specific photos on Flickr

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

ultracontemporary-art-format--the-swapping-camp # campp manyy by Thierry Geoffroy / Colonel : Artist

Collaboration beetween Biennalist and Ultracontemporay

Art Format

www.emergencyrooms.org/formats.html

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thierry_Geoffroy

Documenta From Wikipedia,

The Fridericianum during documenta (13)

documenta is an exhibition of contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau (Federal Horticultural Show) which took place in Kassel at that time.[1] It was an attempt to bring Germany up to speed with modern art, both banishing and repressing the cultural darkness of Nazism.[2] This first documenta featured many artists who are generally considered to have had a significant influence on modern art (such as Picasso and Kandinsky). The more recent documentas feature art from all continents; nonetheless most of it is site-specific.

Every documenta is limited to 100 days of exhibition, which is why it is often referred to as the "museum of 100 days".[3] Documenta is not a selling exhibition. It rarely coincides with the three other major art world events: the Venice Biennale, Art Basel and Skulptur Projekte Münster, but in 2017, all four were open simultaneously.

Etymology of documenta

The name of the exhibition is an invented word. The term is supposed to demonstrate the intention of every exhibition (in particular of the first documenta in 1955) to be a documentation of modern art which was not available for the German public during the Nazi era. Rumour spread from those close to Arnold Bode that it was relevant for the coinage of the term that the Latin word documentum could be separated into docere (Latin for teach) and mens (Latin for intellect) and therefore thought it to be a good word to describe the intention and the demand of the documenta.[4]

Each edition of documenta has commissioned its own visual identity, most of which have conformed to the typographic style of solely using lowercase letters, which originated at the Bauhaus.[5]

History

Stadtverwaldung by Joseph Beuys, oaktree in front of the museum Fridericianum, documenta 7

Art professor and designer Arnold Bode from Kassel was the initiator of the first documenta. Originally planned as a secondary event to accompany the Bundesgartenschau, this attracted more than 130,000 visitors in 1955. The exhibition centred less on "contemporary art“, that is art made after 1945: instead, Bode wanted to show the public works which had been known as "Entartete Kunst" in Germany during the Nazi era: Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, Blauer Reiter, Futurism and Pittura Metafisica. Therefore, abstract art, in particular the abstract paintings of the 1920s and 1930s, was the focus of interest in this exhibition.

Over time, the focus shifted to contemporary art. At first, the show was limited to works from Europe, but soon covered works by artists from the Americas, Africa and Asia. 4. documenta, the first ever to turn a profit, featured a selection of Pop Art, Minimal Art, and Kinetic Art.[6] Adopting the theme of Questioning Reality – Pictorial Worlds Today, the 1972 documenta radically redefined what could be considered art by featuring minimal and conceptual art, marking a turning point in the public acceptance of those styles.[7] Also, it devoted a large section to the work of Adolf Wolfli, the great Swiss outsider, then unknown. Joseph Beuys performed repeatedly under the auspices of his utopian Organization for Direct Democracy.[8] Additionally, the 1987 documenta show signaled another important shift with the elevation of design to the realm of art – showing an openness to postmodern design.[9] Certain key political dates for wide-reaching social and cultural upheavals, such as 1945, 1968 or 1976/77, became chronological markers of documenta X (1997), along which art's political, social, cultural and aesthetic exploratory functions were traced.[10] Documenta11 was organized around themes like migration, urbanization and the post-colonial experience,[11] with documentary photography, film and video as well as works from far-flung locales holding the spotlight.[7] In 2012, documenta (13) was described as "[a]rdently feminist, global and multimedia in approach and including works by dead artists and selected bits of ancient art".[12]

Criticism

documenta typically gives its artists at least two years to conceive and produce their projects, so the works are often elaborate and intellectually complex.[13] However, the participants are often not publicised before the very opening of the exhibition. At documenta (13), the official list of artists was not released until the day the show opened.[14] Even though curators have often claimed to have gone outside the art market in their selection, participants have always included established artists. In the documenta (13), for example, art critic Jerry Saltz identified more than a third of the artists represented by the renowned Marian Goodman Gallery in the show.[14]

Directors

The first four documentas, organized by Arnold Bode, established the exhibition's international credentials. Since the fifth documenta (1972), a new artistic director has been named for each documenta exhibition by a committee of experts. Documenta 8 was put together in two years instead of the usual five. The original directors, Edy de Wilde and Harald Szeemann, were unable to get along and stepped down. They were replaced by Manfred Schneckenburger, Edward F. Fry, Wulf Herzogenrath, Armin Zweite, and Vittorio Fagone.[15] Coosje van Bruggen helped select artists for documenta 7, the 1982 edition. documenta IX's team of curators consisted of Jan Hoet, Piero Luigi Tazzi, Denys Zacharopoulos, and Bart de Baere.[16] For documenta X Catherine David was chosen as the first woman and the first non-German speaker to hold the post. It is also the first and unique time that its website Documenta x was conceived by a curator (swiss curator Simon Lamunière) as a part of the exhibition. The first non-European director was Okwui Enwezor for Documenta11.[17]

TitleDateDirectorExhibitorsExhibitsVisitors

documenta16 July – 18 September 1955Arnold Bode148670130,000

II. documenta11 July – 11 October 1959Arnold Bode, Werner Haftmann3381770134,000

documenta III27 June – 5 October 1964Arnold Bode, Werner Haftmann3611450200,000

4. documenta27 June – 6 October 196824-strong documenta council1511000220,000

documenta 530 June – 8 October 1972Harald Szeemann218820228,621

documenta 624 June – 2 October 1977Manfred Schneckenburger6222700343,410

documenta 719 June – 28 September 1982Rudi Fuchs1821000378,691

documenta 812 June – 20 September 1987Manfred Schneckenburger150600474,417

documenta IX12 June – 20 September 1992Jan Hoet1891000603,456

documenta X21 June – 28 September 1997Catherine David120700628,776

documenta118 June – 15 September 2002Okwui Enwezor118450650,924

documenta 1216 June – 23 September 2007Roger M. Buergel/Ruth Noack[19]114over 500754,301

documenta (13)9 June – 16 September 2012Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev187[20]904,992[21]

documenta 148 April – 16 July 2017 in Athens, Greece;

10 June – 17 September 2017 in KasselAdam Szymczykmore than 1601500339.000 in Athens

891.500 in Kassel

documenta fifteen18 June 2022 – 25 September 2022 in Kasselruangrupa[22]

2012's edition was organized around a central node, the trans-Atlantic melding of two distinct individuals who first encountered each other in the "money-soaked deserts of the United Arab Emirates". As an organizing principle it is simultaneously a commentary on the romantic potentials of globalization and also a critique of how digital platforms can complicate or interrogate the nature of such relationships. Curatorial agents refer to the concept as possessing a "fricative potential for productive awkwardness," wherein a twosome is formed for the purposes of future exploration.[23]

Venues

documenta is held in different venues in Kassel. Since 1955, the fixed venue has been the Fridericianum. The documenta-Halle was built in 1992 for documenta IX and now houses some of the exhibitions. Other venues used for documenta have included the Karlsaue park, Schloss Wilhelmshöhe, the Neue Galerie, the Ottoneum, and the Kulturzentrum Schlachthof. Though Okwui Enezor notably tried to subvert the euro-centric approach documenta had taken, he instigated a series of five platforms before the Documenta11 in Vienna, Berlin, New Delhi, St Lucia, and Lagos, in an attempt to take documenta into a new post-colonial, borderless space, from which experimental cultures could emerge. documenta 12 occupied five locations, including the Fridericianum, the Wilhelmshöhe castle park and the specially constructed "Aue-Pavillon", or meadow pavilion, designed by French firm Lacaton et Vassal.[24] At documenta (13) (2012), about a fifth of the works were unveiled in places like Kabul, Afghanistan, and Banff, Canada.[13]

There are also a number of works that are usually presented outside, most notably in Friedrichsplatz, in front of the Fridericianum, and the Karlsaue park. To handle the number of artworks at documenta IX, five connected temporary "trailers" in glass and corrugated metal were built in the Karlsaue.[25] For documenta (13), French architects Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal constructed the temporary "Aue-Pavillon" in the park.

Rahmenbau (1977) by Haus Rucker und Co.

A few of the works exhibited at various documentas remained as purchases in Kassel museums. They include 7000 Eichen by Joseph Beuys; Rahmenbau (1977) by Haus-Rucker-Co; Laserscape Kassel (1977) by Horst H. Baumann; Traumschiff Tante Olga (1977) by Anatol Herzfeld; Vertikaler Erdkilometer by Walter De Maria; Spitzhacke (1982) by Claes Oldenburg; Man walking to the sky (1992) by Jonathan Borofsky; and Fremde by Thomas Schütte (one part of the sculptures are installed on Rotes Palais at Friedrichsplatz, the other on the roof of the Concert Hall in Lübeck).

documenta archive

The extensive volume of material that is regularly generated on the occasion of this exhibition prompted Arnold Bode to create an archive in 1961. The heart of the archive’s collection comes from the files and materials of the documenta organization. A continually expanding video and image archive is also part of the collection as are the independently organized bequests of Arnold Bode and artist Harry Kramer.

Management

Visitors

In 1992, on the occasion of documenta IX, for the first time in the history of the documenta, more than half a million people traveled to Kassel.[26] The 2002 edition of documenta attracted 650,000 visitors, more than triple Kassel's population.[27] In 2007, documenta 12 drew 754,000 paying visitors, with more than one-third of the visitors coming from abroad and guests from neighboring Netherlands, France, Belgium and Austria among the most numerous.[28] In 2012, documenta (13) had 904,992 visitors.[21]

References

Adrian Searle (June 11, 2012), "Documenta 13: Mysteries in the mountain of mud", The Guardian.

Roberta Smith (June 14, 2012), Art Show as Unruly Organism The New York Times.

Arnold Bode coined this phrase for the first time in the prologue of the first volume of the catalogue: documenta III. Internationale Ausstellung; Catalogue: Volume 1: Painting and Sculpture; Volume 2: Sketches; Volume 3: Industrial Design, Print; Kassel/Köln 1964; p. XIX

Kimpel, Harald: documenta, Mythos und Wirklichkeit. Köln 1997, ISBN 3-7701-4182-2

Alice Rawsthorn (June 3, 2012), A Symbol Is Born The New York Times.

The documenta IV Exhibition in Kassel (1968) German History in Documents and Images (GHDI).

Helen Chang (June 22, 2007), "Catching the Next Wave In Art at Documenta", The Wall Street Journal.

Roberta Smith (September 7, 2007), "Documenta 5" The New York Times.

Gimeno-Martinez, Javier; Verlinden, Jasmijn (2010). "From Museum of Decorative Arts to Design Museum: The Case of the Design museum Gent". Design and Culture. 2 (3).

dX 1997 Archived 2013-06-14 at the Wayback Machine, documenta XII.

Stephan Valentin (June 12, 2007), An art show in Kassel, Germany, rivals Venice Biennale The New York Times.

Roberta Smith (June 14, 2012), Art Show as Unruly Organism The New York Times.

Kelly Crow (June 8, 2012), A Party, Every Five Years, for 750,000 Guests The Wall Street Journal.

Jerry Saltz (June 15, 2012), Jerry Saltz: "Eleven Things That Struck, Irked, or Awed Me at Documenta 13" New York Magazine.

Michael Brenson (June 15, 1987), "Documenta 8, Exhibition In West Germany", The New York Times.

Michael Kimmelman (July 5, 1992) "At Documenta, It's Survival Of the Loudest", The New York Times.

Jackie Wullschlager (May 19, 2012) Vertiginous doubt Financial Times.

Julia Halperin, Gareth Harris (July 18, 2014) How much are curators really paid? Archived July 20, 2014, at the Wayback Machine The Art Newspaper.

Holland Cotter (22 June 2007). "Asking Serious Questions in a Very Quiet Voice". The New York Times. Retrieved 2014-08-29.

Ulrike Knöfel (8 June 2012). "What the 13th Documenta Wants You to See". Der Spiegel.

"904,992 people visit documenta (13) in Kassel". documenta und Museum Fridericianum Veranstaltungs-GmbH. 16 September 2012. Archived from the original on 25 February 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2013.

Russeth, Andrew (2019-02-22). "Ruangrupa Artist Collective Picked to Curate Documenta 15". ARTnews.com. Retrieved 2020-01-05.

"In Germany, Disguising Documentary As Art". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2015-09-28.

Stephan Valentin (June 12, 2007), An art show in Kassel, Germany, rivals Venice Biennale International Herald Tribune.

Roberta Smith (June 22, 1992), A Small Show Within an Enormous One The New York Times.

d9 1992 Archived 2014-02-22 at the Wayback Machine, documenta XII.

Adrian Searle (June 19, 2007), 100 days of ineptitude The Guardian.

Catherine Hickley (September 24, 2007), "Documenta Contemporary Art Show Draws Record 754,000 to Kassel", Bloomberg.

Carly Berwick (May 17, 2007), "Documenta 'Mystery' Artists Are Revealed; Buzz Strategy Fizzles", Bloomberg.

Rachel Donado (April 5, 2017), German Art Exhibition Documenta Expands Into Athens, The New York Times.

Catherine Hickley (November 27, 2017), Documenta manager to leave post after budget overruns The Art Newspaper.

Further reading

Hickley, Catherine (2021-06-18). "This Show Sets the Direction of Art. Its Past Mirrored a Changing World". The New York Times.

Nancy Marmer, "Documenta 8: The Social Dimension?" Art in America, vol. 75, September 1987, pp. 128–138, 197–199.

other biennales :

Venice Biennial , Documenta Havana Biennial,Istanbul Biennial ( Istanbuli),Biennale de Lyon ,Dak'Art Berlin Biennial,Mercosul Visual Arts Biennial ,Bienal do Mercosul Porto Alegre.,Berlin Biennial ,Echigo-Tsumari Triennial .Yokohama Triennial Aichi Triennale,manifesta ,Copenhagen Biennale,Aichi Triennale

Yokohama Triennial,Echigo-Tsumari Triennial.Sharjah Biennial ,Biennale of Sydney, Liverpool , São Paulo Biennial ; Athens Biennale , Bienal do Mercosul ,Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art

www.emergencyrooms.org

www.colonel.dk/

lumbung

Short concept by ruangrupa for documenta 15

"We want to create a globally oriented, cooperative, interdisciplinary art and culture platform that will remain effective beyond the 100 days of documenta fifteen. Our curatorial approach aims at a different kind of collaborative model of resource use—economically, but also in terms of ideas, knowledge, programs, and innovation."

ruangrupa’s central curatorial approach for documenta fifteen is based on the principles of collectivity, resource building, and equal sharing. They aim to appeal not just to an art audience but to a variety of communities, and to promote local commitment and participation. Their approach is based on an international network of local, community-based organizations from the art and other cultural contexts and can be outlined by the Indonesian term lumbung. lumbung, directly translatable as “rice barn,” is a collective pot or accumulation system used in rural areas of Indonesia, where crops produced by a community are stored as a future shared common resource and distributed according to jointly determind criteria. Using lumbung as a model, documenta fifteen is a collective resource pot, operating under the logics of the commons. It is an agglomeration of ideas, stories, (wo)manpower, time, and other shareable resources. At the center of lumbung is the imagination and the building of these collective, shared resources into new models of sustainable ideas and cultural practices. This will be fostered by residencies, assemblies, public activities, and the development of tools.

Interdisciplinarity is key in this process. It is where art meets activism, management, and networking to gather support, understand environments, and identify local resources. These elements then create actions and spaces, intertwine social relations and transactions; they slowly grow and organically find a public form. This is a strategy “to live in and with society.” It imagines the relations an art institution has with its community by being an active constituent of it. Strategies are then developed based on proximity and shared desires.

