Angkor Wat or "Capital Temple" is a temple complex in Cambodia and the largest religious monument in the world. It was first a Hindu and later a Buddhist temple. It was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yaśodharapura, present-day Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum.

Breaking from the Shiva tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to Vishnu. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious center since its foundation. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors. Angkor Wat combines two basic plans of Khmer temple architecture: the temple-mountain and the later galleried temple, based on early Dravidian architecture, with key features such as the Jagati. It is designed to represent Mount Meru, home of the devas in Hindu mythology: within a moat and an outer wall 3.6 kilometres long are three rectangular galleries, each raised above the next. At the centre of the temple stands a quincunx of towers. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west; scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of the architecture, its extensive bas-reliefs, and for the numerous devatas adorning its walls.

The modern name, Angkor Wat, means "Temple City" or "City of Temples" in Khmer; Angkor, meaning "city" or "capital city", is a vernacular form of the word nokor (នគរ), which comes from the Sanskrit word nagara (नगर). Wat is the Khmer word for "temple grounds" (Sanskrit: वाट vāṭa ""enclosure").

HISTORY

Angkor Wat lies 5.5 kilometres north of the modern town of Siem Reap, and a short distance south and slightly east of the previous capital, which was centred at Baphuon. It is in an area of Cambodia where there is an important group of ancient structures. It is the southernmost of Angkor's main sites.

According to one legend, the construction of Angkor Wat was ordered by Indra to act as a palace for his son Precha Ket Mealea.

According to the 13th century Chinese traveler Daguan Zhou, it was believed by some that the temple was constructed in a single night by a divine architect. The initial design and construction of the temple took place in the first half of the 12th century, during the reign of Suryavarman II (ruled 1113-C. 1150). Dedicated to Vishnu, it was built as the king's state temple and capital city. As neither the foundation stela nor any contemporary inscriptions referring to the temple have been found, its original name is unknown, but it may have been known as "Varah Vishnu-lok" after the presiding deity. Work seems to have ended shortly after the king's death, leaving some of the bas-relief decoration unfinished.

In 1177, approximately 27 years after the death of Suryavarman II, Angkor was sacked by the Chams, the traditional enemies of the Khmer. Thereafter the empire was restored by a new king, Jayavarman VII, who established a new capital and state temple (Angkor Thom and the Bayon respectively) a few kilometers to the north.

In the late 13th century, Angkor Wat gradually moved from Hindu to Theravada Buddhist use, which continues to the present day. Angkor Wat is unusual among the Angkor temples in that although it was somewhat neglected after the 16th century it was never completely abandoned, its preservation being due in part to the fact that its moat also provided some protection from encroachment by the jungle.

One of the first Western visitors to the temple was António da Madalena, a Portuguese monk who visited in 1586 and said that it "is of such extraordinary construction that it is not possible to describe it with a pen, particularly since it is like no other building in the world. It has towers and decoration and all the refinements which the human genius can conceive of."

In the mid-19th century, the temple was visited by the French naturalist and explorer, Henri Mouhot, who popularised the site in the West through the publication of travel notes, in which he wrote:

"One of these temples - a rival to that of Solomon, and erected by some ancient Michelangelo - might take an honorable place beside our most beautiful buildings. It is grander than anything left to us by Greece or Rome, and presents a sad contrast to the state of barbarism in which the nation is now plunged."

Mouhot, like other early Western visitors, found it difficult to believe that the Khmers could have built the temple, and mistakenly dated it to around the same era as Rome. The true history of Angkor Wat was pieced together only from stylistic and epigraphic evidence accumulated during the subsequent clearing and restoration work carried out across the whole Angkor site. There were no ordinary dwellings or houses or other signs of settlement including cooking utensils, weapons, or items of clothing usually found at ancient sites. Instead there is the evidence of the monuments themselves.

Angkor Wat required considerable restoration in the 20th century, mainly the removal of accumulated earth and vegetation. Work was interrupted by the civil war and Khmer Rouge control of the country during the 1970s and 1980s, but relatively little damage was done during this period other than the theft and destruction of mostly post-Angkorian statues. The temple is a powerful symbol of Cambodia, and is a source of great national pride that has factored into Cambodia's diplomatic relations with France, the United States and its neighbor Thailand. A depiction of Angkor Wat has been a part of Cambodian national flags since the introduction of the first version circa 1863. From a larger historical and even transcultural perspective, however, the temple of Angkor Wat did not become a symbol of national pride sui generis but had been inscribed into a larger politico-cultural process of French-colonial heritage production in which the original temple site was presented in French colonial and universal exhibitions in Paris and Marseille between 1889 and 1937. Angkor Wat's aesthetics were also on display in the plaster cast museum of Louis Delaporte called musée Indo-chinois which existed in the Parisian Trocadero Palace from C. 1880 to the mid-1920s. The splendid artistic legacy of Angkor Wat and other Khmer monuments in the Angkor region led directly to France adopting Cambodia as a protectorate on 11 August 1863 and invading Siam to take control of the ruins. This quickly led to Cambodia reclaiming lands in the northwestern corner of the country that had been under Siamese (Thai) control since 1351 AD (Manich Jumsai 2001), or by some accounts, 1431 AD. Cambodia gained independence from France on 9 November 1953 and has controlled Angkor Wat since that time.

ARCHITECTURE

SITE AND PLAN

Angkor Wat, located at 13°24′45″N 103°52′0″E, is a unique combination of the temple mountain, the standard design for the empire's state temples and the later plan of concentric galleries. The temple is a representation of Mount Meru, the home of the gods: the central quincunx of towers symbolises the five peaks of the mountain, and the walls and moat the surrounding mountain ranges and ocean. Access to the upper areas of the temple was progressively more exclusive, with the laity being admitted only to the lowest level. Unlike most Khmer temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west rather than the east. This has led many (including Maurice Glaize and George Coedès) to conclude that Suryavarman intended it to serve as his funerary temple.Further evidence for this view is provided by the bas-reliefs, which proceed in a counter-clockwise direction - prasavya in Hindu terminology - as this is the reverse of the normal order. Rituals take place in reverse order during Brahminic funeral services. The archaeologist Charles Higham also describes a container which may have been a funerary jar which was recovered from the central tower. It has been nominated by some as the greatest expenditure of energy on the disposal of a corpse. Freeman and Jacques, however, note that several other temples of Angkor depart from the typical eastern orientation, and suggest that Angkor Wat's alignment was due to its dedication to Vishnu, who was associated with the west.

A further interpretation of Angkor Wat has been proposed by Eleanor Mannikka. Drawing on the temple's alignment and dimensions, and on the content and arrangement of the bas-reliefs, she argues that the structure represents a claimed new era of peace under King Suryavarman II: "as the measurements of solar and lunar time cycles were built into the sacred space of Angkor Wat, this divine mandate to rule was anchored to consecrated chambers and corridors meant to perpetuate the king's power and to honor and placate the deities manifest in the heavens above." Mannikka's suggestions have been received with a mixture of interest and scepticism in academic circles. She distances herself from the speculations of others, such as Graham Hancock, that Angkor Wat is part of a representation of the constellation Draco.

STYLE

Angkor Wat is the prime example of the classical style of Khmer architecture - the Angkor Wat style - to which it has given its name. By the 12th century Khmer architects had become skilled and confident in the use of sandstone (rather than brick or laterite) as the main building material. Most of the visible areas are of sandstone blocks, while laterite was used for the outer wall and for hidden structural parts. The binding agent used to join the blocks is yet to be identified, although natural resins or slaked lime has been suggested. The temple has drawn praise above all for the harmony of its design. According to Maurice Glaize, a mid-20th-century conservator of Angkor, the temple "attains a classic perfection by the restrained monumentality of its finely balanced elements and the precise arrangement of its proportions. It is a work of power, unity and style." Architecturally, the elements characteristic of the style include: the ogival, redented towers shaped like lotus buds; half-galleries to broaden passageways; axial galleries connecting enclosures; and the cruciform terraces which appear along the main axis of the temple. Typical decorative elements are devatas (or apsaras), bas-reliefs, and on pediments extensive garlands and narrative scenes. The statuary of Angkor Wat is considered conservative, being more static and less graceful than earlier work. Other elements of the design have been destroyed by looting and the passage of time, including gilded stucco on the towers, gilding on some figures on the bas-reliefs, and wooden ceiling panels and doors.

FEATURES

OUTER ENCLOSURE

The outer wall, 1024 by 802 m and 4.5 m high, is surrounded by a 30 m apron of open ground and a moat 190 m wide. Access to the temple is by an earth bank to the east and a sandstone causeway to the west; the latter, the main entrance, is a later addition, possibly replacing a wooden bridge. There are gopuras at each of the cardinal points; the western is by far the largest and has three ruined towers. Glaize notes that this gopura both hides and echoes the form of the temple proper. Under the southern tower is a statue of Vishnu, known as Ta Reach, which may originally have occupied the temple's central shrine. Galleries run between the towers and as far as two further entrances on either side of the gopura often referred to as "elephant gates", as they are large enough to admit those animals. These galleries have square pillars on the outer (west) side and a closed wall on the inner (east) side. The ceiling between the pillars is decorated with lotus rosettes; the west face of the wall with dancing figures; and the east face of the wall with balustered windows, dancing male figures on prancing animals, and devatas, including (south of the entrance) the only one in the temple to be showing her teeth. The outer wall encloses a space of 820,000 square metres, which besides the temple proper was originally occupied by the city and, to the north of the temple, the royal palace. Like all secular buildings of Angkor, these were built of perishable materials rather than of stone, so nothing remains of them except the outlines of some of the streets. Most of the area is now covered by forest. A 350 m causeway connects the western gopura to the temple proper, with naga balustrades and six sets of steps leading down to the city on either side. Each side also features a library with entrances at each cardinal point, in front of the third set of stairs from the entrance, and a pond between the library and the temple itself. The ponds are later additions to the design, as is the cruciform terrace guarded by lions connecting the causeway to the central structure.

CENTRAL STRUCTURE

The temple stands on a terrace raised higher than the city. It is made of three rectangular galleries rising to a central tower, each level higher than the last. Mannikka interprets these galleries as being dedicated to the king, Brahma, the moon, and Vishnu.

Each gallery has a gopura at each of the points, and the two inner galleries each have towers at their corners, forming a quincunx with the central tower. Because the temple faces west, the features are all set back towards the east, leaving more space to be filled in each enclosure and gallery on the west side; for the same reason the west-facing steps are shallower than those on the other sides.

