Shadow show…

Skilled photographers use light and shadow much as fine artists do,  and the results can be absolutely stunning.   See for  yourself.

 

 

Freedom is ugly…

…when it’s a sculpture that  looks like  a chain link barrel atop two rings.   It makes me wonder if L.A. knows anything about peace or art,  since the piece supposedly celebrates diversity.   This is not a hit at the sculptor,  who fled Iran,  but given all of L.A.’s crime problems,  the city’s attention should probably be focused elsewhere.

 

 

Astonishing art…

A blend of pen and ink and digital input produces some absolutely amazing 3-D  artwork.   There is an Alice-down-the-well quality about his work which is slightly unsettling,  but fascinating.

 

 

Elephant statue vandalized…

Bernini’s elephant statue in Rome  was vandalized  last Sunday night, with the tip of one tuck being broken off.   It was commissioned by a Pope in the mid-1600’s,  and though it sits in a small square off the main tourist paths,  it draws a number of visitors who appreciate its uniqueness as a part of Italy’s cultural heritage.

Forgotten Man to the White House…

FOX News’ Sean Hannity  has purchased  the original  “The Forgotten Man” painting from artist Jon McNaughton,  and will give it to Trump to hang in the White House.   I hope it will hang in the Oval Office as a constant reminder of what the elites have done to the ordinary Americans who built this country and keep it running.

“Forgotten man” is a phrase first used by William Graham Sumner in his article The Forgotten Man (published posthumously in 1918) to refer to the person compelled to pay for reformist programs.  Since Franklin Roosevelt appropriated the phrase in a 1932 speech, it has more often been used to refer to those at the bottom of the economic government.

In 2013 Amity Shlaes wrote a bestseller about the Great Depression with the phrase in the title,  which is probably how most people became aware of it.

 

Greta Friedman, R.I.P.

Greta Zimmer Friedman was  half of  one of history’s most iconic photos.  She has died at age 92 after a bout of pneumonia.   The famous kiss in Times Square was captured by Alfred Eisenstaedt on August 14,  1945 and published shortly afterwards in LIFE magazine.

The dental assistant and the sailor who kissed her weren’t identified until 2012,  despite the magazine republishing the photo in 1980 in an attempt to identify the pair.

 

 

 

 

Colorful streets…

I have heard of  most of these,  and even actually seen a couple,  but I would think that living in one of these cheery buildings would lift your spirits.

Salt as art…

Israeli artist Sigalit Landau put a black gown in the Dead Sea for two months in 2014.   Photographer Yotam From recorded the stunning underwater changes  that occurred as salt crystals gradually adhered to the fabric.   The results are simply stunning.   It may not be everyone’s idea of art,  but it’s amazing,  whatever you call it.

 

 

 

Photos into art…

Twenty-one year old Marina Amaral taught herself to use Photoshop to make color versions of pictures.   In the process,  this Brazil-based digital colorist has learned a lot about history,  as she researches the black and white or sepia images to get the proper colors for the subjects.   I think she has proven herself a  brilliant student  on all points, wouldn’t you?

Van Gogh’s ear…

After 130 years,  one of the art world’s more curious mysteries has been solved,  and we now know  the identity  of the woman who Van Gogh gave his ear to.