jacob, a Jan Steen and several van Goyen’s, among others. In the article it says that after his death in 2019 the Frick and MFA secured some pictures. I’d love to know which ones the Frick got; couldn’t find anything on a quick search of the web. The second link is to the actual auction with all the paintings.

Martin Feldstein: the economic adviser to American presidents who loved Dutch Golden Age art
https://www.christies.com/features/Treasures-of-the-Dutch-Golden-Age-11019-1.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-11019
https://www.christies.com/salelanding/index.aspx?lid=1&intsaleid=28865&saletitle=

Well-illustrated article on Goya from Christie’s.

10 things to know about Goya
https://www.christies.com/features/The-life-and-art-of-Goya-9648-1.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-9648

This is a three minute video from Sotheby’s on a Pieter Brueghel II painting up for auction. It’s a wonderfully cynical take on the law profession, something one can’t be too cynical about.
Pieter Brueghel’s Masterful Lampoon of the Legal Profession
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Nq4J9WKJZg

I’ve always enjoyed pastel portraits thinking them beautiful as well as an unforgiving medium, if you make a mistake it’s hard to correct in pastels. So I was surprised to discover from this article that they’re rather a discredited form of art. The article is about an 18th Century, female artist, who, as you can see from the headline, was the “Queen of Pastel.” Back in July I sent along an article on her from Christie’s which didn’t denigrate the art form for obvious reasons.

The Remarkable Success Story of Rosalba Carriera, the Original “Queen of Pastel”
https://tinyurl.com/y2zvt3rq

This video from the Frick website was made in 2010 in conjunction with an exhibition at the Met to which they loaned Velazquez’s painting of King Philip. It’s about the cleaning of the painting and shows how much better the painting looks after it has been restored.

Michael Gallagher: "Conservation of VelĂĄzquez's Portrait of Philip IV"
https://tinyurl.com/yxwgn2zd

Three more Cocktails with a Curator from the Frick. This one discusses the Monet painting in the collection, as well as Monet’s life and how he painted this at a particularly low point in his life, his paintings weren’t selling and his wife Camille was sick with tuberculosis and cancer.
Cocktails with a Curator: Monet's “VĂ©theuil in Winter”
https://tinyurl.com/y653zamo

This is about the painting by Bronzino of a young man.
Cocktails with a Curator: Bronzino’s 'Lodovico Capponi’
https://tinyurl.com/y6hykro9

This self-portrait by Murillo entered the Frick collection in 2014 and was the subject of an exhibition of his works in 2017/18. As you’ll discover from the video Mr. Frick originally acquired it in 1904 and it remained in the family until his grandson and his wife donated it to the museum.
Cocktails with a Curator: Murillo's Self-Portrait
https://tinyurl.com/y3qy7xh2

This one minute video from Sotheby’s brings David Teniers picture to life.
Experience the Earthly Pleasures of Teniers’ 17th-Century Wine Harvest
https://youtu.be/-Cf-K5c9fP4

Short Frick video from the, "What's her story," series about women at the Frick.
Elsie de Wolfe | What's Her Story?
https://tinyurl.com/y3q3fgk5

I’ve always enjoyed Norman Rockwell and this is an interesting article on one of his most iconic paintings.

Norman Rockwell’s Turkey Feast Is a Thanksgiving Touchstone—Here Are 3 Things You Might Not Know About ‘Freedom From Want’
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/norman-rockwell-thanksgiving-freedom-from-want-three-facts-1926485

And let’s end with a few Flickrs.

Andy G.

Shall we go upstairs?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/20733644@N00/50028166178/

What do you want for the supper tonight? (May 2019)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/saki_75153/50009159111/

IMG_6912
https://www.flickr.com/photos/bomi4/24829864747/

Sparkle 2019 Wedding!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ginacatt/49722666041/

Meijimura (2)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mayuko_vienna/12848818103/

[andyg0404]

Hi,

My computer has been channeling its inner Windows 95 shutting itself down and restarting multiple times. I lost this post twice, the second time I was unable to retrieve it. I searched the Internet for help, but Uncle Google failed me, and I was, to say the least, frustrated. Of course, frustrated is just a synonym for my real feeling, absolute fury. After having my coffee and calming down, I tried again and somehow stumbled upon where the unsaved file was stored and this is it below. I’m extremely grateful as it took me over an hour to create and it would have been difficult for me to recreate, not least owing to my attention span and memory. Anyway, here it is.

Not thrilled with our first snowstorm of the season, but seeing as the prediction was for 12-18 inches, I guess I should be grateful we got what looks to be 8 or 9 inches. I have someone to clear it which is a relief, I realized a long time ago it wasn’t something I wanted to be responsible for. It was so nasty out, cold and windy, I decided not to take my morning walk. This is clearly a sign of age as for the longest time I was relentless and went out in any weather. To assuage my guilt at missing that part of my exercise I took a truncated walk in the afternoon when things had calmed down a little. I can’t imagine living in Binghamton and undergoing 45 inches of snow. And I’m sure Betty got a fair amount up in Buffalo.