The outer gallery measures 187 by 215 m, with pavilions rather than towers at the corners. The gallery is open to the outside of the temple, with columned half-galleries extending and buttressing the structure. Connecting the outer gallery to the second enclosure on the west side is a cruciform cloister called Preah Poan (the "Hall of a Thousand Gods"). Buddha images were left in the cloister by pilgrims over the centuries, although most have now been removed. This area has many inscriptions relating the good deeds of pilgrims, most written in Khmer but others in Burmese and Japanese. The four small courtyards marked out by the cloister may originally have been filled with water.

North and south of the cloister are libraries.

Beyond, the second and inner galleries are connected to each other and to two flanking libraries by another cruciform terrace, again a later addition. From the second level upwards, devatas abound on the walls, singly or in groups of up to four. The second-level enclosure is 100 by 115 m, and may originally have been flooded to represent the ocean around Mount Meru.

Three sets of steps on each side lead up to the corner towers and gopuras of the inner gallery. The very steep stairways represent the difficulty of ascending to the kingdom of the gods. This inner gallery, called the Bakan, is a 60 m square with axial galleries connecting each gopura with the central shrine, and subsidiary shrines located below the corner towers. The roofings of the galleries are decorated with the motif of the body of a snake ending in the heads of lions or garudas. Carved lintels and pediments decorate the entrances to the galleries and to the shrines. The tower above the central shrine rises 43 m to a height of 65 m above the ground; unlike those of previous temple mountains, the central tower is raised above the surrounding four. The shrine itself, originally occupied by a statue of Vishnu and open on each side, was walled in when the temple was converted to Theravada Buddhism, the new walls featuring standing Buddhas. In 1934, the conservator George Trouvé excavated the pit beneath the central shrine: filled with sand and water it had already been robbed of its treasure, but he did find a sacred foundation deposit of gold leaf two metres above ground level.

DECORATION

Integrated with the architecture of the building, and one of the causes for its fame is Angkor Wat's extensive decoration, which predominantly takes the form of bas-relief friezes. The inner walls of the outer gallery bear a series of large-scale scenes mainly depicting episodes from the Hindu epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Higham has called these, "the greatest known linear arrangement of stone carving".

From the north-west corner anti-clockwise, the western gallery shows the Battle of Lanka (from the Ramayana, in which Rama defeats Ravana) and the Battle of Kurukshetra (from the Mahabharata, showing the mutual annihilation of the Kaurava and Pandava clans). On the southern gallery follow the only historical scene, a procession of Suryavarman II, then the 32 hells and 37 heavens of Hindu mythology.

On the eastern gallery is one of the most celebrated scenes, the Churning of the Sea of Milk, showing 92 asuras and 88 devas using the serpent Vasuki to churn the sea under Vishnu's direction (Mannikka counts only 91 asuras, and explains the asymmetrical numbers as representing the number of days from the winter solstice to the spring equinox, and from the equinox to the summer solstice). It is followed by Vishnu defeating asuras (a 16th-century addition). The northern gallery shows Krishna's victory over Bana (where according to Glaize, "The workmanship is at its worst"). and a battle between the Hindu gods and asuras. The north-west and south-west corner pavilions both feature much smaller-scale scenes, some unidentified but most from the Ramayana or the life of Krishna. Angkor Wat is decorated with depictions of apsaras and devata; there are more than 1,796 depictions of devata in the present research inventory. Angkor Wat architects employed small apsara images (30–40 cm) as decorative motifs on pillars and walls. They incorporated larger devata images (all full-body portraits measuring approximately 95–110 cm) more prominently at every level of the temple from the entry pavilion to the tops of the high towers. In 1927, Sappho Marchal published a study cataloging the remarkable diversity of their hair, headdresses, garments, stance, jewelry and decorative flowers, which Marchal concluded were based on actual practices of the Angkor period.

CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES

The stones, as smooth as polished marble, were laid without mortar with very tight joints that are sometimes hard to find. The blocks were held together by mortise and tenon joints in some cases, while in others they used dovetails and gravity. The blocks were presumably put in place by a combination of elephants, coir ropes, pulleys and bamboo scaffolding. Henri Mouhot noted that most of the blocks had holes 2.5 cm in diameter and 3 cm deep, with more holes on the larger blocks. Some scholars have suggested that these were used to join them together with iron rods, but others claim they were used to hold temporary pegs to help manoeuvre them into place. The monument was made out of millions of tonnes of sandstone and it has a greater volume as well as mass than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. The Angkor Wat Temple consumes about 6 million to 10 million blocks of sandstone with an average weight of 1.5 tons each. In fact, the entire city of Angkor used up far greater amounts of stone than all the Egyptian pyramids combined, and occupied an area significantly greater than modern-day Paris. Moreover, unlike the Egyptian pyramids which use limestone quarried barely half a km away all the time, the entire city of Angkor was built with sandstone quarried 40 km (or more) away. This sandstone had to be transported from Mount Kulen, a quarry approximately 40 km to the northeast. The route has been suggested to span 35 kilometres along a canal towards Tonlé Sap lake, another 35 kilometres crossing the lake, and finally 15 kilometres upstream and against the current along Siem Reap River, making a total journey of 90 kilometres. However, Etsuo Uchida and Ichita Shimoda of Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan have discovered in 2012 a shorter 35-kilometre canal connecting Mount Kulen and Angkor Wat using satellite imagery. The two believe that the Khmer used this route instead.

Virtually all of its surfaces, columns, lintels even roofs are carved. There are miles of reliefs illustrating scenes from Indian literature including unicorns, griffins, winged dragons pulling chariots as well as warriors following an elephant-mounted leader and celestial dancing girls with elaborate hair styles. The gallery wall alone is decorated with almost 1000 square metres of bas reliefs. Holes on some of the Angkor walls indicate that they may have been decorated with bronze sheets. These were highly prized in ancient times and were a prime target for robbers. While excavating Khajuraho, Alex Evans, a stonemason and sculptor, recreated a stone sculpture under 1.2 m, this took about 60 days to carve. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone. The labor force to quarry, transport, carve and install so much sandstone must have run into the thousands including many highly skilled artisans. The skills required to carve these sculptures were developed hundreds of years earlier, as demonstrated by some artifacts that have been dated to the seventh century, before the Khmer came to power.

ANGKOR WAT TODAY

The Archaeological Survey of India carried out restoration work on the temple between 1986 and 1992. Since the 1990s, Angkor Wat has seen continued conservation efforts and a massive increase in tourism. The temple is part of the Angkor World Heritage Site, established in 1992, which has provided some funding and has encouraged the Cambodian government to protect the site. The German Apsara Conservation Project (GACP) is working to protect the devatas and other bas-reliefs which decorate the temple from damage. The organisation's survey found that around 20% of the devatas were in very poor condition, mainly because of natural erosion and deterioration of the stone but in part also due to earlier restoration efforts. Other work involves the repair of collapsed sections of the structure, and prevention of further collapse: the west facade of the upper level, for example, has been buttressed by scaffolding since 2002, while a Japanese team completed restoration of the north library of the outer enclosure in 2005. World Monuments Fund began conservation work on the Churning of the Sea of Milk Gallery in 2008 after several years of conditions studies. The project restored the traditional Khmer roofing system and removed cement used in earlier restoration attempts that had resulted in salts entering the structure behind the bas-relief, discoloring and damaging the sculpted surfaces. The main phase of work ended in 2012, and the final component will be the installation of finials on the roof of the gallery in 2013. Microbial biofilms have been found degrading sandstone at Angkor Wat, Preah Khan, and the Bayon and West Prasat in Angkor. The dehydration and radiation resistant filamentous cyanobacteria can produce organic acids that degrade the stone. A dark filamentous fungus was found in internal and external Preah Khan samples, while the alga Trentepohlia was found only in samples taken from external, pink-stained stone at Preah Khan. Angkor Wat has become a major tourist destination. In 2004 and 2005, government figures suggest that, respectively, 561.000 and 677.000 foreign visitors arrived in Siem Reap province, approximately 50% of all foreign tourists in Cambodia for both years. The site has been managed by the private SOKIMEX group since 1990, which rented it from the Cambodian government. The influx of tourists has so far caused relatively little damage, other than some graffiti; ropes and wooden steps have been introduced to protect the bas-reliefs and floors, respectively. Tourism has also provided some additional funds for maintenance - as of 2000 approximately 28% of ticket revenues across the whole Angkor site was spent on the temples - although most work is carried out by foreign government-sponsored teams rather than by the Cambodian authorities. Since Angkor Wat has seen significant growth in tourism throughout the years UNESCO and its International Co-ordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor (ICC), in association with representatives from the Royal Government and APSARA, organized seminars to discuss the concept of "cultural tourism". Wanting to avoid commercial and mass tourism, the seminars emphasized the importance of providing high quality accommodation and services in order for the Cambodian government to benefit economically, while also incorporating the richness of Cambodian culture. In 2001, this incentive resulted in the concept of the "Angkor Tourist City" which would be developed with regard to traditional Khmer architecture, contain leisure and tourist facilities, and provide luxurious hotels capable of accommodating large amounts of tourists. The prospect of developing such large tourist accommodations has encountered concerns from both APSARA and the ICC, claiming that previous tourism developments in the area have neglected construction regulations and more of these projects have the potential to damage landscape features. Also, the large scale of these projects have begun to threaten the quality of the nearby town's water, sewage, and electricity systems. It has been noted that such high frequency of tourism and growing demand for quality accommodations in the area, such as the development of a large highway, has had a direct effect on the underground water table, subsequently straining the structural stability of the temples at Angkor Wat. Locals of Siem Reap have also voiced concern over the charming nature and atmosphere of their town being compromised in order to entertain tourism. Since this charming local atmosphere is the key component to projects like Angkor Tourist City, local officials continue to discuss how to successfully incorporate future tourism without sacrificing local values and culture. At the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2012, both parties have agreed Borobudur and Angkor Wat to become sister sites and the provinces will become sister provinces. Two Indonesian airlines are considering the opportunity to open a direct flight from Yogyakarta, Indonesia to Siem Reap.

WIKIPEDIA

Sorry I have been really busy.. I will try and catch up when I can. Thank you all very much for your wonderful comments.

I meet up with a wonderful flickr and we had a wonderful time getting blown and rained on while looking around the city. It was great to meet up with her. Pity the weather wasn't kinder!

September 19, 2015 Christchurch, New Zealand.

It got so wet and cold we spent some time looking around the inside of the Heritage Hotel.

A Write up About the Heritage Hotel.

Christchurch is a long way from the Mediterranean – nevertheless, the opulence of an Italian High Renaissance Palazzo awaits you at the Heritage Christchurch. Designed by Joseph Clark Maddison and opened in 1913, the hotel is listed as a category one building on the Historic Places Trust Register, reflecting its status as a building of national significance. The hotel’s grand design is fitting: after all, Christchurch is regarded as the Garden City, and is regarded internationally for its culture and refinement.