The main principles of the process are:

• Providing space to gather and explore ideas

• Collective decision making

• Non-centralization

• Playing between formalities and informalities

• Practicing assembly and meeting points

• Architectural awareness

• Being spatially active to promote conversation

• A melting pot for and from everyone’s thoughts, energies, and ideas

#documentakassel

#documenta

#documenta15

#artformat

#formatart

#rundebate

#thierrygeoffroy

#Colonel

#CriticalRun

#venicebiennale

#documentafifteen

#formatart

#documentacritic

#biennalist

#ultracontemporary art

#protestart

Deep Listening Kyoto 2009 by enormous O'clock

3 1

Edition NIkO was founded/curated and art directed by Japanese-American sound artist shotahirama in 2007. It is a label cooperation for electronic music based in Tokyo. The main interest was to give uniting sound and art design with strong attention to scientific sequences, Dada, Bauhaus, and drone ambient sound scapes. A surrealistic minimalism. So, priority is to publish series with focus on a specific philosophy of music/ sound/ art composing. Also it is a platform for conceptional and experimental related projects in music, art and sciencemusic both by myself (shotahirama) and by other artists and musicians. All NIkO releases have been on either CD or CDr or MP3 as I feel that these formats currently offer the most appropriate form of reproduction. But its basically, a non-profit label..... NIkO Label was closed down at the end of 2008 and reopened in January 2009 as Edition NIkO.

official website

www.chainreductionism.com

official myspace

www.myspace.com/nikolabel

and we are now going to have a special festival at Kyoto, Japan.

Deep Listening Kyoto 2009

17. 3. 2009 @ cafe independants

"DEEP LISTENING CHAIR" is a unique installation-festival in Tokyo, Japan. But this time we are going to Kyoto!!!! Edition NIkO is a label cooperation for electronic music based in Tokyo. And this festival is based on various programs joined together to form a trajectory over 2 days (not this time) but the festival explores the many facets of cutting-edge live electronic music and art. It provides a forum to exchange about the artistic practice underlying the electronic music scene. Festival brings together the artists that are breaking ground and shaping new standards in media and design, becoming the essential meeting point for the international scene of digital creation. NIkO festival provides insight into all culture media platforms. And featured a notable quantity of well known electronic artists over the world, while also reserving a special place for emergent laptop artists and installation artists. Dadaism, Surrealism, expressionism, impressionism, minimalism, actionism, those artists with this wonderful abstract identity, will perform and show how we can express our strong electronic arts. So, this live digital audiovisual performances and abstract installations are one of the important dimensions for this festival.

Edition NIkOはSurrealistic Minimalismを掲げ、パリ、ベルリン、バルセロナ、ロンドン、ニューヨークそしてここ日本と、世界中の電子音響家を擁する電子音響系レーベルである。コンピューターで生成されるマイクロスコピックな電子音を構成素とし、抽象的な音響空間を創出するため、個々のそのデジタルクリエーションの中に「常識を外れた奇妙で既存の状態を超越している状況」を提示し続けるsurrealisticなartistが集まる。

オーナーはダダやバウハウスなどの反社会主義性と合理主義的な思想を掲げスペインやロンドンを中心にヨーロッパでのリリースを続け、ENGまたは JANDEATHという名義にてzbigniew karkowskiやincapacitantsなどとライブを行うshotahiramaで、２００７年に設立、non profitで運営している。

そして今回のDeep Listening Kyotoでは、京都のオーディエンスのためにレーベルのショーケース的ラインナップとなっている。

enormous 0'clockはロンドンのAi Recordsからの最新作INFORMATION WARFAREを含む最新のライブセット。オーナーであるshotahiramaはJandeath名義にて現代音楽のシンボルであるリズムを自身が開発したプログラムソフト、R systemでそれを具象化、映像化するインスタレーションを。その他にも、幽玄な持続音響にて世界を魅了し続けるHakobuneをはじめ、現音作曲新人賞など数々の受賞経歴を持ち、ジャズやクラシックをエレクトロニカへアップデートし続けるユニットProvoke。またミニマルデザイン、アートの分野においても評価の高いyuji kondoによるサウンドインスタレーション、実験音楽家ishimuraはループのオーヴァーラップによるズレを伴った電子的なリズムパターンが美しい新ユニットSHARPでのライブを。

以上の豪華メンバーによる、シュールレアリズムな電子音響イベントを披露する。

Deep Listening Kyoto vol.1 "Surrealistic Minimalism" presented by Edition NIkO

17th. Mar. 2009

18:00-23:00

free (1 drink please)

at cafe independants

www.cafe-independants.com/

出演者

enormous O'clock (Kyoto)

□) www.myspace.com/enormousoclock

国内外問わず数々のリリースを続けるなか、昨年イギリスのレーベルAI RECORDSから"INFORMATION WARFARE"を発表しBBC RADIO 1やその他でのオンエアーにより話題となったのが切掛で、今年も既に数々のリリースが海外等で決定している。今回"cafe independants"でのライヴセットでは彼特有の季節感を演出するだろう。

enormous O'clock is an electronic music producer who lives and works in Kyoto. A rarity in the world of beat-driven electronic music, and he is known for contributing to the development of surrealistic minimal techno with his 2008 album INFORMATION WARFAR from Ai Records (London, UK). Interspersed with irregular clicks, pops and beeps, the minimal breaks in time reveal the careful attention to detail in the depth and dynamics of his music. eO' explain him self as "ELECTRO AMBIENCE DRENCHED IN DISTORTION AND PRIMED FOR THE FLOOR".

Hakobune (Kyoto)

□) www.myspace.com/hakobunemusic

京都市在住の音楽家。ギターを軸としたタピストリーを用いソニックランドスケープを構築する。国内外のレーベルから音源をリリース。08年7月に2ndアルバム"We Left The Window Open Sometimes"をリリースし、後にイギリスのレコードショップSmallfish Recordsが発表した2008年度ベストアルバム20に選ばれる。09年にはニューアルバムのリリースを予定。

Hakobune aka Takahiro Yorifuji (b.1986.4), inspired by minimalism, drone and concentrated on sound landscape, Yorifuji is best known as the father of ambient music in "Kyoto new-age". Using guitar and makes deep appreciation of harmonic structure, layering sounds in textures that seem to leave the listener suspended in time. He has been released out a number of titles, and working with David Tagg in 2008 was one of his best work in his discography. Yorifuji is from a small town in Hyogo, Japan and currently resides in Kyoto.

JANDEATH (Tokyo)

□) www.myspace.com/industrialensemble

ダダやバウハウスなどの反社会主義性と合理主義的な思想を掲げ２００６年にENG (electronoise group)を結成したshotahirama。スペインやロンドンを中心にヨーロッパでのリリース、ライブ活動を行う傍ら、JANDEATHという別名義を２００８年に始動。産業主義を連想させる金属音や破壊音的コンクレート電子音響に、２台のエレクトロンを扱い現代音楽のシンボルであるリズムを複雑に溶け込ませたネオテクノイズを提案する。Edition NIkO (旧NIkO Label)のオーナーでもある。

Under the name of JANDEATH, which is "Edition NIkO" founder-shotahirama' solo project. Produced sounds of vaguely danceable noise and power-electronics noise using complex mono and poly-rhythm, driving percussion, and meticulous sequencing. His main influences are from the early 1980s, with industrial acts like Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten and also from mille plateaux artists like SND, Alva noto, Pan sonic. JANDEATH also made extensive use of a variety of computer based sequencers, softsynths, and other applications as a means of controlling those synths and processing the synthesized sounds, using Reaktor, Processing and Elektron. He has been working with this kind of computer music, independently and in collaboration with other artists such as Zbigniew Karkowski, Incapacitants, ASTRO, since 2008. Also work with an organizing member of the Shinjuku-based Soup collective, MICLODIET in 2008, project was named MICLODEATH.

PROVOKE (Osaka)

□) www.myspace.com/provoke2000

森崇博と三上良太によるユニット。音楽大学で現代音楽を学び、その後コンピューターベースでの制作に移行。映画音楽、舞台音楽なども手がけて来た。

PROVOKE is a multi-media group consisting of Moze and Ryota Mikami. Introduce a "political" "inaudible" "experimental" form of electronica music. Combines themes of gender, sexuality, class, linguistics, ethnicity and race.... This diversity of themes is matched by PROVOKE' wide range of production styles, which include film music, Sine-wave, digital jazz, ambient, and computer-composed neo-expressionist piano solos.

SHARP (Osaka)

□) www.myspace.com/sharpsoundproject

石村晋也と筒井一隆は、それぞれがでフィールドレコーディングや音響生成による楽曲、インスタレーションを制作してきた。SHARPは自分たちのソロ活動とは違ったアプローチで楽曲を制作し、ライブパフォーマンス、ダイナミズムへと回帰することを目

的に2008年に結成した不定期に活動するユニット。現在までに、2007年度IMI修了展オープニングイベント、NIkO label Nl003-NEUBAUTEN- に参加。

SHARP is an experimental music group from Osaka consisting of shinya ishimura , kazutaka tsutsui. Music without sequencers, clicks and glitches are not used as ornamental additions to the compositions but make up the essential elements of the work and these sound sources are applied to the rhythmic groove. Disparate beats and quirky samples are carefully distilled in the frequency lab, then scientifically arranged for maximum cerebral massage.

yuji kondo (Osaka)

□) yujikondo.wordpress.com/

ベーシストとして活動する傍ら、徐々に騒音学に傾倒。2005年に本名義を始動、現在に至る。主にフィールドレコーディングなどの素材を扱い、それらを和音化したものを複数のチャンネルで走らせ、壮大かつ幽玄な故障音響を生成、さらに時間化する。Jun Nishimura aka JadeGardenの楽曲リミックス、ENGのオーディオヴィジュアル作品等に参加、関西を中心にライヴを行うなど精力的にその独自のサウンドを展開中。Edition NIkOからリリースされているコンピレーションへの楽曲提供もしている。

yuji kondo (b. 1986) is a sound artist and composer from japan. in late 2005, he started his solo project, and currently based in osaka, kyoto,,, the kansai region. he makes compositions using computer programs, and restructure the sounds such as snow noise, sine wave, stylus tip noise, tape hiss, impulse click, field recording sources, acoustic percussion instruments, random tuning electric bass guitar tones, and voices in unconventional ways. generated materials are fed back by the matrix-switch system on daw software, and are used in music. the grand feedback landscape woven by frequency operation is as beautiful as the fog, subtle and profound. his sound is a unique blend of electronic sounds and acoustic instruments, and the minimal and the complexities coexist there. the electronics function just as any other instruments. he skillfully shifts the brokendown sound to listening music.

Edition NIkO

□) www.chainreductionism.com/

Edition NIkO was founded/curated and art directed by Japanese-American sound artist shotahirama in 2007. It is a label cooperation for electronic music based in Tokyo. The main interest was to give uniting sound and art design with strong attention to scientific sequences, Dada, Bauhaus, and drone ambient sound scapes. A surrealistic minimalism. So, priority is to publish series with focus on a specific philosophy of music/ sound/ art composing. Also it is a platform for conceptional and experimental related projects in music, art and sciencemusic both by myself (shotahirama) and by other artists and musicians. All NIkO releases have been on either CD or CDr or MP3 as I feel that these formats currently offer the most appropriate form of reproduction. But its basically, a non-profit label..... NIkO Label was closed down at the end of 2008 and reopened in January 2009 as Edition NIkO.

Edition NIkO mixi community

□) mixi.jp/view_community.pl?id=1077804

County of Santa Clara, Animal Services Center by Dreyfuss Blackford

The County of Santa Clara Animal Care and Control Department needed to replace their makeshift former residence with several additions and portables into an adequate home for the area’s needy animals.

Dreyfuss + Blackford Architecture — working with animal care designer, The Bacon Group — created the County’s new Animal Services Center campus with state-of-the-art animal care functions in a park-like setting, providing innovative and sustainable building systems and amenities in the 24/7 facility.

The new Animal Services Center has capacity for 54 dogs and 90 cats, with spaces for other types of animals including rabbits, horses, and goats. To house and showcase larger animals, a barn is sited along the main building frontage, increasing visibility.

Taking a distinct departure from traditional shelter design, dog kennels are organized around an outdoor landscaped courtyard named “The Park”. Together with surrounding “Get Acquainted” pods, the experience offers a bright and open area to meet and greet potential pets in a natural park-like environment.

In addition to animal adoption, a primary objective of the Animal Services Center is to educate the public about the benefits of spaying and neutering. The County is taking a proactive approach to overpopulation by educating the public on reducing the number of animals ending up at the Animal Services Center through the use of the public surgery suite, located inside the facility’s clinic.

Another key solution the Animal Services Center provides is its large Educational Meeting facility. Not only will animal-specific community events be held there, but other County agencies will also be able to utilize the assembly space for conferences and gatherings up to 150 occupants—a resource they previously lacked.

The County of Santa Clara Animal Services Center is designed to achieve LEED Silver certification.

Photo by Tim Griffith.

Great Yarmouth - the Gardens. And a Very Dangerous Doctor. by pepandtim

The Postcard

A postcard bearing an early view of the Wellington Gardens in Great Yarmouth.

The card was sent from Great Yarmouth to an address in Arthur Road Brixton on Tuesday the 1st. August 1911.

What the recipient read over a century ago was as follows:

"Dear Alice,

Kindly send particulars of

excursions to Blockley and

Evesham, as we should

like to spend a day there.

Love from Little Artie and

us all.

Artie and Edie".

Great Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth is a seaside resort and minster town in Norfolk straddling the River Yare, 20 miles (30 km) east of Norwich. A population of 38,693 in the 2011 Census made it Norfolk's third most populous place.

Its fishing industry, mainly for herring, fell steeply after the mid-20th. century, and has all but vanished. North Sea oil from the 1960's brought an oil-rig supply industry that now services offshore natural gas rigs. More recent offshore wind power and other renewable energy have created further support services.

Yarmouth has been a seaside resort since 1760, and a gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the North Sea. Tourism was boosted when a railway opened in 1844, which gave visitors easier, cheaper access and triggered some settlement.

Wellington Pier opened in 1854 and Britannia Pier in 1858. Through the 20th. century, Yarmouth was a booming resort, with a promenade, pubs, trams, fish-and-chip shops and theatres.

There is also the Pleasure Beach, the Sea Life Centre, the Hippodrome Circus and the Time and Tide Museum, as well as a surviving Victorian seaside Winter Garden in cast iron and glass.

Great Yarmouth in the Past

The town was the site of a bridge disaster and drowning tragedy on the 2nd. May 1845, when a suspension bridge crowded with children collapsed killing 79. They had gathered to watch a clown in a barrel being pulled by geese down the river. As he passed under the bridge the weight shifted, causing the chains on the south side to snap, tipping over the bridge deck.

Great Yarmouth had an electric tramway system from 1902 to 1933. From the 1880's until the Great War, the town was a regular destination for Bass Excursions, when 15 trains would take 8000–9000 employees of Bass's Burton brewery on an annual trip to the seaside.

During the Great War, Great Yarmouth suffered the first aerial bombardment in the UK, by Zeppelin L3 on the 19th. January 1915. That same year on the 15th. August, Ernest Jehan became the first and only man to sink a steel U-Boat with a sail-rigged Q-ship, off the coast of Great Yarmouth.

Great Yarmouth was bombarded by the German Navy on the 24th. April 1916. The town also suffered Luftwaffe bombing during World War II because it was the last significant place Germans could drop bombs before returning home.

Nevertheless despite war damage, much is left of the old town, including the original 2,000-metre (1.2 mi) protective medieval wall, of which two-thirds has survived. Of the 18 towers, 11 are left.

On the South Quay is a 17th.-century Merchant's House, as well as Tudor, Georgian and Victorian buildings. Behind South Quay is a maze of alleys and lanes known as 'The Rows'. Originally there were 145. Despite bombing, several have remained.

