Dante Alighieri. Seven hundred on from his death Sept.14, 1321; for followers of the monumental writers throughout history, it is almost impossible forget his legacy, largely known for his masterwork La Divina Commedia. For that matter, if by chance you have been to Florence or Ravenna it is almost impossible to avoid the feeling that
One modern take of The Third Age, (not to be confused with the Tolkien, Lord of the Rings Middle Earth Third Age), is a decidedly forward riff off a theme that is as old as the age old Three Ages of Man concept. Exemplified by the origin in France, nearly fifty years ago, of the
What do we typically say, when an artist dies an untimely death – they were taken from us too soon, they died too young, way before their time? Often this is followed with that what if question; imagine what great works of art they might have produced, if only they were alive today? Two weeks
In my first blog review/discussion this April of the new 2020 book Literature and Ageing, I noted the beautifully arresting front cover image, Self Portrait by British artist Maggi Hambling. Until then, sadly I had not heard of Hambling, and I mused that I might do a future, feature post about her. So here it is, one of
In July 2012, I started some quick blog musings for the lazy, hazy days of summer. I call them “Summer Shorts”. To start this year, I return to one short from 2017, which featured the amazing stitched drawings of the UK artist and former occupational therapist, Georgie Meadows. But, why the jars? Drawn from personal experiences of
“As I write, the fate of Venice in the war continues to be uncertain.” September 1944. So begins the Preface to Venice: An Aspect of Art (1945) by art critic Adrian Stokes. One of the joyous aspects of the history of Venice is that no matter what point you decide to enter the narrative, no