For more Info and photos:http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/city-centre/9191247/Heritage-Hotel-reopens-on-birthday

Elegance is the art of knowing how to combine refinement, grace and manners without losing composure, assurance and serenity

Pink is not just for girls, and it is not just a pretty color. Pink roses have deep significance when it comes to affections given and received. The most widely accepted interpretation of pink roses is grace and gentility. An admiration for beauty, refinement and enduring grace is what the pink rose connotes. The receiver of the pink rose can rest assured that he or she is admired for possessing a certain respectability and decorum not commonly found in others.

Ref: www.roseforlove.com/the-meanings-of-pink-roses-light-pink...

© 2013 Thousand Word Images by Dustin Abbott

My title refers to the Japanese concept of Miyabi. It is elegance and refinement, the banishment of everything vulgar or absurd. Nature is full of elegance and refinement. P.S. The combination of the EF 85mm f/1.8 and the EOS M is a very nice one. Almost like having a light walkaround version of the 135L.

Here's a link to a new article that I wrote for PhotoNews Magazine called Widen Your Horizons if you want to take a look here:

Technical information Canon EOS M, Canon EF 85mm f/1.8, Processed in Adobe Lightroom 5 and Exposure 5/Snap Art 4

Personal Website | Facebook Fan Page | 500px Gallery | Order Fine Art prints | iStock | Getty Collection

There were lots of technical difficulties to overcome with this piece. There's scope for future refinement, but then there always is!

Check out: bit.ly/iancleggwalsh

The Royal Palace of Turin, seat of the Dukes and later Kings of the House of Savoy, stands at the heart of the city as a symbol of political power and artistic patronage. Originally a medieval fortress, it was transformed in the 17th century by architects like Carlo di Castellamonte and Guarino Guarini into a magnificent Baroque residence. With its lavish staterooms, grand staircase, and adjacent Royal Armory and Chapel of the Holy Shroud, the palace served as the center of court life and state affairs. Today, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a key part of the Residences of the Royal House of Savoy, reflecting centuries of dynastic ambition and cultural refinement.

The Sea Fury is a navalised aircraft, capable of operating from the aircraft carriers of the Royal Navy. It was heavily based on preceding Hawker fighter aircraft, particularly the Tempest; features such as the semi-elliptical wing and fuselage were derived directly from the Tempest but featured significant refinements, including significant strengthening to withstand the stresses of carrier landings. While the Sea Fury was lighter and smaller than the Tempest, advanced aspects of the Sea Fury's design such as its Centaurus engine meant it was also considerably more powerful and faster, making it the final and fastest of Hawker's reciprocating engine aircraft.[24]

The Sea Fury Mk X was capable of attaining a maximum speed of 460 mph and climb to a height of 20,000 feet in under five minutes. The Sea Fury was reportedly a highly aerobatic aircraft with favourable flying behaviour at all heights and speeds, although intentional spinning of the aircraft was banned during the type's military service.[25] During flight displays, the Sea Fury could demonstrate its ability to perform rapid rolls at a rate of 100 degrees per second, attributed to the spring tab equipped ailerons.[26] For extra thrust on takeoff Jet Assisted Take-Off (JATO) could be used.[27][28]

Sea Fury F.10 in the livery of a RAN FB.11 aircraft in 2011

The Sea Fury was powered by the newly developed Bristol Centaurus reciprocating engine, which drove a five-bladed propeller.[5] Many of the engine's subsystems, such as the fully automated cooling system, cockpit gauges, and fuel booster pump were electrical, powered by an engine-driven generator supplemented by two independent batteries. The hydraulic system, necessary to operate the retractable undercarriage, tail hook, and flaps, was pressurised to 1,800 psi by an engine-driven pump. If this failed, a hand pump in the cockpit could also power these systems. A pneumatic pump was driven by the engine for the brakes. Internal fuel was stored in a total of five self-sealing fuel tanks, two within the fuselage directly in front of the cockpit and three housed within the wings

Storia della murrina

Il nome“Murrina” è stato coniato nel 1878 dall'abate Vincenzo Zanetti, che tanto contribuì alla rinascita della vetraria muranese dopo un lungo periodo di crisi. Zanetti adottò questo termine per definire vasi e ciotole in vetro mosaico che i Romani facevano usando sezioni di canna che presentavano al loro interno, per tutta la lunghezza, disegni astratti o anche figurativi come volti, fiori e animali.Li chiamò così perché in qualche modo potevano ricordare gli oggetti che gli stessi Romani eseguivano usando la variopinta pietra murrina, che peraltro nessuno ha mai conosciuto.Da allora il termine murrino è rimasto e serve ad identificare sia le singole sezioni di canna sia l'oggetto ottenuto dalla loro composizione.Fonte wikipedia

murrine veneziane murrina murano Murano island Venice glass murano glass handy craft famous for its quality and refinement beautiful jewels amazing colors Murrine are old creations of Venice concentric designs intersected colors imagins of flowers glass cane expert handycrafters in Murano Millefiori (=thousand flowers) many processes and superimpositions of the glass motivo floreale motivo geometrico i maestri vetrai formano delle canne millefiori (mosaico di murrine) tagliate trasversalmente in trance fusione del vetro cilindri murrine assortite opaline media dimensione piccola dimensione grandi dimensioni confezione mista murrine miste Il vetro di Murano è uno dei più preziosi vetri che vengono realizzati in

Italia secondo tradizioni antiche di secoli sulla famosa isola di Murano, vicino Venezia I primi forni vi furono installati nel 1291

Tra tutte le tecniche, la più lunga e complessa è senza dubbio quella del vetro di Murrina fantasia puzzle

Il termine “Murrino” è stato coniato nel 1878 dall'abate Vincenzo Zanetti singole sezioni di canna semplice murrina a strati concentrici sovrapposti murrina con disegno floreale, a stella o a cuore colors arancione azzurro bianca blu celeste giallo indaco nero rosa rosso verde

Venetian murrine Murrina Murano Murano island Venice Glass Murano Glass handy craft famous for its quality and refinement, beautiful jewels amazing colors Murrine are old creations of Venice concentric designs intersected colors imagins of flowers glass dog expert handycrafters in Murano Millefiori (thousand flowers =) many processes and superimpositions of the glass floral pattern geometric pattern master glassmakers form of millefiori canes (millefiori mosaic) cut transversely in a trance glass melting cylinder murrine assorted opal medium size small large scale Variety Pack murrine mixed The Murano glass is one of the most precious glasses that are made in Italy

according to centuries-old traditions on the famous island of Murano, near Venice, The first ovens were installed there in 1291

Among all the techniques, the longest and most complex is undoubtedly that of the glass Murrina fantasy puzzle

The term Murrine was coined in 1878 by abbot Vincenzo Zanetti individual sections of the cane simple murrine in concentric layers stacked murrine with floral design, star or heart, colors orange blue white blue blue yellow , indigo black pink red green

36 SR design 2HAP units were constructed at Eastleigh Works in 1956/7 on former 2NOL underframes from the 1930s. In the leading coach, the driving trailer, were three second class compartments, four first class and a lavatory at the inner end. There was no such refinement in the motor coaches. Converted to all second class, the units were used on the Central Division from 1976. This is a London Bridge to Epsom Downs service arriving at Norwood Junction in June 1981.

More levitation fun...

More informations here styleandaddict.blogspot.fr/

[annaA], Loordes of London, Birth, French Vintage Couture,

Slurl Summer Time Fair : maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Taj%20Mahal/83/201/21

Since 2016, the Tomcat has only had a few small changes (new exhaust nozzles and some refinements to the horizontal tail fins), but the other three were rebuilt from scratch.

​The Bowery was a raucous area where police frequently looked the other way as drinking, gambling, music and shows took place well into the night. Coney Island's appeal was that anyone could find the type of experience they desired. For those looking for more variety and fun, and less refinement, the Bowery stood head and shoulders above Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach.

-- Heart of Coney Island. Com

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Photographed by Eugene Wemlinger,

for the New York Journal American newspaper

I practiced Kodo, or the art of appreciating japanese incense, I liked it so much, sorry for the photo I took it so fast. Kodo, is one of the three classical japanese arts of refinement. The incense was brought to japan trought the Silk Road, its history starts in the 6th century CE. The custom of burning incense blossomed amongst the court nobility. Latter, Samurai warriors would prepare for battle by purifying their minds and their bodies with incense.

Training occurs prior to any big event. Proof of concept, being match fit, learning roles, refinement, gestures, movements and timings. Being in a team or performing as an individual.

In this image we see an illustration of an earthwork currently known as a Neolithic 'cursus' and here renamed a 'Transport Dragon Run': here a training ground - in two days, a gathering.

This form of early British Isles Neolithic earthwork sags over time; fails ever to be restored back into vivid form and space, and even gets ploughed back into soil or aligned aside traffic jams, electric windows and passing snaps.

Here the 'Transport Dragon Run' has a long barrow at one end, and a terminal post hole, and so is mildly inspired by the 3km long 'Stonehenge Greater cursus' of around 3500 BC. This earthwork came into time during the lifespan of the nearby 'Pedestal circle' at 'Robin Hood Ball' (4000-3000 BC) and originated some 400 years prior to another nearby earthwork, that of the pre megalithic Stonehenge 1 (3100 BC): a causewayed henge, almost like a simplified memory of a pedestal circle, where display took over from capacity for individual 'Transport Dragons' to execute outwards tangential rush.

[See linked below for an associated Flickr post and drawing that illustrates the early Neolithic 'Causewayed Enclosure' earthworks as 'Pedestal circles' for grouped 'Transport Dragons'. See past posts and a Flickr album for a full explanation of the 'Transport Dragon' and how it was enhanced and enabled by the invention of the 'Tension lever' - currently known as the 'Bâton percé' - again, research and Flickr album via this Photostream]

The dates of the Neolithic vary from east to west and south to north, as do details of regional megalithic, petroglyphic and earthwork manifestation. In the UK, the landscape-art of ditch, bank and raised stone perhaps started with the 'Pedestal Circles': earthworks for groups of late period residual 'Transport Dragons'. The 100 examples of 'Pedestal Circles' were built between 4900 and 4800 BC. Stonehenge 1 had many of the qualities of a causewayed enclosure and this ripple for a true future megasite was thrown around 3100 BC, so 1700 years after the 'Pedestal circle' building boom. In-between are found the hyperbolic and intoxicatingly unusual earthworks currently known as 'cursus' and here referred to as 'Transport Dragon Runs'.