Great Yarmouth was badly affected by the North Sea flood of 1953. More recent flooding has also been a problem, with four floods in 2006, the worst being in September. Torrential rain caused drains to block and an Anglian Water pumping station to break down. This caused flash flooding in which 90 properties were flooded up to a depth of 5 ft (1.5 m).

Great Yarmouth Sights and Amenities

The Tollhouse with its dungeons, dating from the late 13th. century, is one of Britain's oldest former jails and oldest civic buildings. Major sections of the medieval town walls survive around the parish cemetery and in parts of the old town.

Great Yarmouth Minster (The Minster Church of St Nicholas, founded in the 12th. century as an act of penance) stands in Church Plain, just off the market place. It is the third-largest parish church in England, after Beverley Minster in East Yorkshire and Christchurch Priory in Dorset.

Church Plain also has the 17th.-century timber-framed house, in which Anna Sewell (1820–1878), author of Black Beauty, was born.

The market place, one of the largest in England, has been operating since the 13th. century. It is also home to the town's shopping sector and the famous Yarmouth chip stalls. The smaller area south of the market is used as a performance area for community events.

The Scroby Sands Wind Farm of 30 generators is within sight of the seafront. Also visible are grey seals during their breeding season. The country's only full-time circus, the Hippodrome Circus, is just off the seafront.

The Two Piers

Great Yarmouth has two piers, Britannia Pier (which is Grade II listed) and Wellington Pier. The theatre building on the latter was demolished in 2005 and reopened in 2008 as a family entertainment centre, including a ten-pin bowling alley overlooking the beach.

Britannia Pier holds the Britannia Theatre, which during the summer has featured acts such as Jim Davidson, the comedian Jethro, Basil Brush, Cannon and Ball, Chubby Brown, the Chuckle Brothers and the Searchers. It is one of the few end-of-the pier theatres surviving in England.

Great Yarmouth Winter Gardens

Great Yarmouth Winter Gardens (on the left) is a Grade II* listed building in Great Yarmouth, England. It was built of glass and iron in Torquay over the course of three years, starting in 1878.

It was moved by barge to Great Yarmouth in 1904, purportedly without the loss of a single pane of glass. Over the years, it has been used as ballroom, roller skating rink and beer garden.

In the 1990's it was converted into a nightclub by Jim Davidson, and has since been used as a family leisure venue.

In 2018, it was named among the top ten endangered buildings of the Victorian and Edwardian eras in a survey released by the Victorian Society.

In July 2021 it received a £10 million National Lottery Heritage Fund grant in order to support its repair and re-opening.

The Marine Parade

Great Yarmouth's seafront, known as 'The Golden Mile' attracts millions of visitors each year to its sandy beaches, indoor and outdoor attractions and amusement arcades.

Great Yarmouth's Marine Parade has twelve Amusement Arcades within 2 square miles. Their names draw heavily on Las Vegas and include: The Flamingo, Circus Circus, The Golden Nugget, The Mint, The Silver Slipper, The Showboat, Magic City, Quicksilver and The Gold Rush.

In addition to the two piers, tourist attractions on Marine Parade include Joyland, Pirates' Cove Adventure Golf, Yesterday's World, the Marina Centre, Retroskate, the Arnold Palmer Putting Green, the Sea Life Centre, Merrivale Model Village and the Pleasure Beach and Gardens.

The Great Yarmouth Floral Clock

Alas, the clock in Marine Parade is no more - it had to be removed in 2005 following repeated attacks by mindless vandals.

The Yarmouth In Bloom group, who had regularly planted flowers and attended the displays, were dismayed by the continual trampling of plants and breakages to the clock hands, and decided that enough was enough.

The Venetian Waterways

In August 2019, the Venetian Waterways and gardens re-opened. The waterways, running parallel to the main beach, were a feature constructed as a work-creation scheme in 1926–1928, consisting of canals and formal gardens, with rowing boats, pedalos and gondolas.

The waterways had been allowed to silt up, decay and become abandoned. With a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund of £1.7 m and the labour of volunteers, the flowerbeds have been restored with 20,000 plants, and the 1920's cafe has been restored. That and the boat hire are being run by a social enterprise.

The Nelson Monument

The South Denes area is home to the Grade I listed Norfolk Naval Pillar, known locally as the Britannia Monument or Nelson's Monument. This tribute to Nelson was completed in 1819, 24 years before the completion of Nelson's Column in London. The monument, designed by William Wilkins, shows Britannia standing atop a globe holding an olive branch in her right hand and a trident in her left.

There is a popular assumption in the town that the statue of Britannia was supposed to face out to sea but now faces inland due to a mistake during construction, although it is thought she is meant to face Nelson's birthplace at Burnham Thorpe.

The monument was originally planned to mark Nelson's victory at the Battle of the Nile, but fund-raising was not completed until after his death, and it was instead dedicated to England's greatest naval hero. It is currently surrounded by an industrial estate but there are plans to improve the area.

Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens used Great Yarmouth as a key location in his novel David Copperfield and described the town as 'The finest place in the universe'. The author stayed at the Royal Hotel on the Marine Parade while writing the novel.

Great Yarmouth Museums

The Norfolk Nelson Museum on South Quay houses the Ben Burgess collection of Nelson memorabilia and is the only dedicated Nelson museum in Britain, other than one in Monmouth. Its several galleries look at Nelson's life and personality, and at what life was like for men who sailed under him.

The Time and Tide Museum in Blackfriars Road was nominated in the UK Museums Awards in 2005. It was built as part of a regeneration of the south of the town in 2003. Its location in an old herring smokery harks back to the town's status as a major fishing port.

Sections of the historic town wall stand opposite the museum, next to the Great Yarmouth Potteries, part of which is housed in another former smoke house. The town wall is among the most complete medieval town walls in the country, with 11 of the 18 original turrets still standing.

Other museums in the town include the National Trust's Elizabethan House, the Great Yarmouth Row Houses, managed by English Heritage, and the privately owned Blitz and Pieces, based on the Home Front during World War II.

Doctor Ronald E. Clark

So what else happened on the day that Artie and Edie posted the card?

Well, on the 1st. August 1911, Ronald E. Clark was born.

He was an American doctor, suspected of being a serial killer. He was convicted of two counts of manslaughter, and died in prison.

Between 1954 and 1967, Clark's medical licence was revoked on four occasions: once for 'Gross Misconduct', twice for 'Moral Turpitude', and once without specific charges. Each time he was reinstated.

During this period, 25 complaints were made about him to the Michigan medical board, including:

- Three deaths from drug overdose

- Allegations of illegal abortion

- Sexual assaults on his patients

- Child molestation

- Excessive drug treatment for non-existent ailments

- Practising medicine without a licence.

He was committed to hospital in 1958 by his former wife, but released after less than three months of therapy.

The Death of Ronald Clark's Secretary

On the 20th. March 1967, Hannah Bowerbank, Clark's 63-year-old secretary, collapsed and died while at work.

Police thought the circumstances 'curious', but they had no evidence of foul play.

The Death of Ronald Clark's Second Secretary

Eight months later, on the 3rd. November 1967, in Farmington Township, Oakland County, Michigan, his part-time secretary Grace Neil died as well. Patrolmen saw a hearse illegally parked at Clark's office that night, and found a corpse inside, ready for transport.

An autopsy showed traces of sodium pentothal, but police forgot their warrants when they tried to search Clark's premises on the 16th. November. He fled while they went to get the proper paperwork, but was caught near Port Austin, 125 miles north of Detroit.

Manslaughter Charges

Clark was charged with two counts of manslaughter, but the deaths of at least nine patients were investigated for either:

'Therapeutic misadventure, cardiac

arrest, or an injection of one sort or

another'.

None of these cases was ultimately pursued.

Clark was however convicted on two manslaughter counts for the deaths of his assistants, and sentenced to prison for a term of 3 to 15 years.

The Death of Ronald Clark

On the 11th. April 1972, Clark died in a fall at the State Penitentiary in Jackson, Michigan. Did he fall or was he pushed? Who can say .....

Thailand - Bangkok - Wat Phra Kaeo - 35 by Manfred Sommer

1

Wat Phra Kaew (Thai: วัดพระแก้ว, rtgs: Wat Phra Kaeo, IPA: [wát pʰráʔ kɛ̂ːw], Pronunciation, English: Temple of the Emerald Buddha; full official name Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram, Thai: วัดพระศรีรัตนศาสดาราม, IPA: [wát pʰráʔ sǐː rát.ta.náʔ sàːt.sa.daː.raːm]) is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple (wat) in Thailand. The Emerald Buddha housed in the temple is a potent religio-political symbol and the palladium (protective image) of Thai society. It is located in Phra Nakhon District, the historic centre of Bangkok, within the precincts of the Grand Palace.

The main building is the central phra ubosot, which houses the statue of the Emerald Buddha. According to legend, this Buddha image originated in India where the sage Nagasena prophesized that the Emerald Buddha would bring "prosperity and pre-eminence to each country in which it resides", the Emerald Buddha deified in the Wat Phra Kaew is therefore deeply revered and venerated in Thailand as the protector of the country. Historical records however dates its finding to Chiang Rai in the 15th century where, after it was relocated a number of times, it was finally taken to Thailand in the 18th century. It was enshrined in Bangkok at the Wat Phra Kaew temple in 1782 during the reign of Phutthayotfa Chulalok, King Rama I (1782–1809). This marked the beginning of the Chakri Dynasty of Thailand, whose present sovereign is Bhumibol Adulyadej, King Rama IX.

The Emerald Buddha, a dark green statue, is in a standing form, about 66 centimetres tall, carved from a single jade stone ("emerald" in Thai means deep green colour and not the specific stone). It is carved in the meditating posture in the style of the Lanna school of the northern Thailand. Except for the Thai King and, in his stead, the Crown Prince, no other persons are allowed to touch the statue. The King changes the cloak around the statue three times a year, corresponding to the summer, winter, and rainy seasons, an important ritual performed to usher good fortune to the country during each season.

HISTORY

In 1767, the Kingdom of Ayutthaya fell to the Burmese, and King Taksin then moved the capital to Thonburi where he built the old palace beside Wat Arun on the west bank of Chao Phraya River. In 1778, Taksin's army under the command of Chao Phraya Chakri (who later became Rama I) captured Vientiane and took the Emerald Buddha back to Thonburi.

In 1782, King Rama I succeeded to the throne and founded the Chakri Dynasty, and he decided to move the capital across the river to Bangkok as it would be better protected from attack. The site chosen for the palace is situated between two old wats, Wat Pho and Wat Mahathat, an area inhabited by Chinese residents who were then moved to the present Chinatown. He started the construction of the Grand Palace so that the palace may be ready for his coronation in 1785. Wat Phra Kaew, which has its own compound within the precinct of the palace, was built to house the Emerald Buddha, which is considered a sacred object that provides protection for the kingdom. Wat Phra Kaew was completed in 1784. The formal name of Wat Phra Kaeo is Phra Sri Rattana Satsadaram, which means "the residence of the Holy Jewel Buddha."

Wat Phra Kaew has undergone a number of renovations, restoration and additions in its history, particularly during the reign of King Rama III and Rama IV. Rama III started the renovations and rebuilding in 1831 for the 50th Anniversary of BangkoK of 1832, while Rama IV's restoration was completed by Rama V in time for the Bangkok Centennial celebrations in 1882. Further restoration was undertaken by Rama VII on Bangkok's 150th Anniversary in 1932, and by Rama IX for the 200th Anniversary in 1982.

EMERALD BUDDHA

It is not known when the statue of the Emerald Buddha was made, but it is generally believed that it was crafted in 14th-century Thailand. However, there are also claims that the statue originated in India or Sri Lanka. None of these theories can be firmly established as none of the historians could get a close look at the statue.

According to one account, the Emerald Buddha was found in Chiang Rai, Lanna in 1434, after a lightning storm struck a temple. The Buddha statue fell down and later became chipped, and the monks, after removing the stucco around the statue, discovered that the image was a perfectly made Buddha image from a solid piece of green jade. The image was moved a few time to various temples, first to Lampang, then to Chiang Mai, from where it was removed by prince Chao Chaiyasetthathirat to Luang Prabang, when his father died and he ascended the throne of both Lanna and Lan Xang, in 1551. The statue remained the it to his new capital of Lan Xang in Vientiane in the 1560s. The statue remained there for twelve years. King Chaiyasetthathirat then shifted it to his new capital of Lan Xang in Vientiane in the 1560s. He took the Emerald Buddha with him and the image remained in Vientiane for 214 years until 1778.

In the reign of King Taksin, Chao Phya Chakri (who later became Rama I) defeated Vientiane and moved the Emerald Buddha from Vientiane to Thonburi where it was installed in a shrine close to Wat Arun. When Chao Phra Chakri took over the throne and founded the Chakri Dynasty of the Rattanakosin Kingdom, he shifted his capital across the river to its present location in Bangkok. The Emerald Buddha was also moved across the river with pomp and pageantry and installed in the temple of Wat Phra Keaw.

LEGENDS

There a number of legends associated with the Emerald Buddha. It was said the iconic image of the Emerald Buddha was made by Nagasena, a saint in Pataliputra (present day Patna), India, who, with the help of Hindu god Vishnu and demigod Indra, had the Emerald Buddha image made. Nagasena predicted that:

The image of the Buddha is assuredly going to give to religion the most brilliant importance in five lands, that is in Lankadvipa (Sri Lanka), Ramalakka, Dvaravati, Chieng Mai and Lan Chang (Laos).

The Emerald Buddha image was taken to Sri Lanka after three hundred years in Pataliputra to save it during a civil war. In 457, King Anuruth of Burma sent a mission to Ceylon with a request for Buddhist scriptures and the Emerald Buddha, in order to promote Buddhism in his country. These requests were granted, but the ship lost its way in a storm during the return voyage and landed in Cambodia. When the Thais captured Angkor Wat in 1432 (following the ravage of the bubonic plague), the Emerald Buddha was taken to Ayutthaya, Kamphaeng Phet, Laos and finally Chiang Rai, where the ruler of the city hid it, and was later found.

ARCHITECTURE

Wat Phra Kaeo has a plethora of buildings within the precincts of the Grand Palace, which covers a total area of over 94.5 hectares. It has over 100 buildings with “200 years royal history and architectural experimentation” linked to it. The architectural style is named as Rattanakosin style (old Bangkok style). The main temple of the Emerald Buddha is very elegantly decorated and similar to the temple in ancient capital of Ayudhya. The roof is embellished with polished orange and green tiles, the pillars are inlaid in mosaic and the pediments are made of rich marble, installed around 18th century. The Emerald Buddha is deified over an elevated altar surrounded by large gilded decorations. While the upper part of this altar was part of the original construction, the base was added by King Rama III. Two images of the Buddha, which represent the first two kings of the Chakri dynasty, flank the main image. Over the years, the temple has retained its original design. However, minor improvements have been effected after its first erection during Rama I's reign; wood-work of the temple was replaced by King Rama III and King Chulalongkorn; during King Mongkut's reign, the elegant doors and windows and the copper plates on the floor were additions, Rama III refurbished the wall painting (indicative of the universe according to Buddhist cosmology) and several frescoes that display the various stages of the Buddha's life; three chambers were added on the western side by King Mongkut; in the chamber known as 'Phra Kromanusorn' at the northern end, images of Buddha have been installed in honour of the kings of Ayutthaya; and in the 19th century, In Khong, a famous painter executed the wall murals. The entry to the temple is from the third gate from the river pier.The entrance is guarded by a pair of yakshis (mythical giants – 5 metres high statues). The eponymous image Buddha in brilliant green colour is 66 centimetres (26 in) in height with a lap width of 48.3 centimetres. It is carved in a yogic position, known as Virasana (a meditation pose commonly seen in images in Thailand and also in South India, Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia). The pedestal on which the Emerald Buddha deified is decorated with Garuda (the mythical half-man half-bird form, a steed of Rama, who holds his mortal enemy Naga the serpent in his legs) motifs It is central to Thai Buddhism. The image made with a circular base has a smooth top-knot that is finished with a "dulled point marking at the top of the image". A third eye made in gold is inset over the elevated eyebrows of the image. The image appears divine and composed, with the eyes cast downward. The image has a small nose and mouth (mouth closed) and elongated ears. The hands are seen on the lap with palms facing upwards.

