Nige visits one of the most touching monuments in the country... Ashbourne in Derbyshire is a fine and flourishing town, full of handsome buildings, including the house of John Taylor, Dr Johnson's old schoolfriend, whom he often visited. A most unclerical cleric, Taylor's chief interest lay in his herd of milch-cows - ... Read More...
Sculpture
Visiting Stonehenge this half-term? Here's Alexandra Harris' post on its influence on British culture, from Turner to Hepworth... Stonehenge is a good example of how a particular landmark in the English countryside could inspire different kinds of appreciation. Its image was particularly potent because it signified strength and endurance while at ... Read More...
Whilst up a scaffold erected around the South Porch of Cirencester Parish Church (it's being repaired, admirably), I managed to catch a glimpse of this creature. Despite having something of a demonic character, I believe it's a cat. It brought to mind a feline description provided by Bartholomaeus Anglicus, writing about two hundred and fifty ... Read More...
Concluding our Germany/Beeb Wednesday, these alarming, life-size bronzes have featured in two BBC Four programmes recently: Laura Cumming’s Ego: The Strange and Wonderful World of Self-Portraits; and the first episode of Andrew Graham-Dixon’s The Art of Germany series. Franz Xaver Messerschmidt was a successful court sculptor, who created over 50 of ... Read More...
Following on from Ian's post on Stonehenge this morning, we have a guest post from author Alexandra Harris. Alex teaches literature at the University of Liverpool and writes about all kinds of art, from novels and paintings to cookery and gardening. She has just written an excellent new book called Romantic ... Read More...
Last Monday, the Bank Holiday, we went to Tate Britain to visit the Romantics exhibition. It was surprisingly and pleasantly quiet, at least before lunch. But we didn't get far before being captivated by the jet fighters in the Duveen Galleries, a Sea Harrier (above) and a Jaguar (below). They immediately appealed ... Read More...
I visited a friend who lives in Sherborne, Gloucestershire, last week and came across this fine sculpture in the parish church, The Guardian Angel Tramples Death Underfoot, a monument to the local squire and his wife. It's carved with a beautiful lightness of touch from a marble with a remarkably pure ... Read More...
I've seen two things in the last couple of weeks that have unsettled me. Not disturbed, just unsettled. One was the Cow Leg Trouser from our marvellous Retroprogressive feature. The other was this story about artisanal pencil sharpening: "With an electric pencil sharpener, a pencil is meat," Rees said. "It's this ... Read More...