In summary: the following chronology relates to parts of Britain:

- 'Pedestal circles' (Causewayed enclosures) 3700-3625 BC

- Approximative 100 year buffer

- 'Transport dragon runs' (Cursus) approx' 3500-2920 BC

- The 'Stonehenge 1' earthwork 3100 BC

- Approximative 100 year buffer

- Start of the age of megalithic stone circles: around 3000 BC.

Earthwork mounds (barrows/Tumuli) of varied silhouette and armature tended to start after the Pedestal circles and then coincide with the 'Transport Dragon Runs' to then carry on for several ages.

Examples of 'Transport Dragon Runs' include the 10km long Dorset Cursus; the triple henged megasite with dissecting cursus of 'Thornborough', and of course the examples on sites that would later be remembered as 'Newgrange' and 'Stonehenge'. From just 46m long to a staggering 9.7km, there was something in the function of a 'Cursus' that accepted flexibility of local expression. Some examples crossed rivers, many occurred near rivers. Which ever size you choose, the builders of the peripheral banks (via exterior ditch) would need to find a serious and compelling 'self' motivation, or they might need to be bullied and threatened into work by physical and/or psychological strategy. This latter option seems to be snug with the zeitgeist of today's video-game generation, and several prehistory commentators describing 'religious dictators', late prehistoric 'Lords' and other examples of back-dated Medievalism and Empire-ista. In effect, we are currently asked to imagine images of 'overlords' wanting parade grounds - the current Wiki.

There are upwards of 200 known examples of this hard won and early landscape earthwork. The early to mid Neolithic enjoyed still enjoyed forests and scrub interstitial. Parades are very human and not a jarring concept, but post Mesolithic clans might easily doubt a would-be leader's judgement regarding excessive bank and ditch circumferences. Individuals could simply disappear into the quiet and croft. I think that it is also easy to see that parades do not need 9.7km earthwork lines to be majestic or compelling, but do need more than 46m; and that parades that pass over rivers would arrive as 'pétards mouillés' more than respectable heroes or dynamic energies from within Mother Nature's array of lifeforces.

I propose the "Transport Dragon Run' as an alternative explanation to 'Cursus', and those who have read my explanation of the 'Pedestal circle' (Causewayed enclosure) will no doubt already see how the two can be linked and phase-change from circle into elongated oblong.

In the text for the associated post on the anterior earthworks of 'Pedestal circles' (Causewayed Enclosures), I offer arguments that the circles were pedestals for 'Transport Dragons'. Each pedestal had it's own exit (causeway) accessed exclusively by each gathered Transport Dragon. Transport Dragons can surge forwards with ease, perhaps reverse with difficulty (people inside walking backwards or turning whilst holding the interior frame structure) and shuffle sideways with a clumsy fall. From these early circular earthworks, gathered residual Transport Dragons could meet to trade, and mix with newcomers and sedentary crofters who had lost their implicit association with a mythological clan frame. The ability for each Transport Dragon to rush down and tangentially out of a causeway, gave the Pedestal rings a military capacity which could be applied to assure a traditional use and respect for the animate landscape (free riverside passage and so on). Now, if circles were the traditional way for clans of Transport Dragons to meet, then there were downsides that might appear over time. Pedestal circles were static, and the new sedentary populations may not witness the power potential of the form. Likewise, some Transport Dragons may slow down to a point that they loose their vitality, and the emergent properties of several strong legs powering a weighted ornamental and mythological frame might suffer from fitness issues (varied rupestra and ceramic sculptures from the Neolithic can be seen to depict overweight individuals). Here, the Cursus/Transport Dragon Run was in effect an extended Pedestal Circle, with the new interior space perfect for training and displays of acumen, stealth, resilience and sheer power.

As the landscape slowed and the cadence of long journeys reduced down, some Transport Dragons localised to help with earthworks, post glacial monolith moving, clapper bridge adjustment and earth and tree moving around rivers. Being guardians of a 'Transport Dragon Run' enabled these residual clans to retain their local meaning and the idiosyncratic belief systems of each mythical frame from specific deep human prehistories. This desire to remain alive with past and future ideas and beliefs and holistically vital for practical culture would in my mind be enough to motivate this subset of the population to stay strong and dig and build without being threatened or conned.

The above image shows a Transport Dragon Run many years into its period of use. It has lived and it has grown with nature. Three transport Dragons can be seen towards the end of a practise run. For most of the run the fire has been guarded in the sculptured cob jaws as embers of potential energy. On the final 'New Year's' day, they will need to cross the line with the embers turned into a blaze of fire - and here they are practising.

Trade can now be from each end, as can other episodes of people and place. Some Transport Dragon runs are known for endurance (9.7km), some examples for pomp and none lineal runs (Thornborough), and some examples for sprints (46m); some are known for cross-country obstacle, and some also aligned into the spirit of the sun, the moon and the stars. On big days, there were parades along all or a portion of the run. Some Transport Dragons were never raced but simply appeared on banks to interact. Some teams practised on basic frames (illustrated above) which saved the ornamental and meaningful examples for big occasions. Some Transport Dragons stayed local to a dragon run, others dedicated schedules to travel between regional examples. Many locals 'supported' a Transport Dragon without having lived and earned its Mythology. A sense of greater space than a single Neolithic life could know. Of the Transport Dragons that fixed to a place, local services against bandits were offered. This premegalithic Britain was a strong population and landscape role model on display to the watching: for this illustration, 'Saltimbanques', 'Princesses' waiting to be carried, children with outlandish high hats and tasselled sticks, and rowdy early arrivals for the future crowd. To the far side, a group practise a whirling dance around a camp fire, and in the far distance more Transport Dragons are looked at and crafted prior to a breath-taking run of extraordinary technique.

Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year to Flickr and its diverse community. Looking forward...

AJM 29.12.21

The designations B-47C and B-47D were reserved for variants that were never produced. The next production model was the B-47E, generally considered the definitive Stratojet model. The aircraft first flew on 30 January 1953 and was produced in four blocks or phases, each incorporating refinements on the previous block. 1,341 B-47Es were produced, with 691 being built by Boeing, 386 by Lockheed, and 264 by Douglas. Most B-47B variants were upgraded to B-47E standards and given the designation B-47B-II, though they were often called B-47E. The Strategic Air Command (SAC) received its first B-47E in April 1953 and was assigned to the 303d Medium Bombardment Wing based at Davis Monthan AFB in Arizona.

This image shows a B-47E (B-47E-55-BW, Serial Number: 51-2399) of the 544th Bombardment Squadron of the 384th Bombardment Wing stationed at Little Rock AFB in Arkansas. The 544th BS was activated during WW2 as a heavy bomber unit flying the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress over Europe. The squadron was deactivated in 1947 but reactivated by SAC in 1955, receiving its B-47Es the following year. The squadron began training for its intercontinental bombing mission and deployed to RAF Brize Norton as part of Operation Reflex until April 1957. In 1958, SAC redeployed the Stratojet wings to their home bases and maintained a 15-minute ground alert. During the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, the 544th BS was placed on DEFCON 2 on October 24 until November 15, 1962. The squadron remained active until SAC phased out the B-47 and inactivated on 1 September 1964.

Is it tempting your contemplation?

does it play upon your nerves,

senses overriding refinement

a generation of frustrating confinement

...not since yesterday

or now to be precise

does letting go feel so good

verboten no more where I stood

in a swirl traversing

the ruction of Seasons, instantaneous

henotheistic belief in Nature

a free-spirited encincture.

by anglia24

11h50: 02/10/2007

© 2007anglia24

☀

Robert Nunns and John Clark (active 1833 – 1858)

New York City, 1853

Rosewood, mother of pearl and tortoise shell

Lavish decoration and opulent materials distinguish this extraordinary piano, which may have been shown at the New York Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1853. Young women often played pianos for entertainment and to demonstrate their education and refinement.

Metropolitan Museum of Art

New York City

DSCF9020

Milo named this one for me. Same size as the 'guardian' bot from way back. There are bits from previous builds in there, some refinements and some new bits.

Refinement Vanessa on Poppy body

Refinement of earlier render www.flickr.com/photos/mseydelconnors/53111054602/in/datep... with Sketchbook and Photoshop

The 1968 Mustang was little changed on the outside from it 1967 counterpart apart from the obvious side reflectors that were now mandated. Most of the changes were in subtle refinements to the interior and exterior that most people didn’t notice. Cosmetically they had different simulated side scoops. The 1968 scoop looked more like a vertical “C” whereas the 1967 looked like air intake openings.

Other changes included the deletion of the horizontal grille bars. The grille featured a running Mustang inside a corral in the center of the grille. There was also the deletion of the F-O-R-D letters at the front of the hood, simplification of the quarter panel ornament, and many safety features (increasing governmental regulations).

The 325 bhp, 390 cid engine was now a new “FE” block and 11,475 buyers stepped up for that motor. On the interesting end of the spectrum, the top engine option was a low riser version of Ford’s 427 cid V8, only available with an automatic transmission and only until December 1967. It was rated at 390 bhp and cost a whopping $622. Very few were sold; look for a W in the VIN. This gas drinking monster sported a 600 CFM (too small) carburetor.

Dear friends. Thank you for your views. Thanks for your feedback. Glad to tell you the news. my photo book stalker was published. 120 pages of photos from the Stalker project. This can be bought on the US website - blurb and amazon. I will give links below. www.blurb.com/b/10135721-stalker-photo-book

www.amazon.com/Stalker-Photo-book-ANDREY-TARASENKO/dp/171...

... finally deboxed ^^

Quick shot/edit testing out a new light and slightly quicker editing technique. Definitely could use some refinement, but not bad in my opinion.

Paris - Antonio Canova.

Antonio Canova (1 November 1757 – 13 October 1822) was an Italian sculptor who became famous for his marble sculptures that delicately rendered nude flesh. The epitome of the neoclassical style, his work marked a return to classical refinement after the theatrical excesses of Baroque sculpture.

Antonio Canova was born in Possagno, a village of the Republic of Venice situated amid the recesses of the hills of Asolo, where these form the last undulations of the Venetian Alps, as they subside into the plains of Treviso. At three years of age Canova was deprived of both parents, his father dying and his mother remarrying. Their loss, however, was compensated by the tender solicitude and care of his paternal grandfather and grandmother, the latter of whom lived to experience in her turn the kindest personal attention from her grandson, who, when he had the means, gave her an asylum in his house at Rome.

His father and grandfather followed the occupation of stone-cutters or minor statuaries; and it is said that their family had for several ages supplied Possagno with members of that calling. As soon as Canova's hand could hold a pencil, he was initiated into the principles of drawing by his grandfather Pasino. The latter possessed some knowledge both of drawing and of architecture, designed well, and showed considerable taste in the execution of ornamental works. He was greatly attached to his art; and upon his young charge he looked as one who was to perpetuate, not only the family name, but also the family profession.