The entire complex, including the temples, is bounded by a compound wall which is one of the most prominent part of the wat is about 2 kilometres length. The compound walls are decorated with typically Thai murals, based on the Indian epic Ramayana. In Thai language these murals are known to form the Ramakian, the Thai national epic, which was written during the reign of Rama I. The epic stories formed the basic information to draw the paintings during the reign of King Rama I (1782–1809). These paintings are refurbished regularly. The murals, in 178 scenes, starting with the north gate of the temple illustrates the complete epic story of Ramayana sequentially, in a clockwise direction covering the entire compound wall. The murals serve to emphasise human values of honesty, faith, and devotion.

There are twelve salas that were built by Rama I, around the temple. They house interesting artefacts of regions such as Cambodia and Java. One of these salas had an inscription of Ramkamhaeng, which was shifted, in 1924, to the National Library. During the reign of King Mongkut, the Phra Gandharara – small chapel on the southwest corner – and a tall belfry were new additions.

WORSHIP AND CEREMONIES

Early in the Bangkok period, the Emerald Buddha used to be taken out of its temple and paraded in the streets to relieve the city and countryside of various calamities (such as plague and cholera). However, this practice was discontinued during Rama IV's reign as it was feared that the image could get damaged during the procession and also a practical line of thinking that Rama IV held "that diseases are caused by germs, not by evil spirits or the displeasure of the Buddha". The image also marks the changing of the seasons in Thailand, with the king presiding over the seasonal ceremonies.

Like many other Buddha statues in Thailand, the Emerald Buddha is dressed in a seasonal costume. It is a significant ritual held at this temple. In this ritual, dress of the deity is changed three times a year to correspond to the seasons. In summer it is a pointed crown of gold and jewels, and a set of jewelled ornaments that adorns the image from the shoulders to the ankles. In winter, a meshed dressing gown or drapery made of gold beads, which covered from the neck down like a poncho is used. During the rainy months, a top-knot headdress studded with gold, enamel and sapphires; the gold attire in the rainy season is draped over the left shoulder of the deity, only with the right shoulder left bare while gold ornaments embellish the image up to the ankles. The astrological dates for the ritual ceremonies, at the changing of the seasons, followed are in the 1st Waning Moon of Lunar Months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, July and November). The costume change ritual is performed by the Thai king who is the highest master of ceremonies for all Buddhist rites. On each occasion, the king himself "cleans the image by wiping away any dust that has collected and changing the headdress of the image". Then a king's royal attendant climbs up and performs the elaborate ritual of changing garments of the image as the king is chanting prayers to the deity. On this occasion, the king sprinkles water over the monks and the faithful who have assembled to witness the unique ritual and seeks blessings of the deity for good fortune during the upcoming season. The two sets of clothing not in use at any given time are kept on display in the nearby Pavilion of Regalia, Royal Decorations and Coins in the precincts of the Grand Palace. While Rama I initiated this ritual for the hot season and the rainy season, Rama III introduced the ritual for the winter season. The robes, which the image adorns, represents that of monks and King's depending on the season, a clear indication of highlighting its symbolic role "as Buddha and the King", which role is also enjoined on the Thai King who formally dresses the Emerald Buddha image.

A ceremony that is observed in the wat is the Chakri Day (begun on April 6, 1782), a national holiday to honour founding of the Chakri dynasty. On this day, the king attends the ceremony. The present king Rama IX, with his Queen, and entourage of the royal family, the Prime Minister, officials in the Ministry of Defence, and other government departments, first offer prayers at the Emerald Buddha temple. This is followed by visit to the pantheon to pay homage to the images of past Chakri rulers that are installed there.

The coronation ceremony, which marks the crowning of the king, is an important event of the Chakri dynasty. One such recent event took place when the present Rama IX was crowned the King. On this occasion, the King came to the Chapel Royal- the Wat Phra Keo – in a procession wearing a 'Great Crown'. After entering the chapel, the king made offerings of gold and silver flowers to the deity and also lighted candles. He also paid homage to the images of Buddha that represented the past kings of the dynasty. In the presence of assembled elite clergy of the kingdom, he took a formal vow of his religion and his steadfastness to 'Defend the Faith'.

RULES OF ENTRY AND CONDUCT

The sacred temples in Thailand follow a dress code, which is strictly followed. Men must wear long pants and sleeved shirts and shoes; women must wear long skirts. Visitors who arrive dressed otherwise may rent appropriate clothing items at the entry area of the temple. It is compulsory to remove the shoes before entering the temple, as a sign of respect of the Buddha, as is the practice in all other temples in Thailand. While offering prayers before the Buddha image, the sitting posture should avoid any offensive stretching of feet towards the deity; the feet should be tucked in towards the back.

OTHER MONUMENTS

While the surrounding portico of the shrine is an example of Thai craftsmanship, the perimeter of the temple complex has 12 open pavilions. These were built during the reign of Rama I. There is plethora of monuments in the temple complex. These are:Grand PalaceThe former residence of the King, the Grand Palace, adjoins the temple. The King makes use of this Grand Palace for ceremonial functions such as the Coronation Day. The King’s present residence is to the north of this Grand Palace and is known as the Chitlada Palace. The four structures surrounding the temple have history of their own. At the eastern end is the Borombhiman Hall (built in French architectural design), which was the residence of King Rama VI, now used as guest house for visiting foreign dignitaries. It has the dubious distinction of having been used as the operational headquarters and residence of General Chitpatima who attempted a coup, in 1981. The building to the west is the Amarindra hall, earlier a hall of Justice, now used for formal ceremonies. The Chakri Mahaprasat is the largest hall in the Grand Palace, built in 1882 by British architects, the architecture of which is fusion of Italian renaissance and Traditional Thai architecture. This style is called farang sai chada, (meaning: "Westerner wearing a Thai crown") as each wing has a shrine (mandap) crowned by a spire. Ashes of the Chakri kings (five ancestors) are enshrined in the largest of these shrines, also known as the pantheons, that were rebuilt after a fire in 1903 during Rama IV's reign. Ashes of the Chakri princess who could not become kings are enshrined in an adjoining hall. The throne room and the reception hall are on the first floor, while the ground floor houses a collection of weapons. The inner palace had the King’s harem (the practice was discontinued during King Rama VI's time who decreed the one wife rule), which was guarded by well trained female guards. Another hall in the palace is the 'Dusit hall' in Ratanokosin-style, which runs from east to west, which was initially an audience hall but now converted into a funerary hall for the Royal family. Royal family corpses are kept here for one year before they are cremated in a nearby field. There is also a garden which was laid during rama IV's reign. The garden depicts a "Thai mountain-and-woods-fable" mountain scenes where the coming of age ritual of shaving the topknot of the Prince is performed.PagodasThe temple grounds also depict three pagodas to its immediate north, which represent the changing centres of Buddhist influence. One such shrine to the west of the temple is the Phra Si Ratana Chedi, a 19th-century stupa built in Sri Lankan style enshrining ashes of the Buddha.Library

Rama I also built a library in Thai style, in the middle of the complex, known as the "Phra Mondop". The library houses an elegantly carved Ayutthaya-style mother-of-pearl doors, bookcases with the Tripitaka (sacred Buddhist manuscripts), human-and dragon-headed nagas (snakes), and images of Chakri kings.

During the 19th century, the Royal Pantheon was built in Khmer style to the east of the temple, which is kept open for only one day in year, in the month of October to commemorate the founding of the Chakri dynasty.

Model of Angkor WatThe temple complex also contains a model of Angkor Wat (the most sacred of all Cambodian shrines). In 1860, King Mongkut ordered his generals to lead 2,000 men to dismantle Angkor Wat and take it to Bangkok. Modern scholars suggested that the king wanted to show that Siam was still in control of Cambodia, as France was seeking to colonise Cambodia at that time. However, the king's order could not be fulfilled. A royal chronicle written by Lord Thiphakorawong (Kham Bunnag), then foreign minister, recorded that many Thai men fell ill after entering Cambodian wilderness. The chronicle also stated that forest-dwelling Khmer people ambushed the Thai army, killing many leading generals. King Mongkut then ordered the construction of the model within Wat Phra Kaew, instead of the real Angkor Wat that could not be brought to Bangkok. Mongkut died before he could see the model. Its construction was completed in the reign of his son, Chulalongkorn.Hermit statue

A hermit's bronze image, which is believed to have healing powers, is installed in a sala on the western side of the temple. It is near the entry gate. It is a black stone statue, considered a patron of medicine, before which relatives of the sick and infirm pay respects and make offerings of joss sticks, fruit, flowers, and candles.

EIGHT TOWERS

On the eastern side of the temple premises there are eight towers or prangs, each of a different colour. They were erected during the reign of Rama I and represent eight elements of Buddhism.

ELEPHANT STATUES

Statues of elephants, which symbolize independence and power, are seen all around the complex. As Thai kings fought wars mounted on elephants, it has become customary for parents to make their children circumambulate the elephant three times with the belief that that it would bring them strength. The head of an elephant statue is also rubbed for good luck; this act of the people is reflected in the smoothness of the surface of elephant statues here.

WIKIPEDIA

Bastrop State Park - Park Roads - SP.22.18_thumb by Texas State Archives

3

Specific date: 7/10/1939.

Black pencil & ink on printed orange graph paper. LN: 35 X HT: 23.

61/365 - Proof. by Chelsea Smith

2

61/365

Dear Diary,

Today got me thinking a lot about image ownership.

Who is responsible for the image being what it is?

If every detail in a photo helps that photo become what it is.. who deserves credit?

If an image wouldn't be interesting without the frill that the makeup artist, costume designer, that specific gorgeous model, etc. . and you didn't put every piece of that photo together.. who's image is it?

(Keep in mind this is regarding photos where the subject is more controlled.. not like a mountain you can’t change much)

If other people do all the preparation and every single piece isn't orchestrated by the photographer.. does it just make our job easier?

A few points/questions:

I’ve recently been using some royalty-free stock images for backgrounds.. I thought of putting the two together, I did the mixed media work… I took the main picture.. do I get 75% of the credit?

Question: Why are some of Annie Leibovitz' photos so intriguing to me? Honestly, half of my interest in them is that the person being manipulated is famous. Is this something seriously psychological going on?

Sometimes I wonder what truly constitutes beauty? Is our brain really wired to admire the golden rectangle Fibonacci number jazz? Did my society say: “This is beautiful...” And I was nurtured to believe it?

I’d love to make my next venture.. beauty in things that aren’t “beautiful.” I might do a theme like so.

Today I saw a stranger and asked to photograph her right then, right there.. I thought to myself, -Beautiful girl. Instant- Easy- 365 – done.- lets take it.

Of all of these posed girls and guys – all so attractive… which picture am I the most proud of? :The candid picture of an old man bearing wrinkles and smiles as he congratulated his granddaughter at her wedding. This is not about design principles. This is straight up psychological. It’s the moment, it’s the meaning, it’s the authenticity, it’s the realness, it’s the person; not posed, not directed, unknowing of my presence in his moment.

I feel a change in the winds coming in my photos. I want photos that have a story. And I want the story to be more than a fun conversation as I cover a face with makeup.

I’m starting to figure things out, how they seem to me at least.

In regards to the it factor in my book- and drawing back to the image ownership theme-

I feel that picture of the old man was completely his and completely mine. It was this strange interaction between it being pure on both sides. Something about using a model, no matter what: I know it’s an act. What do we try to accomplish? Faking the viewer out to get this feeling of authenticity – give them a tear on their cheek- oh, when you look at this image, I want you to know she was crying over a broken heart…when.. it’s really egg whites, and she’s happy as could be to do the photo shoot. What if you were to capture a broken heart without a fake tear? And I know in my heart that if I knew a photo was real, I’d be satisfied… but the viewer would feel what they were feeling. No wonder Avedon’s work is classic, it’s deeper than just what our society deems beautiful. His work is sometimes rough and real- the authenticity must play a huge part in what our brains decide is a good photo. If I had all the right settings, took an exact replica of a friend dressed up like a tattered farm girl.. it’s still my friend in the end.

Sometimes I wonder what fuels me. What is this collage of pixels and why do I stare at it for hours til its perfect, why do I spend all this time for something people typically view for a half of a second, click the like button, and move on. Would I be doing well with this project if I didn’t have facebook and flickr for recognition and significance? Would I be doing this project at all?

I think the competition and the fact it will be seen by tons of people affects it in a positive way… like in a cycling class. You don’t go as hard and as long and do as well if you are alone on the bike in your basement… why do we pay memberships to gyms so we can do the same thing –just with people to hold us accountable?

One of the girls on my floor asked me how much time I spend on my images each day- I stuttered, almost at a cross between embarrassed and ashamed…well, usually I get started on it around 9… I go to bed around 1am.. What? I just said it out loud and it sounds crazy. If we had a ticking clock on our forehead with how many hours we spend on facebook we spend each day, or even total in our life: we’d be on it less. Hi Professor, 3546 hours.

Hours. . . Hours.

I’m on day 61. I think I’ve had two days where I spend less than 2 hours dealing with that image. So.. much.. time.

So far, I rarely question “for what?” “why?” “of course this is a good use of my time”

I haven’t been drained of my love for photography, it seems it only gets me thinking more and gives me something to do. What if I played basketball 3 hours a day. You’d probably say, “great! A hobby! That person is doing something with their life”

But tomorrow, when the games are over, you are 40, looking back, or even the next day looking back… what do you have? What do you actually have? Memories? In better shape? That feeling of invigoration and accomplishment? Or maybe… all you have is.. an image… and that image means soooo much to you. Why?

Why do we take accounts of events and not just art? “Here, Here, Look at me at this party!” “ Look at me! !” Why are we so drawn to this? I know I look through the albums on people’s profiles that were taken for status.

Gosh.

I know I have too many questions. And not enough answers.

But the great thing about loving the world of philosophy is that you don’t “get somewhere” when you find the answer.. you “get somewhere” when you find the right question.

Proof that this project is worth it to me: I’m thinking more about truth and life and love and God and the universe in this simple side hobby, than I am in any of my university classes.

Thanks for listening. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Chelsea

P.S. Just wanted to thank to all of my photog friends who keep me going and enlighten me with their expertise. I couldn't do it without you guys.

Collection of PUBG items by ☆Woshinishushu ☆

Because CDKEY prices are changing every day! Please ask me the specific price!

May Contain Nuts (& Bolts) by Matthew Wells

1

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

Fashions in 1876 - For Elinor! by trecrowns

3 14

My print in a frame "On Grandma's Porch". This is the large one and my favorite. Marked April 1876.

"A fashion plate is an illustration (a plate) demonstrating the highlights of fashionable styles of clothing. Fashion plates are not depictions of specific people, but are instead generalized portraits, meant only to dictate the style of clothes that a tailor, dressmaker, or store could make or sell, or to show how different materials could be made up into clothes.

This method of disseminating fashionable styles was popular during the 19th and early 20th centuries, but fashion plates can trace their origins to the 16th century, even if ithe history may not be continuous. Portraits, especially royal portraits, served as the base for the future of fashion plates, as they offered a visual cue as to the popular styles, fabrics and embellishments of the time. Dolls were also popular prior to fashion plates, as Marie Antoinette's dressmaker was known to tour the continent every year with berlines containing dolls outfitted with the latest fashionable styles. Fashion plates, as they were known during the height of their popularity, were first circulated at the end of the 18th century in England, rather than in France, as would be expected. 'The Lady's Magazine', one of the first distributors of fashion plates in magazines, began publishing in 1770, spreading the trend across Europe. In France, 'La Galerie des Modes' was a pioneer in fashion plate publication, and magazines were distributed irregularly during 1778 and 1787. As technology improved, speed of communication and transportation increased, thus allowing consumers access to foreign fashions, accessories and hairstyles. The introduction of an educated middle class also allowed for a more fashion-conscious population that became devoted to fashion plate publications. However, the increasing popularity of photography spelled out the end for fashion plates, as photos offered a realistic portrayal of fashionable styles."