A week ago Monday, I walked up to the Met to see the Chinese exhibit. I’ve had weekly reminders come up on my calendar for the second rotation which began in August, and since the Met reopened there have always been reasons to do something else. I arrived only to discover it closed. I was surprised as the guard said it closed the prior week. I checked my notes, and it was supposed to run until January 3rd.  I will have to wait now for the next exhibit which should open shortly. Balked at that, I walked over to the newly reopened European galleries and was told by the guard that they wouldn’t newly reopen until the end of the week. That was my fault as I just hadn’t paid close attention to the incoming notice. Before I gave up, I wandered through the drawing exhibit and almost convinced myself it had changed which didn’t make sense and when I got home and checked I learned it hadn’t. I had just forgotten some of the items on display. A mind is a terrible thing to lose.

I went back this past Monday, despite the inclement weather, and visited the European Galleries. It was like visiting old friends. My brother had been there for members only day and mentioned a new bequest from a financier, Errol Rudman. I got to see that and alongside it were a few other bequests of his. Remarkable how many times I saw Jayne Wrightsman's name as the donor, a whole wall of her donations of Canaletto and Guardi. She was a great lady.

I'm glad the Met installed the metal detector as it appears the guard no longer looks in a visitor's bag. A month or two ago I was given a hard time about the cinnamon roll in my bag, the guard telling me food was not allowed inside. Since then, I had resorted to subterfuge to hide it. Prior to that I was told I could bring it in, I just couldn’t check the bag. And I pretty much always have one with me when I visit the Met. As long as my scale says it’s OK. 

Below is one of the paintings Rudman left the Met and a few other things I saw. Also, an article on the reopening of the galleries, as well as other articles and videos.

The Met opens nearly two dozen newly installed European Paintings Galleries
https://artdaily.com/news/131076/The-Met-opens-nearly-two-dozen-newly-installed-European-Paintings-Galleries

Orsola Maddalena Caccia - Fruit and Flowers – This is the Rudman bequest.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/816523

Bronzino (Agnolo di Cosimo di Mariano) - Portrait of a Young Man – Knowing the young man by Bronzino in the Frick collection, this arrogant, as stated in the museum copy, young man was immediately recognizable as a Bronzino. The second link is to the Frick’s painting
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/435802
https://www.frick.org/exhibitions/parmigianino/capponi

Paolo Veronese (Paolo Caliari) - Mars and Venus United by Love – And this painting reminded of the two great Veronese paintings also in the Frick collection. The second link is to both paintings at the Frick.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/437891
https://collections.frick.org/search/veronese

Hieronymus Bosch – The Adoration of the Magi – This is an early painting by Bosch, as the website say it’s unlike his familiar hallucinatory depictions of hell. I like it for it’s serenity and there’s so much going on, extending way across the landscape to a far away town.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/435724

This article offers insight into Georgia O’Keeffe’s skull painting.

This Legendary Georgia O’Keeffe Skull Painting Has an Uplifting Backstory—Here Are 3 Things You Might Not Know About It
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/georgia-okeeffe-3-things-to-know-1925403

This is a longish, well-illustrated article on the two museums in Amsterdam devoted to Vincent van Gogh, the Kröller-MĂŒller and the Van Gogh museum. The former was established by Anton and Helene Kröller-MĂŒller, while the latter was established by the second Vincent van Gogh, the engineer and son of Theo, Vincent’s brother. Theo’s wife, Jo, inherited all of Vincent’s paintings and drawings in which she held a 50% interest along with her son’s 50%. The article speaks of an attempt by Kröller-MĂŒller to buy the estate from Jo, who turned him down flat. Very interesting article. 

Van Gogh Museum
An offer you can refuse
https://tinyurl.com/y4jphqzb

These are all new from the Frick blog.

The first link discusses how the Frick was received in the press; Lewis Mumford gave it a negative review in The New Yorker.  The second link is to a catalogue the Frick issued which compiled press news about the opening. Mumford's review is included. Then facts about the Frick and finally another of their catalogues which can be downloaded as a PDF.

More Than a Museum: Early Responses to The Frick Collection
https://tinyurl.com/yxeajynl
https://www.frick.org/about/history/80th/legacy

85 Frick Facts for 85 Years
https://www.frick.org/blogs/frick_collection/85_frick_facts

The Frick Collection members' magazine (Spring/Summer 2010)
https://archive.org/details/frick-31072003209048/page/n12/mode/2up

This Cocktails with a Curator from the Frick concerns what I think may be the most beautiful painting in the world. It’s my favorite painting in the Frick and possibly my favorite of any of the paintings I’ve seen, although I confess there are other paintings that I feel very strongly about. I’m pleased that when the Frick Madison opens in the new year all three Vermeer’s in the collection will be hung side by side as they were for the special exhibit of Treasures from the Mauritshuis in 2013.