The early years of Canova were passed in study. The bias of his mind was to sculpture, and the facilities afforded for the gratification of this predilection in the workshop of his grandfather were eagerly improved. In his ninth year he executed two small shrines of Carrara marble, which are still extant. Soon after this period he appears to have been constantly employed under his grandfather. Amongst those who patronized the old man was the patrician family Falier of Venice, and by this means young Canova was first introduced to the senator of that name, who afterwards became his most zealous patron.

Between the younger son, Giuseppe Falier, and the artist a friendship commenced which terminated only with life. The senator Falier was induced to receive him under his immediate protection. It has been related by an Italian writer and since repeated by several biographers, that Canova was indebted to a trivial circumstance - the moulding of a lion in butter - for the warm interest which Falier took in his welfare. The anecdote may or may not be true. By his patron Canova was placed under Bernardi, or, as he is generally called by filiation, Giuseppe Torretto, a sculptor of considerable eminence, who had taken up a temporary residence at Pagnano, one of Asolo's boroughs in the vicinity of the senator's mansion.

This took place whilst Canova was in his thirteenth year; and with Torretto he continued about two years, making in many respects considerable progress. This master returned to Venice, where he soon afterwards died; but by the high terms in which he spoke of his pupil to Falier, the latter was induced to bring the young artist to Venice, whither he accordingly went, and was placed under a nephew of Torretto. With this instructor he continued about a year, studying with the utmost assiduity.

After the termination of this engagement he began to work on his own account, and received from his patron an order for a group, Orpheus and Eurydice. The first figure, which represents Eurydice in flames and smoke, in the act of leaving Hades, was completed towards the close of his sixteenth year. It was highly esteemed by his patron and friends, and the artist was now considered qualified to appear before a public tribunal.

The kindness of some monks supplied him with his first workshop, which was the vacant cell of a monastery. Here for nearly four years he labored with the greatest perseverance and industry. He was also regular in his attendance at the academy, where he carried off several prizes. But he relied far more on the study and imitation of nature. A large portion of his time was also devoted to anatomy, which science was regarded by him as the secret of the art. He likewise frequented places of public amusement, where he carefully studied the expressions and attitudes of the performers. He formed a resolution, which was faithfully adhered to for several years, never to close his eyes at night without having produced some design. Whatever was likely to forward his advancement in sculpture he studied with ardour. On archaeological pursuits he bestowed considerable attention. With ancient and modern history he rendered himself well acquainted and he also began to acquire some of the continental languages.

Three years had now elapsed without any production coming from his chisel. He began, however, to complete the group for his patron, and the Orpheus which followed evinced the great advance he had made. The work was universally applauded, and laid the foundation of his fame. Several groups succeeded this performance, amongst which was that of Daedalus and Icarus, the most celebrated work of his noviciate. The terseness of style and the faithful imitation of nature which characterized them called forth the warmest admiration. His merits and reputation being now generally recognized, his thoughts began to turn from the shores of the Adriatic to the banks of the Tiber, for which he set out at the commencement of his twenty-fourth year.

Before his departure for Rome, his friends had applied to the Venetian senate for a pension, to enable him to pursue his studies without embarrassment. The application was ultimately successful. The stipend amounted to three hundred ducats (about 60 pounds per annum), and was limited to three years. Canova had obtained letters of introduction to the Venetian ambassador, the Cavaliere Zulian, and enlightened and generous protector of the arts, and was received in the most hospitable manner.

His arrival in Rome, on 28 December 1780, marks a new era in his life. It was here he was to perfect himself by a study of the most splendid relics of antiquity, and to put his talents to the severest test by a competition with the living masters of the art. The result was equal to the highest hopes cherished either by himself or by his friends. The work which first established his fame at Rome was Theseus Vanquishing the Minotaur, now in the collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum, in London. The figures are of the heroic size. The victorious Theseus is represented as seated on the lifeless body of the monster. The exhaustion which visibly pervades his whole frame proves the terrible nature of the conflict in which he has been engaged. Simplicity and natural expression had hitherto characterized Canova's style; with these were now united more exalted conceptions of grandeur and of truth. The Theseus was regarded with fervent admiration.

Canova's next undertaking was a monument in honor of Clement XIV; but before he proceeded with it he deemed it necessary to request permission from the Venetian senate, whose servant he considered himself to be, in consideration of the pension. This he solicited, in person, and it was granted. He returned immediately to Rome, and opened his celebrated studio close to the Via del Babuino. He spent about two years of unremitting toil in arranging the design and composing the models for the tomb of the pontiff. After these were completed, other two years were employed in finishing the monument, and it was finally opened to public inspection in 1787. The work, in the opinion of enthusiastic dilettanti, stamped the author as the first artist of modern times.

After five years of incessant labor, he completed another cenotaph, to the memory of Clement XIII, which raised his fame still higher. Works now came rapidly from his chisel. Amongst these is Psyche, with a butterfly, which is placed on the left hand, and held by the wings with the right. This figure, which is intended as a personification of man's immaterial part, is considered as in almost every respect the most faultless and classical of Canova's works. In two different groups, and with opposite expression, the sculptor has represented Cupid with his bride; in the one they are standing, in the other recumbent. These and other works raised his reputation so high that the most flattering offers were sent to him from the Russian court to induce him to remove to St Petersburg, but these were declined, although many of his finest works made their way to the Hermitage Museum. "Italy", says he, in writing of the occurrence to a friend, "Italy is my country - is the country and native soil of the arts. I cannot leave her; my infancy was nurtured here. If my poor talents can be useful in any other land, they must be of some utility to Italy; and ought not her claim to be preferred to all others?"

Numerous works were produced in the years 1795-1797, of which several were repetitions of previous productions. One was the celebrated group representing the Parting of Venus and Adonis. This famous production was sent to Naples. The French Revolution was now extending its shocks over Italy; and Canova sought obscurity and repose in his native Possagno. Thither he retired in 1798, and there he continued for about a year, principally employed in painting, of which art also he had some knowledge. Events in the political world having come to a temporary lull, he returned to Rome; but his health being impaired from arduous application, he took a journey through a part of Germany, in company with his friend Prince Rezzonico. He returned from his travels much improved, and again commenced his labors with vigour and enthusiasm.

The events which marked the life of the artist during the first fifteen years of the period in which he was engaged on the above-mentioned works scarcely merit notice. His mind was entirely absorbed in the labors of his studio, and, with the exception of his journeys to Paris, one to Vienna, and a few short intervals of absence in Florence and other parts of Italy, he never quit Rome. In his own words, "his statues were the sole proofs of his civil existence."

There was, however, another proof, which modesty forbade him to mention, an ever-active benevolence, especially towards artists. In 1815 he was commissioned by the Pope to superintend the transmission from Paris of those works of art which had formerly been conveyed thither under the direction of Napoleon. By his zeal and exertions - for there were many conflicting interests to reconcile - he adjusted the affair in a manner at once creditable to his judgment and fortunate for his country.

In the autumn of this year he gratified a wish he had long entertained of visiting London, where he received the highest tokens of esteem. The artist for whom he showed particular sympathy and regard in London was Benjamin Haydon, who might at the time be counted the sole representative of historical painting there, and whom he especially honored for his championship of the Elgin marbles, then recently transported to England, and ignorantly depreciated by polite connoisseurs. Among Canova's English pupils were sculptors Sir Richard Westmacott and John Gibson.

Canova returned to Rome in the beginning of 1816, with the ransomed spoils of his country's genius. Immediately after, he received several marks of distinction: he was made President of the Accademia di San Luca, the main artistic institution in Rome, and by the hand of the Pope himself his name was inscribed in "the Golden Volume of the Capitol", and he received the title of Marquis of Ischia, with an annual pension of 3000 crowns.

He now contemplated a great work, a colossal statue of Religion. The model filled Italy with admiration; the marble was procured, and the chisel of the sculptor ready to be applied to it, when the jealousy of churchmen as to the site, or some other cause, deprived the country of the projected work. The mind of Canova was inspired with the warmest sense of devotion, and though foiled in this instance he resolved to consecrate a shrine to the cause. In his native village he began to make preparations for erecting a temple which was to contain, not only the above statue, but other works of his own; within its precincts were to repose also the ashes of the founder. Accordingly he repaired to Possagno in 1819. After the foundation-stone of this edifice had been laid, Canova returned to Rome; but every succeeding autumn he continued to visit Possagno, in order to direct the workmen, and encourage them with pecuniary rewards and medals.

In the meantime the vast expenditure exhausted his resources, and compelled him to labor with unceasing assiduity notwithstanding age and disease. During the period which intervened between commencing operations at Possagno and his decease, he executed or finished some of his most striking works. Amongst these were the group Mars and Venus, the colossal figure of Pius VI, the Pietà, the St John, the recumbent Magdalen. The last performance which issued from his hand was a colossal bust of his friend, the Count Cicognara.

In May 1822 he paid a visit to Naples, to superintend the construction of wax moulds for an equestrian statue of the perjured Bourbon king Ferdinand VII. This journey materially injured his health, but he rallied again on his return to Rome. Towards the latter end of the year he paid his annual visit to the place of his birth, when he experienced a relapse. He proceeded to Venice, and expired there at the age of nearly sixty-five. His disease was one which had affected him from an early age, caused by the continual use of carving-tools, producing a depression of the ribs. The most distinguished funeral honors were paid to his remains, which were deposited in the temple at Possagno on 25 October 1822. His heart was interred in a marble pyramid he designed as a mausoleum for the painter Titian in the church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari in Venice, now a monument to the sculptor.

Among Canova's heroic compositions, his Perseus with the Head of Medusa (photo, right) appeared soon after his return from Germany. The moment of representation is when the hero, flushed with conquest, displays the head of the "snaky Gorgon", whilst the right hand grasps a sword of singular device. By a public decree, this fine work was placed in one of the stanze of the Vatican hitherto reserved for the most precious works of antiquity.

In 1802, at the personal request of Napoleon, Canova returned to Paris to model a bust of the first consul. The artist was entertained with munificence, and various honors were conferred upon him. The statue, which is colossal and entitled Napoleon as Mars the Peacemaker, was not finished till four years after. On the fall of the great emperor, Louis XVIII presented this statue to the British government, by whom it was afterwards given to the Duke of Wellington.

Palamedes, Creugas and Damoxenus, the Combat of Theseus and the Centaur, and Hercules and Lichas may close the class of heroic compositions, although the catalogue might be swelled by the enumeration of various others, such as Hector and Ajax, and the statues of George Washington (commissioned by the State of North Carolina to be displayed in its Capitol Building), King Ferdinand of Naples, and others.