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fashion_plate

Godey's Lady's Book

"Godey's Lady's Book, alternatively known as Godey's Magazine and Lady's Book, was a United States magazine which was published in Philadelphia. It was the most widely circulated magazine in the period before the Civil War. Its circulation rose from 70,000 in the 1840s to 150,000 in 1860. In the 1860s Godey's considered itself the "queen of monthlies".

The magazine was published by Louis A. Godey from Philadelphia for 48 years (1830–1878). Godey intended to take advantage of the popularity of gift books, many of which were marketed specifically to women. Each issue contained poetry, articles, and engravings created by prominent writers and other artists of the time. Sarah Josepha Hale (author of "Mary Had a Little Lamb") was its editor from 1837 until 1877 and only published original, American manuscripts. Although the magazine was read and contained work by both men and women, Hale published three special issues which only included work done by women.

When Hale started at Godey's, the magazine had a circulation of ten thousand subscribers. Two years later, it jumped to 40,000 and by 1860 had 150,000 subscribers.

In 1845, Louis Godey began copyrighting each issue of the magazine to prevent other magazine and newspaper editors from pirating their texts. This move, a first in America, was criticized by editors at the Baltimore Saturday Visiter. They called it a "narrowly selfish course" and that Godey would "rue it bitterly".

The magazine is best known for the hand-tinted fashion plate that appeared at the start of each issue, which provide a record of the progression of women's dress. Publisher Louis Godey showed off that in 1859, it cost $105,200 to produce the Lady's Book, with the coloring of the fashion-plates costing $8,000. Almost every issue also included an illustration and pattern with measurements for a garment to be sewn at home. A sheet of music for piano provided the latest waltz, polka or galop." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godey%27s_Lady%27s_Book

This link shows some of the fashion plates from Godey's:

books.google.com/books?id=oknr8Do4oNoC&pg=PR3&dq=...

HYENES & RATS by robert dragot

'Schematic' is the key-word for the new pieces Dragot proposes in his participation of the most recent edition of Onufri show in the Museum of Tirana. By 'schematic' ,one has to understand the essential outcome of an information, the reduction to the purest single element , the 'graphical' outlines of an image or the retransformation of the specific into a prototype form of decrypting in order to be more easily read by a larger group of people. More easily read and looked at or the way comics or cartoons function. Not only does Dragot turns his attention to a larger group of people by using the technique of cartoon but in this specific case to the most fragile part of it:the children. Dragot ,once again, deals with the daily information which reaches us in succeeding "waves" of images, good and bad news(preferably bad because it does better feed our voracious appetite for sensation and thriller-like kicks , camouflaged banalities or one-hour scandals which often tend to disappear before they really destroy reputations HYENA & RATS On the new work of Robert Aliaj DRAGOT A CERTAIN DEGREE OF FICTION. 'Schematic' is the key-word for the new pieces Dragot proposes in his participation of the most recent edition of Onufri show in the Museum of Tirana. By 'schematic' ,one has to understand the essential outcome of an information, the reduction to the purest single element , the 'graphical' outlines of an image or the retransformation of the specific into a prototype form of decrypting in order to be more easily read by a larger group of people. More easily read and looked at or the way comics or cartoons function. Not only does Dragot turns his attention to a larger group of people by using the technique of cartoon but in this specific case to the most fragile part of it:the children. Dragot ,once again, deals with the daily information which reaches us in succeeding "waves" of images, good and bad news(preferably bad because it does better feed our voracious appetite for sensation and thriller-like kicks , camouflaged banalities or one-hour scandals which often tend to disappear before they really destroy reputations . Media are the most powerful predators on our small planet and media travel at the speed of media.It has its own logic.The other thing with media is that it exists as data or pure information and that it doesn't make any distinction between 'good 'or 'bad' ingredients. Only the reader does put the ethical full stop here. And the reader has to be protected or needs a certain kind of immunity in order to surf beyond risk.Because surfing is risky business and that is probably part of the message the artist wants us to understand. Because this daily 'tsunami' or non-stop flow of information is larger than we ,as adults,can digest and one does not need to be introduced in contemporary human behavior to understand that copy-cat attitudes often lead to exponential dramas such as high school shootings or 'hidden' agendas for group suicides (as was the case in Japan a couple of years ago).The point is often children are badly hit by the wrong contents.They simply are incapable to de-contectextualize and put it in a rational perspective. Fragilised people pay a great deal of attention towards the slightest change in the media and are as such more easily exploited.We all were introduced in the subtle strategies sooner or later.Part of growing up.. The artist has been gradually selecting images from the web .Images (stills and cellular videoshots) depicting "indoor" violence .Images which were meant to be consulted and commented by the same sort of people that throw them on this insiders 'stage'. This information, because of its illigal and illicit content is often taken off the web (read censored) under governmental or corporate pressure.It could indeed lead to embarassing incidents between governments or stimulate massive crowds in the streets if well conducted. In this endless stream of visual data ,the artist has saved and selected on 'You Tube' a small series of brutal videostills where Greek policemen were forcing Roma or Albanian youngsters (2 young men) to hit each other in the face harder and harder, under the amused eyes of the servicemen which are supposed to represent the law and order of a respectable member of the European Union.The cellular shots make one think of the pop song and videopiece "True Faith" once realised by New Order in the 80's where in some sort of choreography people were hitting each other in the face..or less popular the performance "Rythm 0 1974"by Marina Abramovic where she assigned a passive role to herself, with the public being the force which would act on her and gradually use more and more violence against her, enjoying the kick of the forbidden.. The You Tube images Dragot luckily saved(before they were removed) were not intended as a popsong neither as an artistic performance but where filmed by policemen with their private cell-phones and shortly after flung on the internet as the worst taste trophies imaginable .These youngsters were publicly exposed in a merciless orgy of cruelty. Now the information is one thing, treating the information is another thing,treating the information in an intelligent and emotionally balanced artwork is a completely different mission. Dragot started to select the crude 'matter' or 'matière première'(found footage on the net) and to sculpt it socially and artistically in order to slide it in collective memory by a rather fresh and funny (read cynical) strategy.Turning them into cartoons.. Doing so ,he manages to expand the dialogue towards a larger group of society . He refuses to pinpoint the artwork as the next cheap sensational micro scandal in the over-and-done-with academy of shock.(dating form the period BC read "before Crisis"). He devoids the sequence of images (selected stills from the shock video posted) of any recognisable realistic detail and turns the reality into a certain degree of fiction:a cartoon which transposes the action on a different level.Thus the artist decides to vehiculise the information into this fragile target we call children . Children are confronted with violence to an up-to-now unknown degree (useless to draw the lifelong list of video-games,movies,ads,newsflashes not to forget the most subtle of all: reality and needless to say that heaps of books treat this rather spooky subject and discussion panels turn in circles circumventing the real topic:the measurable impact of violence on the mind of the exposed child). Here in the Tirana Museum Dragot has draw huge size stills in a cartoon-like sequence of 6 or 8 images , life size, that is to say the average size of a just-not-teenager . The drawnings (stills sequence) on the wall are emptied of their short historical dimension of a drama which happened in protected police quarters in some capital city (Dragot says" it could be anywhere" .The kids only find the black outlines. On the floor of the museum ,lots of little boxes of 'multi-talent pencil' or wax crayons in a predefined range of colours. The piece is a large sort of "colorbook" and the children have to color in the various segments of the drawings as shown in the pinned up example.. A couple of schoolclasses are invited in the afternoon to color on the walls of this museum, and in the evening ,the piece is shown to the larger public. Has the violence been hidden or substracted out of the raw material (you tube cellular phone videos) and softened in order to protect the children or is the ultimate goal of the art project to accustom the kids to little doses of violence and maybe rediscover the true content?And where is that true content? It seems that the freshly and "disney colored" drawings warn us seriously for the highly manipulated way in which encapsulated violence might reach us since all violence is not visual,but rather subtly merchandised and consumable even for the most innocent sweeny toddlers. Extremely important is the fact that the artist has not forgotten the origin of his found footage and in an adjacent space,the visitor is confronted by the rawness and brutality of the lift off images for the project.The adult side of the piece?The true content? The visitor indeed goes the other way round just as the salmon swims up the river and therefore the result is much harder to take in.Black and white becomes color and color becomes video. This wake-up is directed to the conscience of the adult and leaves him critically behind with it..vision and sound this time.. koen wastijn november 2009

Invisible Dog by NYC No Longer Empty

Something Out of Nothing

Organization: No Longer Empty

Location:Invisible Dog Art Center

51 Bergen Street, Brooklyn

October 3 - Nov 14, 2009

Beware: “The Invisible Dog“ is unleashed this Saturday, October 3rd! The latest group exhibition produced by No Longer Empty, “The Dog” is a show “out of nothing” in a warmly decrepit out-of-use belt factory on Bergen Street in Brooklyn.

Following the tails of the Improv Everywhere stunt last week, the show presents a multitude of site-specific works reflecting both the history of the space and the profound beauty of the Invisible Dog. A rift on the 70’s gag, it’s a void object waiting for creative minds and hands to bring it to life.

Here in the factory, artists grabbed the many trimmings, reels of fabric, leather and other materials and transformed them into something new. The artist duo Steven and William created a “chandelier” of abandoned belt buckles. Guerra del la Paz amassed tons of discarded clothing, one color at a time. Here, la Paz’s “trashy” tribute becomes an imposing, yurt-shaped spectral prism. In the neighborhood spirit, Tom Sanford brings Jonathan Lethem’s novel “Motherless Brooklyn”-- which takes place on this block, to life via a fantastic, larger than life mural. Even the freight elevator is transformed: here, Giuseppe Stampone takes us on a trip from Hell to Heaven al Dante.

The Invisible Dog Art Center | Click Here

The Invisible Dog, a new three-story art center in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, is an exuberant example of the integration of forward thinking and care for the past. The art center, admittedly, had a leg up: its home came equipped with an irresistable history. Built in the late nineteenth century, the 20,000 square-foot factory went through a number of industrial incarnations before its owners struck gold in the 1970s with the invisible dog trick: a stiff lease and collar surrounding the empty space where a dog would be. A mixture of party-hearty silliness and tongue-in-cheek trompe l’oeil, the trick became an icon of its era. But eventually public taste moved on; meanwhile, over the years, the Brooklyn neighborhood was changing. The factory closed its doors in the late 1990s; the boarded-up building was a blight on its quiet Brooklyn block.

What happened then is a kind of urban fairytale. In December 2008, Muriel Guépin leased the storefront and turned it into Shop Art Gallery, a small gallery with decidedly democratic spirit. Soon after, Lucien Zayan, a recent New York immigrant, stumbled upon Shop Art and inquired after the building behind it. Zayan knew he had hit on something when he heard the building’s history: he’d spent his life working in the French theater, including the Aix-en-Provence festival and Paris’s renowned Théàtre de Odeon and Théàtre de la Madeleine, and he recognized the perfect mise-en-scène. With the support of the building’s current owners, he decided to turn the space into a large-scale art center.

Less than a year later, the Invisible Dog is up and running. The building has been restored for safety and cleaned, but otherwise preserved intact. The rawness of the unfinished space is integral to the Invisible Dog’s identity: Zayan wanted a place that artists could really use, not a pristine renovation without personality. The ceiling on the third floor was restored using floor boards found in other parts of the building, and the enormous elevator shaft (the elevator removed) will be left open, as a unique exhibition space. Everywhere, the commitment to collaboration and community is clear. The ground floor, with its 14-foot ceilings, will be used for public events, performances, educational programs, and exhibitions, organized by guest curators from around the world. The second floor, divided into studios, is already occupied by nine specially-selected artists on one-year leases. They meet regularly with Zayan to discuss their work and the project. The third floor, light-filled and spacious designed by Anne Attal, will be available for flexible rental by the general public.

Artists:

Thomas Bell

Ryan Brennan

Amanda Browder

Rosane Chamecki, Andrea Lerner & Phil Harder

Gina Czarnecki

Jeanette Doyle

Steve DeFrank

Richard Garet

Guerra de la Paz

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer

Kaarina Kaikkonen

Giles Lyon

Miguel Palma

José Parlá

Rey Parlá

Tom Sanford

Keith Schweitzer

Francesco Simeti

Alfred Steiner

Giuseppe Stampone

PICT02 by Ingmar Spijkhoven

1

Model "Trailer Tr3 MkII” is build with LEGO® in scale 1:17,5 and motorized using LEGO® Power Functions. It is not build after a specific brand or type of trailer. This build represents a three axle log trailer with liftable third axle.

The trailer features: solid axle suspension on all axles, one set of lights, kingpin, remotely controlled landing gear and parking break, remotely controlled liftable third axle that simultaneously extends or retracts the rear impact guard and this model has many details.

This newly designed and engineered trailer utilizes the same suspension as US Truck T2 MkII which uses LEGO® rubber belts and LEGO® rubber axle connectors.

This model is another custom design by Ingmar Spijkhoven AKA 2LegoOrNot2Lego that comes with building instructions and inventory/parts list!

You can build it yourself! To do so you can buy the Building Instructions. Early in the building process you will see what it is that you are building. You will be very excited from the moment you start the build of "Trailer Tr3 MkII" till you finish it with a total number of parts of about 1000 pieces.

Simultaneously with lifting the third axle the rear impact guard is retracted. So with the third axle down the rear impact guard is fully extended, this to increase safety when hauling loads. Unloaded the total length of the combination is reduced with the third axle lifted and the rear impact guard in.

As with most log trailers this model has so called bolsters or bunks. Those are the U shaped frames on top of the trailers chassis. Bolsters are obviously necessary to keep the logs in place. Even though the bolsters on this specific model are fixed they can easily be re-located if wanted. The number of six can also be altered to your own needs. Give this trailer the setup you want it to have.

To learn more about this and other creations visit me at MOCpages.com, Flickr.com or YouTube.com.

afghan carpet22 by samad carpets

Tribal Carpets of Afghanistan

To write effectively and intelligently about carpets from the tribal areas of Afghanistan and the former central Asian States of the USSR would require many years of experience and personal knowledge of these carpet making regions. Unfortunately, we don't qualify in any of these areas, but I do have a number of reference books written by experts in the field- and the following is a compilation of observations from these volumes.

This clause will only serve to help put the background of the carpet making areas in central Asia in some perspective, and to help identify some of the more recognizable afghan rug designs and characteristics of carpets from these areas. When one considers the source of carpets from Afghanistan and the Former States of the USSR one must realize that the tribal peoples of the mountains really dont comprehend or honour modern geopolitical borders. Specific tribes exist on both sides and across the modern borders as if they didnt exist. The Baluchi tribes for example, extend from Eastern Iran through Western Afghanistan and into Pakistan. Similarly, the Turkoman tribes extend all across the northern borders.

Herat, in the Western part of Afghanistan, has a history of over two thousand five hundred years and was once occupied by Alexander the Great, and subsequently invaded by Mongols led by Genghis Khan and then Tamerlan in the 13th century. Herat was considered part of the Persian Empire, and the Persian influence in carpet making in Herat is still seen.

Types Of Carpets

There are many names for the type of weavings found in Afghanistan and Central Asia. For example, in Herat and the Northern Turkmen tribes an ensi (or engsi) is a rug designed to serve as an internal tent door. This same design is called a Hatchli (or Hatchlu) in Iran, and a purdah (or purdhu) in other parts of Afghanistan - all of them referring to a door curtain or closure.

A young tribal girl who has been taught the art of carpet weaving from a young age would probably have the following carpets and weavings in her dowry:

One Main Carpet (ghali) 9ft.10in. x 7ft.