Cocktails with a Curator: Vermeer's "Mistress and Maid"
https://tinyurl.com/y6q26zo6

Another Cocktail from the Frick.

Cocktails with a Curator: Lawrence's "Lady Peel"
https://tinyurl.com/y2vv5946

This is the first in a new series from the Frick, in which, as Salomon says, he focuses on things that we may not have paid much attention to on our visits. I found this very true as the first item is a sculpture which I never took a good look at, which is a remarkable work of art. These videos run about 40 minutes.

Hidden Gems of the Frick Collection: Episode 1, Xavier F. Salomon
https://tinyurl.com/y6nl3dtp

This 40-minute video speaks of several women at the Frick, including Helen Clay Frick, Mr. Frick’s daughter, and then explores several paintings of women in the collection.

Women of the Frick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1l2V327VFUM&feature=youtu.be

And, of course, a few Flickrs.

Andy G.

MISAKKY's Younger ages 003
https://www.flickr.com/photos/misakky/39891582604/

Wedding dress
https://www.flickr.com/photos/90998726@N03/49552876667/

SchoolGirl Costume 4
https://www.flickr.com/photos/189114342@N03/50079981488/

School Strip
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jessica-jane/49885774466/

All my looks from Boys Will Be Girls
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jodie_annalise/50097317817/

[Betty]

In the southern suburbs & the nearby highlands of ski country they had up to 6-12" (15-30cm) of snow, but here right in Buffalo we've had very little snow this year. A few sprinkles didn't even stay on the ground for the day, it melted away in a few hours. That is except the snow we just got a few days ago when we got about 4" (13cm). It didn't all melt away until yesterday.

When you hear about snow in Buffalo on the national news, that's because if the snow got deep anywhere within 70 miles (113km) of Buffalo, they put it out on the national news as Buffalo snow, even when it was 2 counties away.

On average over the past 100 years, Buffalo gets just about as much snow per year as NYC, Toronto, & Albany does. If fact, over the past 4 years Buffalo has had less snow per year than NYC. But Buffalo has what we call "the snow belt" & ski country just to the south of us (and highlands to the south & east of us). Prevailing winds, & "lake effect" make those areas near Buffalo get significantly more snow than we do, but it gets on the news as in Buffalo.

Occasionally we have the winds change the wrong way, & the "lake effect" snow hits us too, but hardly as often as the national news says so. Maybe only about once or twice a decade we get a real big snow right in the city. Basically if anyone gets snow in Western NY state of 5" or more, the national news carries it as another Buffalo mega-storm. In cities in other northern states, it doesn't get on the news unless it's a foot or more.

Ever since the blizzard of '77, we've been targeted by the media about snow every time it snows in almost anywhere the western half of the state. The footage they show on the national news is from years ago, or are pictures from a suburb, or a highland ski-country town outside the city.

[Betty]

Oops, I spoke too soon. Late Thursday night we had about 5" (13cm) of snow in my neighborhood -- the Allentown Arts District of Buffalo. Southern suburbs got around a foot. Yesterday we had an additional 6" (15cm) of snow in my neighborhood. Combined with the previous snow means there's now about 11" (29cm) on the ground here. It was very windy though, so we have snow drifts of up to 30" (76cm) high in spots, while the driveway was blown bare by the wind.

It got down to a very windy 19F (-7C), with wind chills of 3F (-16C) yesterday.

Buffalo airport reports they had 12" (30cm) of snow yesterday, but the airport isn't actually in Buffalo. It's in Cheektowaga, a suburb east of Buffalo. In the town of Hamburg, a suburb south of Buffalo, they had 21" (53cm) yesterday. But the national news is saying the city of Buffalo got 21-30" of snow, when we did not.

Next week we're expecting highs in the 40s with rain, so everything will melt, with some flooding.

[andyg0404]

Hi,

The weather has been yoyoing here in New Jersey. After the snow it finally warmed up to 60 then dropped to 20, it was 22 degrees when I was out on my walk a little while ago, but it's supposed to go back to 60. I like 60, but as long as it doesn't snow I'm good.

Andy G.

[Betty]

Very dark, very windy, with rain this morning at 43F (6C). Almost all the snow has melted away. Some flooding in areas because of the snow melting so fast.