Under the head of compositions of grace and elegance, the statue of Hebe takes the first place in point of date. Four times has the artist embodied in stone the goddess of youth, and each time with some variation. The last one is in the Museum of Forlì, in Italy. The only material improvement, however, is the substitution of a support more suitable to the simplicity of the art. Each of the statues is, in all its details, in expression, attitude and delicacy of finish, strikingly elegant.

The Dancing Nymphs maintain a character similar to that of the Hebe. The Three Graces and the Venus are more elevated. The Awakened Nymph is another work of uncommon beauty. The mother of Napoleon, his consort Maria Louise (as Concord), to model whom the author made a further journey to Paris in 1810, the princess Esterhazy and the muse Polymnia (Elisa Bonaparte) take their place in this class, as do the ideal heads, comprising Corinna, Sappho, Laura, Beatrice and Helen of Troy.

Of the cenotaphs and funeral monuments the most splendid is the monument to the archduchess Archduchess Maria Christina, Duchess of Teschen, consisting of nine figures.

Besides the two for the Roman Pontiffs already mentioned, there is one for Alfieri, another for Emo, a Venetian admiral, and a small model of a cenotaph for Horatio Nelson, besides a great variety of monumental relieves.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE MUSEUM

The Metropolitan Museum of Art was founded in 1870 by a group of American citizens – businessmen and financiers as well as leading arists and thinkers of the day – who wanted to create a museum to bring art and art education to the American people.

The Metropolitan's paintings collection also began in 1870, when three private European collections, 174 paintings in all, came to the Museum. A variety of excellent Dutch and Flemish paintings, including works by such artists as Hals and Van Dyck, was supplemented with works by such great European artists as Poussin, Tiepolo, and Guardi.

The collections continued to grow for the rest of the 19th century – upon the death of John Kensett, for example, 38 of his canvases came to the Museum. But it is the 20th century that has seen the Museum's rise to the position of one of the world's great art centers. Some highlights: a work by Renoir entered the Museum as early as 1907 (today the Museum has become one of the world's great repositories of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art)...in 1910 the Metropolitan was the first public institution to accept works of art by Matisse...by 1979 the Museum owned five of the fewer than 40 known Vermeers...the Department of Greek and Roman Art now oversees thousands of objects, including one of the finest collections in glass and silver in the world...The American Wing holds the most comprehensive collection of American art, sculpture, and decorative arts in the world...the Egyptian art collection is the finest outside Cairo...the Islamic art collection is without peer...and so on, through many of the 17 curatorial departments.

In 1880, the Metropolitan Museum moved to its current site in Central Park. The original Gothic-Revival-style building has been greatly expanded in size since then, and the various additions (built as early as 1888) now completely surround the original structure. The present facade and entrance structure along Fifth Avenue were completed in 1926.

A comprehensive architectural plan for the Museum approved in 1971 was completed in 1991. The architects for the project were Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates, and the overall aim was to make the Museum's collections more accessible to the public, more useful to the scholars and, in general, more interesting and informative to all visitors.

Among the additions to the Museum as part of the master plan are: the Robert Lehman Wing (1975), which houses an extraordinary collection of Old Masters, as well as Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art; the installation in The Sackler Wing of the Temple of Dendur (1978), an Egyptian monument (ca. 15 B.C.) that was given to the United States by Egypt; The American Wing (1980), whose magnificent collection also includes 24 period rooms offering an unparalleled view of American art history and domestic life; The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing (1982) for the display of the arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas; the Lila Acheson Wallace Wing (1987), which houses modern art; and the Henry R. Kravis Wing, devoted to European sculpture and decorative arts from the Renaissance to the beginning of the 20th century.

With the building now complete, the Metropolitan Museum continues to refine and reorganize the collections in its existing spaces. In June 1998, the Arts of Korea gallery opened to the public, completing a major suite of galleries – a "museum within the Museum" – devoted to the arts of Asia. In October 1999 the renovated Ancient Near Eastern Galleries reopened. And a complete renovation and reinstallation of the Greek and Roman Galleries is underway: the first phase, The Robert and Renée Belfer Court for early Greek art, opened in June 1996; the New Greek Galleries premiered in April 1999; and in April 2000 the Cypriot Galleries will open to the public.

Antonio Canova (Possagno, 1 de Novembro de 1757 — Veneza, 13 de Outubro de 1822) foi um desenhista, pintor, antiquário e arquiteto italiano, mas é mais lembrado como escultor, desenvolvendo uma carreira longa e produtiva. Seu estilo foi fortemente inspirado na arte da Grécia Antiga, suas obras foram comparadas por seus contemporâneos com a melhor produção da Antiguidade, e foi tido como o maior escultor europeu desde Bernini, sendo celebrado por toda parte. Sua contribuição para a consolidação da arte neoclássica só se compara à do teórico Johann Joachim Winckelmann e à do pintor Jacques-Louis David, mas não foi insensível à influência do Romantismo. Não teve discípulos regulares, mas influenciou a escultura de toda a Europa em sua geração, atraindo inclusive artistas dos Estados Unidos, permanecendo como uma referência ao longo de todo o século XIX especialmente entre os escultores do Academismo. Com a ascensão da estética modernista caiu no esquecimento, mas sua posição prestigiosa foi restabelecida a partir de meados do século XX. Também manteve um continuado interesse na pesquisa arqueológica, foi um colecionador de antiguidades e esforçou-se por evitar que o acervo de arte italiana, antiga ou moderna, fosse disperso por outras coleções do mundo. Considerado por seus contemporâneos um modelo tanto de excelência artística como de conduta pessoal, desenvolveu importante atividade beneficente e de apoio aos jovens artistas. Foi Diretor da Accademia di San Luca em Roma e Inspetor-Geral de Antiguidades e Belas Artes dos estados papais, recebeu diversas condecorações e foi nobilitado pelo papa Pio VII com a outorga do título de Marquês de Ischia.[1][2][3]

ntonio Canova era filho de um escultor de algum mérito, Pietro Canova, que faleceu quando o filho tinha cerca de três anos. Um ano depois sua mãe, Angela Zardo, também o deixou, casando com Francesco Sartori e entregando o menino aos cuidados de seu avô paterno, Passino Canova, também escultor, e de sua tia Caterina Ceccato. Teve um meio-irmão das segundas núpcias de sua mãe, o abade Giovanni Battista Sartori, de quem se tornou amigo íntimo, e que foi seu secretário e executor testamentário. Aparentemente seu avô foi o primeiro a notar seu talento, e assim que Canova pôde segurar um lápis foi iniciado nos segredos do desenho. Sua juventude foi passada em estudos artísticos, mostrando desde cedo predileção pela escultura. Com nove anos já foi capaz de produzir dois pequenos relicários em mármore, que ainda existem, e desde então seu avô o empregou para diversos trabalhos. O avô era patrocinado pela rica família Falier de Veneza, e através dele Canova foi apresentado ao senador Giovanni Falier, que se tornou seu assíduo protetor, e cujo filho Giuseppe se tornou um dos seus mais constantes amigos. Através de Falier, Canova, com cerca de 13 anos, foi colocado sob a orientação de Giuseppe Torretto, um dos mais notáveis escultores do Vêneto em sua geração. Seu estudo foi facilitado pelo acesso que teve a importantes coleções de estatuária antiga, como as mantidas pela Academia de Veneza e pelo colecionador Filippo Farsetti, que foi-lhe útil estabelecendo novos contatos com ricos patronos. Logo suas obras foram elogiadas pela precoce virtuosidade, capacitando-o a receber suas primeiras encomendas, entre elas duas cestas de frutas em mármore para o próprio Farsetti, muito admiradas. A cópia que fez em terracota dos célebres Lutadores Uffizi valeu-lhe o segundo prêmio na Academia.[4][5]

Com a morte de Torretto a continuidade da instrução de Canova foi confiada a Giovanni Ferrari, sobrinho do outro, mas permaneceu com ele apenas um ano. Então, com apenas dezesseis anos, decidiu iniciar o trabalho por conta própria, e logo recebeu de Falier a encomenda para estátuas representando Orfeu e Eurídice. O conjunto, acabado entre 1776-77, resultou tão bem e atraiu tanto aplauso que seus amigos já previam para ele um futuro brilhante.[5] Nele, e em outro grupo importante, representando Dédalo e Ícaro (1778-79), o escultor já mostrava grande maturidade. Seu estilo nessa fase, se tinha um caráter ornamental típico do Rococó, era também vigoroso, e ao mesmo tempo se distinguia da tradição naturalista da arte veneziana e evidenciava uma tendência à idealização que adquirira com seus estudos dos clássicos.[4]

O grande progresso de Canova levou Falier a organizar sua ida para Roma, a fim de que se aperfeiçoasse. Roma nessa época era o mais importante centro de peregrinação cultural da Europa e uma meta obrigatória para qualquer artista que aspirasse à fama. Com sua pletora de monumentos antigos e grandes coleções, numa fase em que estava em pleno andamento a formação do Neoclassicismo, a cidade era toda um grande museu, e oferecia inúmeros exemplares autênticos para estudo em primeira mão da grande produção artística do passado clássico. [4] Antes de sua partida seus amigos conseguiram-lhe uma pensão de 300 ducados anuais, que se manteria por três anos. Também obteve cartas de apresentação para o embaixador veneziano na cidade, o Cavalier Girolamo Zulian, um ilustrado patrono das artes, que o recebeu com grande hospitalidade quando o artista chegou ali em torno de 1779 (Cf. nota: [6]), e providenciou a primeira exibição pública, em sua própria casa, de um trabalho do artista, uma cópia do grupo de Dédalo e Ícaro que mandou vir de Veneza e que suscitou a admiração de quantos a viram. Segundo o relato do conde Leopoldo Cicognara, um de seus primeiros biógrafos, apesar da aprovação unânime da obra Canova sentiu enorme embaraço naquele momento, falando muitas vezes dele anos mais tarde como um dos episódios mais tensos de sua vida. Através de Zulian Canova foi assim introduzido, com um sucesso imediato, na populosa comunidade local de intelectuais, onde brilhavam o arqueólogo Gavin Hamilton, os colecionadores sir William Hamilton e o cardeal Alessandro Albani, e o antiquário e historiador Johann Joachim Winckelmann, o principal mentor do Neoclassicismo, entre tantos outros que partilhavam de seu amor aos clássicos.[5][7]