Two small rugs (dip ghali) 6ft. x 3ft.

One engsi

One decoration for over the engsi (kapunuk)

12 small personal belonging bags 2ft.x1.5ft. and 4ft.x 1.5 ft. (mafrash & torba)

two large bedding bags (chuval or Juwal) always made in pairs

three decorated tent-bands (aq yup) 50 ft long and 2 inch to 1 ft wide

Materials: The material used for making tribal rugs are basically what these nomads have at their immediate disposal: wool from their sheep which is used in the warp and weft as well as the pile. Some tribes use goat hair for overbidding the sides (selvedges) or rugs. Camel hair is especially prized for the field areas of prayer carpets. When possible the sheep are driven into streams to wash them prior to shearing. The wool is then sorted by color and quality and then combed and spun. The wool is then dyed one person can generally can generally spin one kilo per day.

Dyes: Natural dyes are still used, but since the 1950s pre-dyed wool yarn (using synthetic dyes) readily found in the towns and villages are often substituted for or combined with the natural dyes. The wild colors (some almost iridescent) often found in many Afghan carpets are surely synthetics. In natural dying, the yarn is presoaked in a fixing bath of alum, copper sulfate, ferrous sulfate, tin or urine. The yarn is then transferred to a dye bath and soaked until the desired color is obtained. The yarn is then washed and hung out to dry. Dying was usually done by the men. Natural dyes fade beautifully and often show as uneven coloring (abrash). Abrash (meaning speckled or marbled) is commonly the result of a weaver running out of wool and having to dye another lot or buying a similar color from elsewhere. Abrash in no way detracts from the value of a tribal carpet, but is a desirable characteristic of a tribal weaving. Naturally dyed wool will fade right through whereas synthetic dyes will fade only on the tips where the light hits it. A newer tribal carpet can be "mellowed" by placing it in the direct sun for several days.

Natural dyes originate from the following materials:

Reds: Madder - Root of Madder Plant - (ranges from reds to orange and purple)

Cochineal: produced from the female shield louse (Blue /red tone)

Lac Deep purple: from the excretions of a scale insect native to India Kermes. From an insect which breeds on the Kermes oak

Blues: Indigo plant (Dyers Wood)

Black: Can be achieved by using a very dark blue or by use of a bath of tannic acid, acorn cups, pomegranate skin, oak galls, and then adding to a bath iron sulphate to make the color fast. This can produce a weakness in the black wool which in carpets 50 to 100 years old can be seen as worn black areas where the remaining pile is still OK.

Yellow: Many sources including; Dyers weed; Saffron; wild chamomile; tanners sumac; buckthorn; pomegranate tree; isperek (a flowering larkspur)

Green: Obtained from walnuts and olive leaves? Or by blending blue and yellow agents

Brown: Can be natural undyed wool or by dying with fresh or dried pods of the walnut, oak guls or acorn cups.

Looms: Tribal carpets are almost always done on the horizontal or ground loom. This is due to the fact that the nomads rarely remain in one location for more than two months. The horizontal loom can be easily dismantled and packed on an animal to the new location and then staked out on the ground again. A Turkoman woman will usually take at least six months to finish a carpet 6ft.6in. by 4ft. The loom therefore can be set up and taken down four to six times before a carpet or Kelim is finished. This often results in different tensions in the warp threads and is the reason why tribal rugs often have an irregular shape. While this irregularity is part of the charm of a tribal rug, carpets which do not lie flat should be avoided

20 euros offerts pour l'impression de vos documents by Coordination Gironde Ouest Téléthon

Printoclock - Tarifs et délais de choc

/* Client-specific Styles */

#outlook a {padding:0;} /* Force Outlook to provide a "view in browser" menu link. */

body{width:100% !important; -webkit-text-size-adjust:100%; -ms-text-size-adjust:100%; margin:0; padding:0;}

/* Prevent Webkit and Windows Mobile platforms from changing default font sizes, while not breaking desktop design. */

.ExternalClass {width:100%;} /* Force Hotmail to display emails at full width */

.ExternalClass, .ExternalClass p, .ExternalClass span, .ExternalClass font, .ExternalClass td, .ExternalClass div {line-height: 100%;} /* Force Hotmail to

display normal line spacing. */

#backgroundTable {margin:0; padding:0; width:100% !important; line-height: 100% !important;}

img {outline:none; text-decoration:none;border:none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic;}

a img {border:none;}

.image_fix {display:block;}

p {margin: 0px 0px !important;}

table td {border-collapse: collapse;}

table { border-collapse:collapse; mso-table-lspace:0pt; mso-table-rspace:0pt; }

a {color: #33b9ff;text-decoration: none;text-decoration:none!important;}

/*STYLES*/

table[class=full] { width: 100%; clear: both; }

/*IPAD STYLES*/

@media only screen and (max-width: 640px) {

a[href^="tel"], a[href^="sms"] {

text-decoration: none;

pointer-events: none;

cursor: default;

}

.mobile_link a[href^="tel"], .mobile_link a[href^="sms"] {

text-decoration: default;

color: #33b9ff !important;

pointer-events: auto;

cursor: default;

}

table[class=devicewidth] {width: 440px!important;text-align:center!important;}

table[class=devicewidthinner] {width: 440px!important;text-align:center!important;}

img[class=banner] {width: 440px!important;height:220px!important;}

img[class=banner2] {width: 440px!important; height:57px; }

img[class=colimg2] {width: 110px!important;height:66px!important;}

img[class=cta] {width: 440px!important;height:65px!important;}

}

/*IPHONE STYLES*/

@media only screen and (max-width: 480px) {

a[href^="tel"], a[href^="sms"] {

text-decoration: none;

color: #ffffff; /* or whatever your want */

pointer-events: none;

cursor: default;

}

.mobile_link a[href^="tel"], .mobile_link a[href^="sms"] {

text-decoration: default;

color: #ffffff !important;

pointer-events: auto;

cursor: default;

}

@media only screen and (max-width: 380px) {

table[class=devicewidth] {width: 320px!important;text-align:center!important;}

table[class=devicewidthinner] {width: 320px!important;text-align:center!important;}

img[class=banner] {width: 320px!important;height:170px!important;}

img[class=banner2] {width: 320px!important;height:42px!important;}

img[class=colimg2] {width: 100px!important;height:60px!important;}

img[class=cta] {width: 320px!important;height:45px!important;}

td[class="padding-top15"]{padding-top:15px!important;}

}

@media only screen and (max-width: 320px) {

table[class=devicewidth] {width: 320px!important;text-align:center!important;}

table[class=devicewidthinner] {width: 300px!important;text-align:center!important;}

img[class=banner] {width: 300px!important;height:140px!important;}

img[class=banner2] {width: 300px!important; height:40px; }

img[class=colimg2] {width: 100px!important;height:60px!important;}

img[class=cta] {width: 300px!important;height:40px!important;}

td[class="padding-top15"]{padding-top:15px!important;}

}

Vous avez des difficultés à visualiser ce message ? Consultez-le en

ligne.

Profitez vite de 20€ d'impression offerts.

IMPRIMERIE EN LIGNE

Profitez vite de 20€ d'impression offerts

Inscrivez-vous vite et profitez de votre offre de bienvenue !

Cette offre est valable pour toute nouvelle inscription avant le 17 juin. Après inscription, vous recevrez par mail votre code

promo valable sur tout le catalogue et sans minimum d'achat. Vous avez ensuite 3 mois pour passer commande.

Votre imprimerie Printoclock en 4 points

Les tarifs les plus bas du web sur des milliers de référence

Notre taux de satisfaction

client sur eKomi

Livraison express partout en France

100 000 commandes/an

SATISFACTION GARANTIE

ASSISTANCE EN LIGNE

MADE IN FRANCE

LIVRAISON GRATUITE

IMPRIMERIE

SIGNALÉTIQUE

OBJETS PUB

FAIRE-PART

Conformément à l'article 34 de la loi 78-17 du 6 janvier 1978 relative à

l'informatique,

aux fichiers et aux libertés, vous disposez d'un droit d'accès,

de rectification des données nominatives vous concernant.

Si ce message vous a causé un désagrément, veuillez nous en excuser.

Pour cesser de recevoir nos informations sur l'adresse (partagephotos@telethon33w.fr) cliquez

ici

Seb Burnett's Eldoradog by Matthew Wells

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

Rococo Palace, New Town, Prague, Bohemia, Czechia by Billy Wilson

5

"The Rococo Palace (also referred to as Šupichovy domy) is a complex of three multifunctional buildings built in the author's specific style with elements of cubism and modernism (noticeable especially in the courtyard) on Wenceslas Square, at the address no. 794/38-46, and Štěpánská 626/ 63, 110 00 in Nové Město, Prague 1 according to the design of architect Emil Králíček. The building fills the corner of Wenceslas Square and Štěpánská Street, and is connected to the Lucerna Palace through a passageway. The palace was built on the order of the wealthy Prague lawyer and businessman JUDr. Josef Šupich the Younger. The building has been protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic since December 12, 1995.

The official building was built between 1912 and 1916 on a large corner lot vacated by the demolition of the Baroque Aehrenthal Palace from the early 17th century. The client of the building was the well-to-do lawyer JUDr. Josef Šupich Jr., specializing in the insurance industry. The author of the building design was architect Emil Králíček, who worked for construction entrepreneur Matěj Blecha, whose company implemented the building. Both Emil Králíček and Josef Šupich the younger came from Německý Brod. The outbreak of the First World War in the middle of 1914 delayed the construction of the Šupich houses. The construction took place at the same time as the work on the construction of the neighboring Lucerna palace by the builder Ing. Vácslava Havel, both buildings were connected by a shopping arcade after completion.

In the basement of the eastern wing of the palace facing Wenceslas Square, the Rokoko Theater has been operating since the opening of the palace, where a number of famous Czech theater artists performed, from the early years for example Karel Hašler, Eduard Bass (the cabaret Červená sedma was located here), Ferenc Futurista, Vlasty Buriana or Jiří Trnka's Wooden Theater.

The six-story palace is built in the art deco style. The building is dominated by a central rounded corner with balconies forming the portal of the building, which is complemented by two symmetrical wings. The massive entrance portals are symmetrical in both buildings, the distribution of windows and facades are different. The structure of the building was created from reinforced concrete, the facade and cornices are decorated with art deco mascarones.

The New Town (Czech: Nové Město) is a quarter in the city of Prague in the Czech Republic. New Town is the youngest and largest of the five independent (from the Middle Ages until 1784) towns that today comprise the historic center of modern Prague. New Town was founded in 1348 by Charles IV just outside the city walls to the east and south of the Old Town and encompassed an area of 7.5 km²; about three times the size of the Old Town. The population of Prague in 1378 was well over 40,000, perhaps as much as twice that, making it the 4th most populated city north of the Alps and, by area, the 3rd largest city in Europe. Although New Town can trace its current layout to its construction in the 14th century, only few churches and administrative buildings from this time survive. There are many secular and educational buildings in New Town, but also especially magnificent gothic and baroque churches. These nevertheless are not the main drawing points for tourists. New Town's most famous landmark is Wenceslas Square, which was originally built as a horsemarket and now functions as a center of commerce and tourism. In the 15th century, the Novoměstská radnice, or New Town Hall, was the site of the first of the three defenestrations of Prague.

Prague (/ˈprɑːɡ/ PRAHG; Czech: Praha [ˈpraɦa]; German: Prag [pʁaːk]; Latin: Praga) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate oceanic climate, with relatively warm summers and chilly winters.

Prague is a political, cultural, and economic hub of central Europe, with a rich history and Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architectures. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia and residence of several Holy Roman Emperors, most notably Charles IV (r. 1346–1378) and Rudolf II (r. 1575–1611).

It was an important city to the Habsburg monarchy and Austro-Hungarian Empire. The city played major roles in the Bohemian and the Protestant Reformations, the Thirty Years' War and in 20th-century history as the capital of Czechoslovakia between the World Wars and the post-war Communist era.

Prague is home to a number of well-known cultural attractions, many of which survived the violence and destruction of 20th-century Europe. Main attractions include Prague Castle, Charles Bridge, Old Town Square with the Prague astronomical clock, the Jewish Quarter, Petřín hill and Vyšehrad. Since 1992, the historic center of Prague has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

The city has more than ten major museums, along with numerous theatres, galleries, cinemas, and other historical exhibits. An extensive modern public transportation system connects the city. It is home to a wide range of public and private schools, including Charles University in Prague, the oldest university in Central Europe.

Prague is classified as a "Alpha-" global city according to GaWC studies. In 2019, the city was ranked as 69th most livable city in the world by Mercer. In the same year, the PICSA Index ranked the city as 13th most livable city in the world. Its rich history makes it a popular tourist destination and as of 2017, the city receives more than 8.5 million international visitors annually. In 2017, Prague was listed as the fifth most visited European city after London, Paris, Rome, and Istanbul.

Bohemia (Latin Bohemia, German Böhmen, Polish Czechy) is a region in the west of the Czech Republic. Previously, as a kingdom, they were the center of the Czech Crown. The root of the word Czech probably corresponds to the meaning of man. The Latin equivalent of Bohemia, originally Boiohaemum (literally "land of Battles"), which over time also influenced the names in other languages, is derived from the Celtic tribe of the Boios, who lived in this area from the 4th to the 1st century BC Bohemia on it borders Germany in the west, Austria in the south, Moravia in the east and Poland in the north. Geographically, they are bounded from the north, west and south by a chain of mountains, the highest of which are the Krkonoše Mountains, in which the highest mountain of Bohemia, Sněžka, is also located. The most important rivers are the Elbe and the Vltava, with the fertile Polabean Plain extending around the Elbe. The capital and largest city of Bohemia is Prague, other important cities include, for example, Pilsen, Karlovy Vary, Kladno, Ústí nad Labem, Liberec, Hradec Králové, Pardubice and České Budějovice, Jihlava also lies partly on the historical territory of Bohemia." - info from Wikipedia.

Summer 2019 I did a solo cycling tour across Europe through 12 countries over the course of 3 months. I began my adventure in Edinburgh, Scotland and finished in Florence, Italy cycling 8,816 km. During my trip I took 47,000 photos.

Now on Instagram.

Become a patron to my photography on Patreon or donate.

P1180669_a by O Suave Gigante

The Armistice Clearing at Compiègne:

Char Renault FT 17: '00626'

The Renault FT was also called "FT 17" although this specific naming was never acknowledged by Renault or any official working on the project.

It was to be related to the year 1917, like "modele 1917" as it was customary for many French weapons of the time, but this was introduced after the war.

"FT" has no meaning but was the next identification letters available for this project in Renault nomenclature (some authors suggested later "Faible Tonnage" "low tonnage" or "Franchisseur de Tranchées" "trench crosser"). It began as a concept, and became a personal project of Louis Renault, the famous car maker. He sought the ideal weight-to-ratio proportion for a more agile and faster tank than the Schneider CA-1 and the heavy Saint Chamond, and also a cheaper and easier model to produce.

All started after a meeting between Colonel Estienne and him at the Hotel Claridge in Paris. Until then, Louis Renault declined any involvement into tank production, claiming his lack of experience with tracked vehicles and other commitments. However, as an engineer he was taken up by the challenge, and after the meeting, started a practical study for a light vehicle, easy to manufacture with a reduced, unskilled workforce (factories had been depleted then by mass drafts and enlisting).

The Renault FT prototype included a rotating turret, a concept already tested with the Little Willie, a rear engine configuration, a front driver, with the turret operator (and commander) right behind. Compared to the short and narrow hull, the modified Holt chassis was big enough to allow sufficient grip on any ground. To manage large trench crossings a rear tail was mounted, which facilitates balance and hanging. Instead of "mobile fortresses" or "land cruisers", the Renaut FT seemed lightly armed, but the turret made it versatile and efficient in most circumstances.