[andyg0404]

Hi,

Below are two links to the Metropolitan Museum. The first is a three-minute video on the Mona Lisa's visit to the Met in 1963 and shows the crowds that came to see her. The second link discusses her visit.  It's mind boggling to see the street in front of the museum looking like a demonstration with a wall of people. I remember my brother taking me and it being very crowded, but I don't remember waiting for hours which it must have taken. I was 12 years old and it’s hard to believe I would have had the patience to wait. I'm fairly certain we only got to stand in front of it for less than a minute. I asked my brother for his memories, but he doesn’t remember any more than I do. The following year Whistler’s Mother also visited the Met, and while it wasn’t as big a deal, more than 10M people visited on the first day. He also took me to see that. It was many years before I went back. It’s only in the last 25 years that I’ve become an active museumgoer.

https://www.metmuseum.org/150/from-the-vaults?v=famous-foreign-lady-captures-heart-of-new-york-1963-from-the-vaults

https://www.metmuseum.org/blogs/now-at-the-met/features/2013/today-in-met-history-february-4

This article from Christie’s concerns another pastel portrait by one of my favorite artists, Jean-Etienne Liotard, which is up for auction. There’s more biographical information on the artist and several illustrations. It’s another painting that has descended from the family of the original owner.

Jean-Etienne Liotard’s Portrait of Philibert Cramer — a masterpiece of the Enlightenment
https://tinyurl.com/yyo8pp7a

Winter is far from my favorite season, but these pictures are beautiful. Go to full screen.
Let it snow — five centuries of stunning winter landscapes by Monet, Munch and more

https://tinyurl.com/yclwlfqp

This is a very short video from Sotheby’s about an upcoming Turner watercolor up for auction in the Master drawings auction. There’s another one as well. I hadn’t realized I had fallen off Sotheby’s email list until my brother forwarded the current email about the Old Masters auctions. I’ve written to see if I can be reinstated and I’ve also made an appointment to visit at the end of January.

A Luminous Landscape by Turner Transcends Its Time
 https://tinyurl.com/y5m6n89r

This is an article from Sotheby's on five women painters, one of whom, Elisabeth-Louise VigĂ©e Le Brun, is a favorite of mine. It’s an excerpt from a book by Jennifer Higgie, The Mirror and the Palette: Rebellion, Revolution and Resilience: 500 Years of Women’s Self-Portraits.

Five groundbreaking self-portraits by women
https://tinyurl.com/yxrh5yku

More treasures from the Frick. This is a 6-minute video exploring the second floor, which will be open to the public after the renovations are completed. I am eagerly looking forward to that date. In the meanwhile, I expect that many of the paintings shown upstairs will be gracing the walls of the Breuer when it opens early next year. I will be very disappointed if they aren’t.

Upstairs at the Frick, Introducing the Museum's Second Floor
https://tinyurl.com/y9ewbks6

This Cocktails from the Frick discusses Mr. Frick’s bust and also deals with his controversial history as an Industrialist.
Cocktails with a Curator: Hoffman's Bust of Henry Clay Frick
https://tinyurl.com/ycomvs3w

Here’s another Cocktails from the Frick; it concerns a small sculpture the sculptor Clodion upon which sits a clock, one of many in the Frick collection.

Cocktails with a Curator: Clodion's "Dance of Time"
https://tinyurl.com/ya3y7rd7

And a discussion of Boucher's Four Seasons, as well as the Boucher room at the Frick.

Cocktails with a Curator: Boucher's "Four Seasons"
https://tinyurl.com/yxfgc4ab

This is a short article in which five curators pick their favorite Monet painting. My favorite of this selection is the one from the Met. For many years, a similar painting of his father in the garden hung nearby, on loan to the museum from Larry Ellison. They had hoped he would give it to them, but he took it back and sold it although I can’t find who the current owner is. This is a link to that painting.

https://tinyurl.com/y5o5d26d

Five Experts Discuss Monet’s Most Beguiling Paintings
https://www.artnews.com/art-news/artists/claude-monet-best-paintings-1234580881

This article celebrates Berthe Morisot, an Impressionist painter who, because she was a woman, only recently has received the acclaim she deserves.

Berthe Morisot, Impressionism’s Most Relentless Innovator, Is Finally Receiving Her Due
https://www.artnews.com/art-news/artists/berthe-morisot-who-is-she-why-is-she-important-1234581283/

And this looks like a good place for some Flickrs.

Andy G.

xhamster.com_3990941_boy_dressed_as_sexy_girl_240p
https://www.flickr.com/photos/161986145@N07/50838520057/

I wish you all sweet and wet dreams
https://www.flickr.com/photos/149954333@N07/50105344661/

French maid
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ninajay/50096884641/

chinese pink...
https://www.flickr.com/photos/klaudiaj/50082150966/

Carefree afternoon
https://www.flickr.com/photos/182846664@N02/50101932297/