Em Roma Canova pôde aprofundar o estudo das mais importantes relíquias da Antigüidade, completar sua educação literária, aperfeiçoar sua fluência no francês e colocar-se na competição com os melhores mestres da época.[8] O resultado ficou além de suas próprias expectativas. Sua primeira obra produzida em Roma, patrocinada por Zulian, foi Teseu vencendo o Minotauro (1781), que foi recebida com grande entusiasmo, a ponto de ser declarada como o marco inaugural de uma nova era para as artes. Em seguida esculpiu um pequeno Apolo em ato de coroar a si mesmo (1781-82), para o senador Abondio Rezzonico, uma estátua de Psiquê (1793) para Zulian, e passou a contar com o apoio de Giovanni Volpato, que abriu-lhe outras portas, entre elas a do Vaticano. Nesse período estabeleceu uma ligação tumultuada com a filha de Volpato, Domenica.[9][7]

Sua próxima encomenda, acertada por intermédio de Volpato, foi um monumento fúnebre ao papa Clemente XIV, mas para aceitá-la decidiu pedir permissão ao Senado de Veneza, em consideração à pensão que lhe haviam conseguido. Sendo concedida, fechou sua oficina em Veneza e voltou imediatamente para Roma, onde abriu um novo atelier nas imediações da Via del Babuino, onde os dois anos seguintes foram passados para a conclusão do modelo, e outros dois gastos na realização da obra, que foi finalmente inaugurada em 1787, atraindo o elogio dos maiores críticos da cidade. Durante esse período se engajou paralelamente em projetos menores, alguns baixos-relevos em terracota e uma estátua de Psique. Mais cinco anos foram despendidos na elaboração de um cenotáfio para Clemente XIII, entregue em 1792, que levou sua fama a alturas ainda maiores.[9]

Nos anos seguintes, até o encerramento do século, Canova se aplicou com ingente empenho em produzir um significativo conjunto de novas obras, entre elas vários grupos de Eros e Psiquê, em atitudes diferentes, que lhe valeram um convite para que se instalasse na corte russa, mas declarando sua íntima ligação com a Itália, declinou. Outras foram a Despedida de Vênus e Adônis, o grupo Hércules furioso lançando Licas ao mar, uma estátua de Hebe, e uma primeira versão da Madalena penitente. Mas o esforço foi excessivo para sua saúde, e o uso continuado de um apetrecho de escultura chamado trapano, que comprime o peito, provocou o afundamento de seu esterno. Sentindo-se exausto após tantos anos de atividades intensas e ininterruptas, e em vista da ocupação francesa de Roma em 1798, retirou-se para Possagno, onde aplicou-se à pintura, e logo seguiu em uma excursão de recreio pela Alemanha em companhia de seu amigo o Príncipe Rezzonico. Também passou pela Áustria, onde recebeu a encomenda de um cenotáfio para a arquiduquesa Maria Cristina, filha de Francisco I, que resultou anos mais tarde em uma obra majestosa, a melhor que produziu nesse gênero. Nessa mesma ocasião foi induzido a enviar para a capital austríaca o grupo de Teseu matando o centauro, que havia sido destinado para Milão, e que foi instalado em um templo em estilo grego construído especialmente para esse fim nos jardins do Palácio de Schönbrunn.[9]

Em sua volta a Roma em 1800, revigorado, produziu em poucos meses uma das suas composições mais aclamadas, o Perseu com a cabeça da Medusa (1800-01), inspirado livremente no Apolo Belvedere e julgado digno de ombrear com ele, e que lhe valeu o título de Cavalier, concedido pelo papa. Em 1802 foi convidado por Napoleão Bonaparte para visitar Paris e criar uma estátua sua, e segundo o testemunho de seu irmão, que o acompanhara, o escultor e o estadista mantiveram conversações em um nível de grande franqueza e familiaridade. Também encontrou o pintor Jacques-Louis David, o mais importante dos neoclássicos franceses.[10]

Em 10 de agosto de 1802 o papa Pio VII indicou o artista como Inspetor-Geral das Antiguidades e Belas Artes do Vaticano, posto que conservou até sua morte. Além de ser um reconhecimento de sua obra escultórica, a indicação implicava que ele também era considerado um conhecedor, com a capacidade de julgar a qualidade das obras de arte e um interesse em preservar as coleções papais. Entre as atribuições do cargo estavam a responsabilidade pela emissão de autorizações para escavações arqueológicas e a supervisão dos trabalhos de restauro, aquisição e exportação de antiguidades, além da supervisão sobre a instalação e organização de novos museus nos estados papais. Ele inclusive comprou 80 peças antigas com seus próprios recursos e as doou para os Museus Vaticanos. Entre 1805 e 1814 foi quem decidiu sobre a vinda de todos os artistas bolsistas italianos para aperfeiçoamento em Roma. Em 1810 foi indicado para a presidência da Accademia di San Luca, a mais importante instituição artística da Itália em sua época, e permaneceu como um baluarte de estabilidade na esfera cultural romana ao longo do turbulento período da ocupação francesa, sendo confirmado em suas posições por Napoleão. Sua missão administrativa culminou com a incumbência de resgatar, em 1815, o espólio artístico arrebatado da Itália pelo imperador francês, e por seu zelo e esforço conseguiu resolver o difícil trabalho de acomodar interesses internacionais divergentes e recuperar diversos tesouros para sua pátria, entre eles obras de Rafael Sanzio, o Apolo Belvedere, a Vênus Medici e o Laocoonte.[11][12]

No outono deste ano pôde realizar o sonho há muito acalentado de viajar a Londres, onde foi recebido com grande consideração. Sua viagem tinha dois propósitos primários: agradecer a ajuda que o governo britânico lhe dera da recuperação do acervo italiano confiscado, e conhecer os Mármores de Elgin, um grande conjunto de peças removidas do Partenon de Atenas, criadas por Fídias e seus assistentes, conhecimento que para ele foi uma revelação, contribuindo para confirmar sua impressão de que a arte grega era superior pela qualidade de seu acabamento e pela sua atenção à natureza. Ele também foi solicitado a dar seu parecer de perito sobre a importância do conjunto, que estava sendo posto à venda por Lord Elgin para a Coroa, e expressou-se nos termos mais elogiosos, mas recusou-se a restaurá-las, conforme foi convidado a fazê-lo, considerando que deviam permanecer como testemunhos autênticos da grande arte grega.[13] Voltando a Roma em 1816 com as obras devolvidas pela França, foi recebido em triunfo e recebeu do papa uma pensão de 3 mil escudos, tendo seu nome inscrito no Livro de Ouro do Capitólio com o título de Marquês de Ischia.[3][14]

Então Canova começou a elaborar o projeto para uma outra estátua, monumental, representando a Religião. Não por servilismo, uma vez que era um devoto ardente, mas sua idéia de instalá-la em Roma acabou frustrado mesmo sendo financiado por ele mesmo e estando pronto o modelo em seu tamanho definitivo, que entretanto acabou sendo executado em mármore em tamanho muito reduzido por ordem Lord Brownlow e levado para Londres. Mesmo assim ele decidiu erguer um templo em sua vila natal que conteria aquela escultura conforme seu plano original e outras peças de sua autoria, e nele deveriam, no tempo, repousar suas cinzas. Em 1819 foi lançada a pedra fundamental, e em seguida Canova retornou a Roma, mas a cada outono voltava às obras para acompanhar o seu progresso e instruir os empregados, encorajando-os com recompensas financeiras e medalhas. Mas o empreendimento se revelou excessivamente custoso, e o artista teve de voltar ao trabalho com renovado empenho a despeito de sua idade e doenças. Desta fase são algumas de suas peças mais significativas, como o grupo de Marte e Vênus para a Coroa Inglesa, a estátua colossal de Pio VI, uma Pietà (somente o modelo), outra versão da Madalena penitente. Sua última obra acabada foi um enorme busto de seu amigo o Conde Cicognara.[15]

Em maio de 1822 visitou Nápoles para superintender a construção do modelo para uma estátua eqüestre do Rei Fernando IV de Nápoles, mas o trajeto cobrou caro de sua saúde. Voltando a Roma, recuperou-se, mas em sua visita anual a Possagno já chegou lá doente, e recusando o repouso seu estado piorou. Então foi levado a Veneza, onde faleceu lúcido e serenamente. Suas últimas palavras foram "Anima bella e pura" (alma bela e pura), que pronunciou várias vezes antes de expirar. Testemunhos de amigos presentes em seu transpasse dizem que seu semblante foi adquirindo uma crescente radiância e expressividade, como se estivesse absorvido em uma contemplação extática. A autópsia realizada em seguida revelou uma obstrução do intestino por uma necrose na altura do piloro. Seu funeral, realizado em 25 de outubro de 1822, foi cercado das mais altas honras, entre a comoção de toda a cidade, e os acadêmicos disputaram para carregar seu caixão. Seu corpo foi em seguida sepultado em Possagno e seu coração foi depositado em uma urna de pórfiro mantida na Academia de Veneza. Sua morte gerou luto em toda a Itália, e as homenagens fúnebres ordenadas pelo papa em Roma foram assistidas por representantes de várias casas reais da Europa. No ano seguinte começou a ser erguido um cenotáfio para ele, a partir de um modelo que havia sido criado pelo próprio Canova em 1792 por encomenda de Zulian, originalmente para celebrar o pintor Ticiano, mas que não havia sido realizado. Hoje o monumento pode ser visitado na Basílica de Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, em Veneza.[15]

Segundo a Memória Biográfica sobre o artista deixada pelo seu amigo íntimo o Conde Cicognara, Canova manteve ao longo de toda sua vida hábitos frugais e uma rotina regular. Acordava cedo e imediatamente começava a trabalhar. Após o almoço costumava retirar-se para um breve repouso. Teve uma doença crônica de estômago que permanece não identificada, que causava dores severas em ataques que se sucederam ao longo de toda sua vida. Parece ter nutrido uma fé religiosa profunda e sincera. Não manteve uma vida social especialmente brilhante, embora fosse constantemente solicitado para frequentar os círculos de personalidades ilustres que o admiravam, mas era comum que recebesse amigos em sua própria casa após sua jornada de trabalho, à noite, quando se revelava um anfitrião de modos finos, inteligente, afável e caloroso. Segundo suas próprias palavras, suas esculturas eram a única prova de sua existência civil. Parece que em duas ocasiões esteve perto de contrair matrimônio, mas permaneceu solteiro por toda a vida. Seu grupo de amigos, porém, era grande e a eles dedicava um afeto intenso e elevado. Não manteve discípulos regulares, mas se notava talento superior em algum artista iniciante não poupava bons conselhos e encorajamento. Muitas vezes apoiou financeiramente jovens promissores e buscou-lhes encomendas. Mesmo sempre às voltas com muito trabalho, não hesitava em abandonar seu atelier assim que fosse chamado por outro artista para dar sua opinião sobre assuntos de arte ou oferecer conselhos técnicos.[16]