The Renault 4-cylinder air-cooled petrol engine was started either by a rear crank or an internal one. It was handily reachable from above, protected by a large hood. The petrol tank was installed after the turret and before the engine, high for gravity and well-protected except from above. A steel chain was usually suspended on the rear tail in order to be used for towing another vehicle. Large metal boxes were suspended on the flanks, with shovels, picks, spanner and other tools, as well as sometimes additional fuel tanks and spare track links. There was no means of communication between the turret operator and driver and the interior was almost deafeningly noisy, so a kind of "kicking code" in the back, shoulders or even head of the driver was used to transmit steering orders. These were armed with a Puteaux M19 37 mm (1.45 in) short-barreled, low-velocity gun, or a coaxial Hotchkiss 7.92 mm (0.31 in) machine gun.

FT 17s after the First World War were in service with more than 20 countries around the world and took an active part in many military conflicts on different continents. It has become one of the most popular interwar model, and purchased by Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Yugoslavia, Belgium, while Czechoslovakia, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Greece and Sweden tested it. The biggest buyer outside Europe was Brazil. The FT influence worldwide could not be underestimated: They were the very first US, Soviet and Italians tanks, generating close-copies and printing a profound mark on later developments.

There were still thousands of FTs in various conditions around the globe when the Second World War broke out. The bulk of this WWI vintage fleet was in France, mostly because of a late rearmament. Both the Renault R35 and Hotchkiss H35 were due to completely replace this model (almost 2800 light tanks combined in May 1940). But still around 1850 FTs were listed as of 1939, renamed "FT-31". These were rearmed version with the Reibel 7.5 mm (0.295 in) compact machine-gun, a gas-operated model originally designed to serve on the Maginot line. But this upgrade did not improve their limited capabilities in range and speed, although not worrying an ageing general staff still thinking in trench warfare terms. Many were stationed in the Colonies, others served in second line, some were in various depots or assigned to training units when the western campaign began. This fleet was seized by the Germans, and reused for various duties.

Numerous Renault FT-17s saw action during the three first years of the war. The Polish ones were committed when the Germans launched Fall Weiss, Finnish modified Neiraas and Koiraas fought as dug out pillboxes for ambushes during the winter campaign, the Belgian FT-18s were also at the stakes when the Werhmacht crossed the north-eastern border in May 1940. Later on in April 1941, the Yugoslavian FTs and a very few Greek models also saw action against the Panzerdivisions. In Indo-China, also in 1941, French colonial armoured brigades equipped with the FT-17 (in original conditions) opposed a Thai invasion. The very same year, Iran, still operating a small fleet of FTs was found mobilized during the Anglo-Soviet invasion of their country. Perhaps some of these were sold or sent to Afghanistan and found some years ago by G.I.s in a metal dump.

(www.tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww1/fr/renault_ft.php)

Difficulty resolution specific by alexander_stein_taech

9

2022.08.17 by K Tilley

1

1938 Talbot-Lago T150-C SS Teardrop Coupe by Figoni et Falaschi

$7,265,000 USD | Sold

From Sotheby's:

“The Talbot-Lago Teardrop Coupe represents what may be one of the finest examples of assembled form ever applied to the automobile.”

Strother MacMinn, Automotive Designer and Writer

Having assumed control of Automobiles Talbot S.A in 1933, and subsequently purchased the historic name from the receivers in 1936, ambitious Anglo-Italian engineer Anthony Lago set about revitalizing the beleaguered company with a range of new cars designed by former Fiat and Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq engineer Walter Becchia. In the context of the period—one dominated by the fallout from the Great Depression—cost control would be critical and, although the company offered more than a dozen models over the next four years, many shared common parts such that only four different chassis designs were used during this time.

Amongst his myriad briefs, Becchia was tasked with developing a competition version of the company’s 3-liter six-cylinder T150 engine, as Lago had identified motorsport as an area critical to the company’s future success. A comprehensive redesign saw the newly enlarged 4-liter engine modified with hemispherical combustion chambers and three Zenith-Stomberg carburetors; its generous 104.5-millimeter stroke afforded copious torque at modest revs, rendering it ideally suited to competitive use.

However, Lago understood that future racing success would require far more than mere horsepower. To this end, he instructed Becchia, in conjunction with fellow Fiat alumnus Vincenzo Bertarione, to construct a commensurate chassis. The new T150-C frame—the “C” denoting “Corse”—was of a conventional ladder type, with box section side spars joined by tubular cross-members. The short-chassis Super Sports, or “SS,” variant boasted a wheelbase of 104 inches and featured independent front suspension via a combination of top links and a transversely mounted leaf spring, while at the rear an underslung live axle was employed. Further modifications specific to the model included a large-capacity oil pan, while the fitment of a Wilson pre-selector gearbox ensured quick and dependable gear changes.

Four T150-C SS Roadsters were constructed for the 1936 season, although it was not until the following year that they achieved the results they deserved: a magnificent 1-2-3-5 in the Sports Car-only French Grand Prix and a commanding win in the RAC Tourist Trophy at Donington Park were notable highlights.

ENTER FIGONI ET FALASCHI

Lago had, by this time, been introduced to celebrated coachbuilder Giuseppe Figoni by Luigi Chinetti, a mutual friend and then Talbot-Lago’s Parisian agent. Italian by birth, Figoni had emigrated to Paris as a young boy, subsequently establishing his fabled coachworks in nearby Boulogne-sur-Seine. It was there that he built up a strong bond with Chinetti; the latter employed him to modify the bodywork of the long-chassis Alfa Romeo 8C 2300s with which he would emerge victorious at Le Mans in 1932 and 1934.

Figoni had been commissioned by Lago to construct the bodies of some, if not all, of the T150-C SS Roadsters; their aerodynamic cycle-type wings bore a strikingly similar appearance and construction to those fitted to Chinetti’s Alfa 8Cs. Mindful of the seemingly limitless styling opportunities offered by the distinctly en vogue Art Deco movement, Lago discussed with Figoni the possibility of fitting a number of his chassis with suitably extravagant coupe bodies constructed by the now re-named Figoni et Falaschi coachworks. Such was Figoni’s enthusiasm for the idea that both parties embarked upon an exclusive arrangement to work together in 1937, and no less than 16 such coupes were constructed over the next two years.

An initial batch of five cars, retrospectively termed “Jeancart” coupes in deference to the purchaser of the first such example, was constructed using a combination of T-150-C and T23 chassis. Featuring trademark Figoni touches such as steeply raked windscreens, sumptuously sculpted fenders, and oval window apertures, each was impossibly beautiful yet subtly different to the next. Upon its unveiling at the 1937 Paris Motor Show, the new coupe was dubbed “Goutte d’Eau”—literally “water drop”—although this term was quickly anglicized into the more appropriate “teardrop,” which endures to this day.

Whilst the Jeancart coupes all exhibited an elegant notch-backed side profile, the second-series cars were arguably even more pure in aesthetic terms, exhibiting as they did a simpler “fastback” tail section. Launched at the 1937 New York Auto Show, the second-series examples assumed the unofficial title of “New York” cars, and 11 were constructed in this style: 10 on 104-inch T150-C SS frames, and one on the longer 116-inch T23 chassis. Each was powered by a 140-horsepower version of the dependable T150-C engine.

THE SOLE COMPETITION TEARDROP

Believed to have been the penultimate “New York”-style car built, the magnificent example which RM Sotheby’s is honored to offer here, chassis 90117, has the distinction of being the only Goutte d’Eau coupe constructed expressly with competition in mind.

Originally commissioned by Philippe Régnier de Massa, a member of one of France’s oldest and most decorated noble families, it was ordered with several competition-inspired modifications, including additional driving lights, a 250-kph speedometer, a "semi-bucket" seat on the driver's side, reinforcement tubes and brackets in the engine bay, a long-range fuel tank, and an external fuel filler cap. Furthermore, according to Figoni’s son Claude, the car was two inches lower and four inches longer than any other Teardrop coupe in an attempt to minimize both frontal area and drag, and it featured both an opening rear window and a unique heart-shaped sunroof to aid ventilation.

Doubtless buoyed by the fine 3rd place achieved at Le Mans in 1938 by the Talbot-Lago Portout Coupe of Prenant and Morel, de Massa opted to enter his car in the 1939 edition; remarkably his first race of international standard. For reasons not entirely understood, the car was officially entered by British motor racing luminary and writer T.A.S.O. Mathieson—himself sharing a new T26 model in the race with Chinetti—with de Massa co-driven by Norbert-Jean Mahé, who had finished 9th in the 1934 event. The pair had been performing strongly in 9th place when they were eliminated from the race on the 88th lap, a retirement variously attributed to either a broken valve spring or disqualification following a contravention of the sporting regulations.

An appearance in an unnamed post-Le Mans Concours aside, no other outings are recorded for the car during de Massa’s ownership. With war having broken out barely 10 weeks after Le Mans, the car was reputedly confiscated by the Germans in or around 1942, and was eventually acquired in neglected, engineless state by a Herr A. Becker of Rangsdorf, near Berlin, shortly after hostilities ceased.

Following the fall of the Berlin Wall in late 1989, 90117 was sold to Peter Schmitz, a resident of western Germany, who commenced a long-overdue restoration of the car. However, Herr Schmitz kept the car only until 1995, when it was sold in an unfinished state to Automuseum Deventer of Joure, in the Netherlands.

Although the car was separated from its engine at some point in the past, research on file indicates that a correct-type Talbot-Lago engine was located in the United Kingdom and subsequently fitted. A separate racing hood, a testament to its time at the Circuit de la Sarthe complete with cut-out holes for oil and coolant filler access, accompanies the sale of the car today.

In 1996, ownership of the car then passed to Georg Lingenbrink of San Diego, California. It was in the latter’s custody that a comprehensive six-year restoration commenced; the car being finished in the appropriately elegant color scheme of deep aubergine with contrasting tan pigskin leather upholstery, and tan cloth interior trim.

In 2006, chassis 90117 entered the esteemed Oscar Davis Collection, in whose custody it has remained ever since. Mr. Davis entrusted the car to respected restorers Classic and Sport Auto Refinishing concern of Edinburg, Virginia who assessed it exhaustively, and performed a further $100,000 of restoration work—of both a mechanical and cosmetic nature—in 2006 and 2007. In 2007 the car, remarkably, made its first public appearance in 68 years at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. It subsequently took a series of richly deserved wins at European counterpart, Villa d’Este, in 2010, including the juried Trofeo BMW Group - Best of Show and the publicly selected Trofeo BMW Groupe Italia. The Louis Vuitton Concours Classic Award, intended to recognize the “best of the best” among the world’s concours-winning automobiles, followed in 2011.

Impossibly stylish, exquisitely detailed, yet built on competition foundations offering spirited performance and standard-setting levels of refinement and ride quality, the Talbot-Lago “Goutte d’Eau” coupes remain amongst the most highly prized of all coachbuilt pre-war cars. Of the 11 “New York"-style examples constructed, 90117 remains among the most compelling; a car which intertwines Art Deco elegance with a brief but fascinating competition history, not to mention a period of prolonged (if unwitting) preservation behind the Iron Curtain and recent concours success.

Immaculately presented in the most fetching of color combinations, it remains equally—and perhaps uniquely—qualified for the world’s finest vintage tours, rallies, and concours as well as, somewhat incongruously, vintage racing events such as the Le Mans Classic and Monterey Historics. Guaranteed to steal the limelight at any event in which it is entered, this represents one of the most significant coachbuilt cars ever to be offered for public sale, and an opportunity which should be given serious consideration by any appropriately discerning collector.

---

Kristina and I headed over to RM Sotheby's at the Monterey Conference Center to view some glorious cars at their auction preview.

- - -

Had a blast with our auto-enthusiast friend and neighbor, Fred, at Monterey Car Week 2022.

Thailand - Bangkok - Wat Phra Kaeo - 39 by Manfred Sommer

Wat Phra Kaew (Thai: วัดพระแก้ว, rtgs: Wat Phra Kaeo, IPA: [wát pʰráʔ kɛ̂ːw], Pronunciation, English: Temple of the Emerald Buddha; full official name Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram, Thai: วัดพระศรีรัตนศาสดาราม, IPA: [wát pʰráʔ sǐː rát.ta.náʔ sàːt.sa.daː.raːm]) is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple (wat) in Thailand. The Emerald Buddha housed in the temple is a potent religio-political symbol and the palladium (protective image) of Thai society. It is located in Phra Nakhon District, the historic centre of Bangkok, within the precincts of the Grand Palace.

The main building is the central phra ubosot, which houses the statue of the Emerald Buddha. According to legend, this Buddha image originated in India where the sage Nagasena prophesized that the Emerald Buddha would bring "prosperity and pre-eminence to each country in which it resides", the Emerald Buddha deified in the Wat Phra Kaew is therefore deeply revered and venerated in Thailand as the protector of the country. Historical records however dates its finding to Chiang Rai in the 15th century where, after it was relocated a number of times, it was finally taken to Thailand in the 18th century. It was enshrined in Bangkok at the Wat Phra Kaew temple in 1782 during the reign of Phutthayotfa Chulalok, King Rama I (1782–1809). This marked the beginning of the Chakri Dynasty of Thailand, whose present sovereign is Bhumibol Adulyadej, King Rama IX.

The Emerald Buddha, a dark green statue, is in a standing form, about 66 centimetres tall, carved from a single jade stone ("emerald" in Thai means deep green colour and not the specific stone). It is carved in the meditating posture in the style of the Lanna school of the northern Thailand. Except for the Thai King and, in his stead, the Crown Prince, no other persons are allowed to touch the statue. The King changes the cloak around the statue three times a year, corresponding to the summer, winter, and rainy seasons, an important ritual performed to usher good fortune to the country during each season.

HISTORY

In 1767, the Kingdom of Ayutthaya fell to the Burmese, and King Taksin then moved the capital to Thonburi where he built the old palace beside Wat Arun on the west bank of Chao Phraya River. In 1778, Taksin's army under the command of Chao Phraya Chakri (who later became Rama I) captured Vientiane and took the Emerald Buddha back to Thonburi.

In 1782, King Rama I succeeded to the throne and founded the Chakri Dynasty, and he decided to move the capital across the river to Bangkok as it would be better protected from attack. The site chosen for the palace is situated between two old wats, Wat Pho and Wat Mahathat, an area inhabited by Chinese residents who were then moved to the present Chinatown. He started the construction of the Grand Palace so that the palace may be ready for his coronation in 1785. Wat Phra Kaew, which has its own compound within the precinct of the palace, was built to house the Emerald Buddha, which is considered a sacred object that provides protection for the kingdom. Wat Phra Kaew was completed in 1784. The formal name of Wat Phra Kaeo is Phra Sri Rattana Satsadaram, which means "the residence of the Holy Jewel Buddha."

Wat Phra Kaew has undergone a number of renovations, restoration and additions in its history, particularly during the reign of King Rama III and Rama IV. Rama III started the renovations and rebuilding in 1831 for the 50th Anniversary of BangkoK of 1832, while Rama IV's restoration was completed by Rama V in time for the Bangkok Centennial celebrations in 1882. Further restoration was undertaken by Rama VII on Bangkok's 150th Anniversary in 1932, and by Rama IX for the 200th Anniversary in 1982.

EMERALD BUDDHA

It is not known when the statue of the Emerald Buddha was made, but it is generally believed that it was crafted in 14th-century Thailand. However, there are also claims that the statue originated in India or Sri Lanka. None of these theories can be firmly established as none of the historians could get a close look at the statue.

According to one account, the Emerald Buddha was found in Chiang Rai, Lanna in 1434, after a lightning storm struck a temple. The Buddha statue fell down and later became chipped, and the monks, after removing the stucco around the statue, discovered that the image was a perfectly made Buddha image from a solid piece of green jade. The image was moved a few time to various temples, first to Lampang, then to Chiang Mai, from where it was removed by prince Chao Chaiyasetthathirat to Luang Prabang, when his father died and he ascended the throne of both Lanna and Lan Xang, in 1551. The statue remained the it to his new capital of Lan Xang in Vientiane in the 1560s. The statue remained there for twelve years. King Chaiyasetthathirat then shifted it to his new capital of Lan Xang in Vientiane in the 1560s. He took the Emerald Buddha with him and the image remained in Vientiane for 214 years until 1778.