Alimentou um perene entusiasmo pelo estudo da arte antiga e pela arqueologia. Gostava da literatura clássica e fazia frequentes leituras, mas de hábito alguém lia para ele enquanto trabalhava. Considerava a leitura de bons autores um recurso indispensável para aperfeiçoamento pessoal e de sua arte. Não foi um escritor, mas manteve profusa correspondência com amigos e intelectuais, onde se evidencia um estilo de escrita claro, simples e vívido, que foi-se refinando ao longo dos anos sem perder sua força e espontaneidade. Uma de suas cartas de 1812 atesta que chegou a pensar em publicar algo sobre sua arte em seus princípios gerais, mas não o concretizou. Contudo, em segredo muitas de suas observações e idéias foram registradas por seu círculo de associados e tornadas públicas mais tarde. Parecia ser imune à inveja, à crítica e à bajulação, e nunca se afligiu com o sucesso alheio; ao contrário, não economizava elogios quando percebia grandeza na obra de seus colegas de ofício, e manifestava gratidão por conselhos ou reparos que julgava justos e apropriados. Quando uma crítica contundente apareceu publicada em um jornal de Nápoles, dissuadiu seus amigos que queriam prover uma réplica, dizendo que seu trabalho se encarregaria de dar a resposta adequada.[17] As relações de Canova com a política de seu tempo são exemplificadas nas obras que criou para a Casa da Áustria e a Casa de Bonaparte, onde os desejos de legitimação e glorificação dos governantes entraram em conflito com a postura politicamente neutra que o escultor desejava manter. Teve obras recusadas ou severamente criticadas por ambas por não se enquadrarem naqueles desejos, como o grupo de Hércules furioso que lança Licas ao mar (1795), rejeitado pelo imperador austríaco, e o mesmo acontecendo com o retrato alegórico que fez para Napoleão como Marte pacificador.[18] Sua opinião a respeito de Napoleão tem sido descrita como ambígua, sendo ao mesmo tempo um admirador, aceitando da sua família várias encomendas, e um crítico, especialmente pela sua invasão da Itália e o confisco de um grande acervo de obras de arte italianas.[19]

Apreciava o sucesso de suas obras e era vivamente grato por isso, mas nunca evidenciou que um desejo de glória pessoal fosse seu objetivo primário, apesar de ter sido um dos artistas de seu tempo mais expostos aos perigos da celebridade, pois recebeu diversas condecorações e a proteção de muitos nobres importantes, foi ele mesmo nobilitado em vários Estados da Europa, incumbido de altos cargos públicos e incluído como membro em muitas academias de arte mesmo sem jamais tê-lo solicitado. Gastou boa parte da fortuna que veio a acumular em obras de caridade, no fomento de associações de classe e no apoio aos jovens artistas. Em várias ocasiões adquiriu com recursos próprios obras de arte para museus públicos e coleções de livros para bibliotecas, não raro fazendo suas doações anonimamente. Também em vários momentos precisou ser alertado para não dissipar seus rendimentos com os problemas alheios.[20][8]

Seu permanente fascínio pela antiguidade clássica fez com que ele acumulasse uma significativa coleção de peças arqueológicas de mármore e terracota. Sua coleção de placas de terracota da Campania era especialmente interessante, embora nunca citada nas suas primeiras biografias. As peças eram em sua maioria fragmentárias, mas muitas estavam íntegras e eram de alta qualidade, e as tipologias que ele preferiu reunir evidenciam que ele estava à frente das tendências museológicas e colecionistas de seu tempo. O seu interesse pelo material estava ligado ao uso da argila para criar os modelos de suas obras em mármore, e ele a preferia antes do que o gesso por ser mais fácil de trabalhar, e a empregava também para a elaboração dos relevos que ele chamava "de recreação privada", onde representava cenas que encontrava em suas leituras de Homero, Virgílio e Platão.[21]

Ulric Ellerhusen sculpted the Oregon Pioneer that rests atop the capitol dome's exterior.

Construction of the newest building began on December 4, 1936.[12] The third state capitol was completed in 1938 and is the fourth-newest capitol in the United States. The capitol was dedicated on October 1, 1938, with speeches from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Leslie M. Scott, Robert W. Sawyer, and Oregon Governor Charles Henry Martin. Chosen from 123 entries in a countrywide competition, the design of the new building deviated from the normal design of state capitol buildings. The design was labeled a combination of Egyptian simplicity and Greek refinement.[Overall it is Art Deco in style, and is one of only three state capitols in the United States constructed in that architectural style.

In April 2002, the building became the first state capitol in the United States to produce solar power through the use of 60 photovoltaic panels generating 7.8 kilowatt.

Built:October 1, 1938

Architect:Trowbridge & Livingston

Architectural style:Art Deco

Governing body:State of Oregon

NRHP Reference#:88001055

Added to NRHP:1988

I made this ruffled tulle skirt a while ago but I decided it needed some refinement so I added the beads around the basque and a front lacing closure. Curiously the last time this was worn it was also modelled by an Agnes. Devotion Agnes' dress makes a good base layer for different looks and the subtle shimmer is very nice.

The portrait in the background, which I use in a lot of my dioramas, is the portait of Lucrezia Panciatichi by Bronzino. It is actually a postcard I must have bought about 20 years ago in the Uffizi gallery in Florence.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portrait_of_Lucrezia_Panciatichi

I was able to upload, but unable to use the refinement tools, then this write-up will expand !

#9: As of 1/2/23, of my 3300+ pics, this is listed as #9 in most # of views.

#312: As of 4/4/21, of my 3100+ pics, this is listed as #312 in most # of faves.

#919: As of 11/24/21, under Flickr's popularity rankings of my 3000+ pics, this is listed as #919 in "interestingness."

For a fun interlude, this is a close-up/alternative image based off one of my popular pics posted here on flickr in the last year+. This particular image was generated with the help of the FaceApp application, where I took a photo of the original "1994-Halloween pic1" pic I've posted here, then just applied a filter in FA. This was done in part to help with the graininess or the poor lighting in the original - and to have some fun with the refinement. What do you think? :-)

The National Trust's, Packwood House, reflecting in all its refinements

Doll is 2016's Contrasting Proposition Natalia wearing blouse from Vivacite' Eugenia Perrin-Frost and skirt from Edge of Night Amirah Majeed. Her purse is from Refinement Vanessa Perrin and for the life of me, I can not recall which doll these shoes came from.

[detail in comments. yes it is a remake of an older photo.]

I'm made of sandstone that's why I blink slowly and smile rarely.

This is going to be a series. Yay.

_____________________

tumblr /// facebook /// homepage /// analog stream /// twitter /// buy prints /// instagram: laurazalenga

Details on a traditional Moroccan door. Aghmat, Morocco.

I'm really grateful for all of the kind messages (both public and private) and exposure you guys have given me. In return, here's my gift to all you guys for your support throughout this year.

This is an alpha build, meaning that the metrics still need some refinement (you will need to manually adjust the kerning on a few letters - and it will make good practice as I think manual kerning is necessary most of the time when dealing with display type)... i'm releasing it now since I want you guys to have something before the year ends :-) Once the font is ready for beta testing, I will post the beta release with all appropriate glyphs and kerning adjustments on this flickr post in order to get proper feedback regarding problems or concerns ;-) (bear in mind that this typeface is all caps only)

This is my first display typeface done with fontlab and it may not have all of the glyphs, but it will cover most of the essential needs :-)

This isn't required, but if you use it for any kind of work, let us all know about it in this flickr post ;-)

You may download it here (right click > save file as... for mac: control+click > save file as...):

RAR format:

http://www.networkosaka.com/type/Big_boned_relalpha.rar

ZIP format:

http://www.networkosaka.com/type/Big_boned_relalpha.zip

Download it, steal it, pirate it, but please do not modify it :-)

Read the NFO for further details :-)

As a side note, unfortunately, I haven't been able to complete the Archivo 17 typeface yet, but I will release it in the future and will let you guys know about it, i promise! ;-) and the website still needs to be properly coded... way too many bugs with the XML parsing and dynamic content... might not make it before the year ends :-(

Thank you for everything my dear friends, and let's hope that 2009 will be a great year :-)

Having spent most of the day (with flickr hiccuping) on a refinement of a technique, I have

been "grappling" with I could not resist one last post! Lord save me from Flickr!

The opportunity was fleeting but the full implication of weather vane reflection, bird dropping shape and details refinement arose during post editing. RWY again

The "American Wake" is just a memory as the emigrants take to the tenders so that they may be transported to the liner that will carry them to the brave new world of opportunity. What mixture of excitement, sadness, anticipation and hope must have filled this scene as it was photographer by Robert French? We, today, can only imagine the sense of finality and loss that scenes such as this represented back when this was taken!

There's lots of information offered on the pier and tenders captured here - and more than a little refinement on the 20-year range suggested by the catalogue entry. On the pier, today's contributors point-out that it is still standing (just about) and was the departure point for White Star Line passengers. We see three passenger/luggage/mail tenders at the wharf. Though at least one is flying the flag of the the White Star Line, these steam tenders belonged to the port. The tenders are confirmed as "Ireland" (launched 1891), "Flying Fish" (launched 1886), and one other. This helps narrow the range to the 1890s (or possibly first few years of the 1900s). The "Ireland" seemingly tendered passengers of the Titanic, and the "Flying Fish" was involved in rescuing survivors of the Luisitania disaster - making the colloquial name of the wharf, "Heartbreak Pier", all the more poignant....

Photographer: Robert French

Collection: Lawrence Photograph Collection

Date: Catalogue range c.1880-1900. Though after 1891. And possibly close-to or after 1900.

NLI Ref: L_CAB_05258

You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

"The signature of the Aventador range is a combination of deep and bold lines, oriented toward the most extreme aerodynamics. The Aventador S Roadster reinforces this mixture of dynamism, refinement and aggressiveness by means of even sharper lines, inspired by nature and aeronautics, with exhaust terminals that transform the rear end into that of a space shuttle and a front end that recalls the strength and elegance of a shark ready to dominate the road..."

Source: Lamborghini

Photographed at Sharnbrook Hotel during Sharnbrook Supercar Sunday organized by PetrolHeadonism Club.

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Marcin Wojciechowski Photography

Marcinek_55 Instagram

Nikon F3 | Nikon Series E 28mm f2.8 | Fuji Eterna Vivid 125

instagram | flickriver | prints | cargo collective

Duncan.co/the-fairmont-royal-york-a-toronto-landmark

This bird will return no more.

This bird that takes flight from your face,

born of your flesh, unfolds into space,

it beats layers of air like a frantic child

clapping his hands before the body of his outstretched

father, his head smashed against a wall.

René Daumal

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Self portrait: Judith Crispin

Sad seagull portrait: me

Image blending, photoshop art and poem choice: Judith Crispin

Lightroom refinement: me