In the reign of King Taksin, Chao Phya Chakri (who later became Rama I) defeated Vientiane and moved the Emerald Buddha from Vientiane to Thonburi where it was installed in a shrine close to Wat Arun. When Chao Phra Chakri took over the throne and founded the Chakri Dynasty of the Rattanakosin Kingdom, he shifted his capital across the river to its present location in Bangkok. The Emerald Buddha was also moved across the river with pomp and pageantry and installed in the temple of Wat Phra Keaw.

LEGENDS

There a number of legends associated with the Emerald Buddha. It was said the iconic image of the Emerald Buddha was made by Nagasena, a saint in Pataliputra (present day Patna), India, who, with the help of Hindu god Vishnu and demigod Indra, had the Emerald Buddha image made. Nagasena predicted that:

The image of the Buddha is assuredly going to give to religion the most brilliant importance in five lands, that is in Lankadvipa (Sri Lanka), Ramalakka, Dvaravati, Chieng Mai and Lan Chang (Laos).

The Emerald Buddha image was taken to Sri Lanka after three hundred years in Pataliputra to save it during a civil war. In 457, King Anuruth of Burma sent a mission to Ceylon with a request for Buddhist scriptures and the Emerald Buddha, in order to promote Buddhism in his country. These requests were granted, but the ship lost its way in a storm during the return voyage and landed in Cambodia. When the Thais captured Angkor Wat in 1432 (following the ravage of the bubonic plague), the Emerald Buddha was taken to Ayutthaya, Kamphaeng Phet, Laos and finally Chiang Rai, where the ruler of the city hid it, and was later found.

ARCHITECTURE

Wat Phra Kaeo has a plethora of buildings within the precincts of the Grand Palace, which covers a total area of over 94.5 hectares. It has over 100 buildings with “200 years royal history and architectural experimentation” linked to it. The architectural style is named as Rattanakosin style (old Bangkok style). The main temple of the Emerald Buddha is very elegantly decorated and similar to the temple in ancient capital of Ayudhya. The roof is embellished with polished orange and green tiles, the pillars are inlaid in mosaic and the pediments are made of rich marble, installed around 18th century. The Emerald Buddha is deified over an elevated altar surrounded by large gilded decorations. While the upper part of this altar was part of the original construction, the base was added by King Rama III. Two images of the Buddha, which represent the first two kings of the Chakri dynasty, flank the main image. Over the years, the temple has retained its original design. However, minor improvements have been effected after its first erection during Rama I's reign; wood-work of the temple was replaced by King Rama III and King Chulalongkorn; during King Mongkut's reign, the elegant doors and windows and the copper plates on the floor were additions, Rama III refurbished the wall painting (indicative of the universe according to Buddhist cosmology) and several frescoes that display the various stages of the Buddha's life; three chambers were added on the western side by King Mongkut; in the chamber known as 'Phra Kromanusorn' at the northern end, images of Buddha have been installed in honour of the kings of Ayutthaya; and in the 19th century, In Khong, a famous painter executed the wall murals. The entry to the temple is from the third gate from the river pier.The entrance is guarded by a pair of yakshis (mythical giants – 5 metres high statues). The eponymous image Buddha in brilliant green colour is 66 centimetres (26 in) in height with a lap width of 48.3 centimetres. It is carved in a yogic position, known as Virasana (a meditation pose commonly seen in images in Thailand and also in South India, Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia). The pedestal on which the Emerald Buddha deified is decorated with Garuda (the mythical half-man half-bird form, a steed of Rama, who holds his mortal enemy Naga the serpent in his legs) motifs It is central to Thai Buddhism. The image made with a circular base has a smooth top-knot that is finished with a "dulled point marking at the top of the image". A third eye made in gold is inset over the elevated eyebrows of the image. The image appears divine and composed, with the eyes cast downward. The image has a small nose and mouth (mouth closed) and elongated ears. The hands are seen on the lap with palms facing upwards.

The entire complex, including the temples, is bounded by a compound wall which is one of the most prominent part of the wat is about 2 kilometres length. The compound walls are decorated with typically Thai murals, based on the Indian epic Ramayana. In Thai language these murals are known to form the Ramakian, the Thai national epic, which was written during the reign of Rama I. The epic stories formed the basic information to draw the paintings during the reign of King Rama I (1782–1809). These paintings are refurbished regularly. The murals, in 178 scenes, starting with the north gate of the temple illustrates the complete epic story of Ramayana sequentially, in a clockwise direction covering the entire compound wall. The murals serve to emphasise human values of honesty, faith, and devotion.

There are twelve salas that were built by Rama I, around the temple. They house interesting artefacts of regions such as Cambodia and Java. One of these salas had an inscription of Ramkamhaeng, which was shifted, in 1924, to the National Library. During the reign of King Mongkut, the Phra Gandharara – small chapel on the southwest corner – and a tall belfry were new additions.

WORSHIP AND CEREMONIES

Early in the Bangkok period, the Emerald Buddha used to be taken out of its temple and paraded in the streets to relieve the city and countryside of various calamities (such as plague and cholera). However, this practice was discontinued during Rama IV's reign as it was feared that the image could get damaged during the procession and also a practical line of thinking that Rama IV held "that diseases are caused by germs, not by evil spirits or the displeasure of the Buddha". The image also marks the changing of the seasons in Thailand, with the king presiding over the seasonal ceremonies.

Like many other Buddha statues in Thailand, the Emerald Buddha is dressed in a seasonal costume. It is a significant ritual held at this temple. In this ritual, dress of the deity is changed three times a year to correspond to the seasons. In summer it is a pointed crown of gold and jewels, and a set of jewelled ornaments that adorns the image from the shoulders to the ankles. In winter, a meshed dressing gown or drapery made of gold beads, which covered from the neck down like a poncho is used. During the rainy months, a top-knot headdress studded with gold, enamel and sapphires; the gold attire in the rainy season is draped over the left shoulder of the deity, only with the right shoulder left bare while gold ornaments embellish the image up to the ankles. The astrological dates for the ritual ceremonies, at the changing of the seasons, followed are in the 1st Waning Moon of Lunar Months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, July and November). The costume change ritual is performed by the Thai king who is the highest master of ceremonies for all Buddhist rites. On each occasion, the king himself "cleans the image by wiping away any dust that has collected and changing the headdress of the image". Then a king's royal attendant climbs up and performs the elaborate ritual of changing garments of the image as the king is chanting prayers to the deity. On this occasion, the king sprinkles water over the monks and the faithful who have assembled to witness the unique ritual and seeks blessings of the deity for good fortune during the upcoming season. The two sets of clothing not in use at any given time are kept on display in the nearby Pavilion of Regalia, Royal Decorations and Coins in the precincts of the Grand Palace. While Rama I initiated this ritual for the hot season and the rainy season, Rama III introduced the ritual for the winter season. The robes, which the image adorns, represents that of monks and King's depending on the season, a clear indication of highlighting its symbolic role "as Buddha and the King", which role is also enjoined on the Thai King who formally dresses the Emerald Buddha image.

A ceremony that is observed in the wat is the Chakri Day (begun on April 6, 1782), a national holiday to honour founding of the Chakri dynasty. On this day, the king attends the ceremony. The present king Rama IX, with his Queen, and entourage of the royal family, the Prime Minister, officials in the Ministry of Defence, and other government departments, first offer prayers at the Emerald Buddha temple. This is followed by visit to the pantheon to pay homage to the images of past Chakri rulers that are installed there.

The coronation ceremony, which marks the crowning of the king, is an important event of the Chakri dynasty. One such recent event took place when the present Rama IX was crowned the King. On this occasion, the King came to the Chapel Royal- the Wat Phra Keo – in a procession wearing a 'Great Crown'. After entering the chapel, the king made offerings of gold and silver flowers to the deity and also lighted candles. He also paid homage to the images of Buddha that represented the past kings of the dynasty. In the presence of assembled elite clergy of the kingdom, he took a formal vow of his religion and his steadfastness to 'Defend the Faith'.

RULES OF ENTRY AND CONDUCT

The sacred temples in Thailand follow a dress code, which is strictly followed. Men must wear long pants and sleeved shirts and shoes; women must wear long skirts. Visitors who arrive dressed otherwise may rent appropriate clothing items at the entry area of the temple. It is compulsory to remove the shoes before entering the temple, as a sign of respect of the Buddha, as is the practice in all other temples in Thailand. While offering prayers before the Buddha image, the sitting posture should avoid any offensive stretching of feet towards the deity; the feet should be tucked in towards the back.

OTHER MONUMENTS

While the surrounding portico of the shrine is an example of Thai craftsmanship, the perimeter of the temple complex has 12 open pavilions. These were built during the reign of Rama I. There is plethora of monuments in the temple complex. These are:Grand PalaceThe former residence of the King, the Grand Palace, adjoins the temple. The King makes use of this Grand Palace for ceremonial functions such as the Coronation Day. The King’s present residence is to the north of this Grand Palace and is known as the Chitlada Palace. The four structures surrounding the temple have history of their own. At the eastern end is the Borombhiman Hall (built in French architectural design), which was the residence of King Rama VI, now used as guest house for visiting foreign dignitaries. It has the dubious distinction of having been used as the operational headquarters and residence of General Chitpatima who attempted a coup, in 1981. The building to the west is the Amarindra hall, earlier a hall of Justice, now used for formal ceremonies. The Chakri Mahaprasat is the largest hall in the Grand Palace, built in 1882 by British architects, the architecture of which is fusion of Italian renaissance and Traditional Thai architecture. This style is called farang sai chada, (meaning: "Westerner wearing a Thai crown") as each wing has a shrine (mandap) crowned by a spire. Ashes of the Chakri kings (five ancestors) are enshrined in the largest of these shrines, also known as the pantheons, that were rebuilt after a fire in 1903 during Rama IV's reign. Ashes of the Chakri princess who could not become kings are enshrined in an adjoining hall. The throne room and the reception hall are on the first floor, while the ground floor houses a collection of weapons. The inner palace had the King’s harem (the practice was discontinued during King Rama VI's time who decreed the one wife rule), which was guarded by well trained female guards. Another hall in the palace is the 'Dusit hall' in Ratanokosin-style, which runs from east to west, which was initially an audience hall but now converted into a funerary hall for the Royal family. Royal family corpses are kept here for one year before they are cremated in a nearby field. There is also a garden which was laid during rama IV's reign. The garden depicts a "Thai mountain-and-woods-fable" mountain scenes where the coming of age ritual of shaving the topknot of the Prince is performed.PagodasThe temple grounds also depict three pagodas to its immediate north, which represent the changing centres of Buddhist influence. One such shrine to the west of the temple is the Phra Si Ratana Chedi, a 19th-century stupa built in Sri Lankan style enshrining ashes of the Buddha.Library

Rama I also built a library in Thai style, in the middle of the complex, known as the "Phra Mondop". The library houses an elegantly carved Ayutthaya-style mother-of-pearl doors, bookcases with the Tripitaka (sacred Buddhist manuscripts), human-and dragon-headed nagas (snakes), and images of Chakri kings.

During the 19th century, the Royal Pantheon was built in Khmer style to the east of the temple, which is kept open for only one day in year, in the month of October to commemorate the founding of the Chakri dynasty.

Model of Angkor WatThe temple complex also contains a model of Angkor Wat (the most sacred of all Cambodian shrines). In 1860, King Mongkut ordered his generals to lead 2,000 men to dismantle Angkor Wat and take it to Bangkok. Modern scholars suggested that the king wanted to show that Siam was still in control of Cambodia, as France was seeking to colonise Cambodia at that time. However, the king's order could not be fulfilled. A royal chronicle written by Lord Thiphakorawong (Kham Bunnag), then foreign minister, recorded that many Thai men fell ill after entering Cambodian wilderness. The chronicle also stated that forest-dwelling Khmer people ambushed the Thai army, killing many leading generals. King Mongkut then ordered the construction of the model within Wat Phra Kaew, instead of the real Angkor Wat that could not be brought to Bangkok. Mongkut died before he could see the model. Its construction was completed in the reign of his son, Chulalongkorn.Hermit statue

A hermit's bronze image, which is believed to have healing powers, is installed in a sala on the western side of the temple. It is near the entry gate. It is a black stone statue, considered a patron of medicine, before which relatives of the sick and infirm pay respects and make offerings of joss sticks, fruit, flowers, and candles.

EIGHT TOWERS

On the eastern side of the temple premises there are eight towers or prangs, each of a different colour. They were erected during the reign of Rama I and represent eight elements of Buddhism.

ELEPHANT STATUES

Statues of elephants, which symbolize independence and power, are seen all around the complex. As Thai kings fought wars mounted on elephants, it has become customary for parents to make their children circumambulate the elephant three times with the belief that that it would bring them strength. The head of an elephant statue is also rubbed for good luck; this act of the people is reflected in the smoothness of the surface of elephant statues here.

WIKIPEDIA

Jadeitite (jadeite jade) (Burma) 1 by James St. John

1

Jadeite jade with weathering rind from the Jurassic of Burma. (public display, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, USA)

“Jade” refers to more than one specific type of metamorphic rock. The four categories of “jade” are:

1) jadeitite (jadeite jade)

2) nephrite/nephritite (nephrite jade)

3) chromian jade (maw sit sit)

4) serpentine jade

Jadeitite (= jadeite jade) is a rare metamorphic rock composed of jadeite pyroxene (Na(Al,Fe)(Si2O6)). Published research on Burmese jade generally indicates that the jadeitite rock masses formed by metasomatism of albitites (= plagioclase feldspar metamorphites) at the periphery of serpentinized mantle peridotite bodies. The mantle peridotite was part of a subducting slab of Mesozoic-aged oceanic lithosphere that was emplaced upward and against southeast Asian continental lithosphere by obduction.

Geologic unit: unrecorded/undisclosed (but probably derived from the Hpakan-Tawmaw Jade Tract, Hpakan Ultramafic Body, Naga-Adaman Ophiolite)

Age: Syngenetic zircons indicate that Burmese jadeitite formed at 147 Ma (late Tithonian Stage, near-latest Jurassic. The serpentinite host rocks formed (metamorphic age) at 163 Ma (Middle Jurassic). Older literature interprets Burmese jadeitite as Tertiary in age, hosted by Late Creatceous to Eocene serpentinized peridotites.

Locality: alluvial clast (placer jade) from unrecorded/undisclosed locality in Burma (possibly from the vicinity of Phakant, upper reaches of the Uyu River (Uru River), western Kachin State, Indo-Burma Range, northern Burma)

--------------

References on Burmese jade:

Bender, F. 1983. Geology of Burma. Berlin. Gebruder Borntraeger. 260 pp.

Hughes, R.W., O. Galibert, G. Bosshart, F. Ward, Oo T., M. Smith, Sun Tay Thye & G.E. Harlow. 2000. Burmese jade: the inscrutable gem. Gems & Gemology 36(1): 2-26.

Qiu Zhili, Wu Fuyuan, Yang Shufeng, Zhu Min, Sun Jinfeng & Yang Ping. 2008. Age and genesis of the Myanmar jadeite: constraints from U-Pb ages and Hf isotopes of zircon inclusions. Chinese Science Bulletin 54: 658-668.

Rossman, G.R. 1974. Lavender jade, the optical spectrum of Fe3+ and Fe2+ --> Fe3+ intervalence charge transfer in jadeite from Burma. American Mineralogist 59: 868-870.

Shi Guanghai, Cui Wenyuan, Cao Shumin, Jiang Neng, Jian Ping, Liu Dunyi, Miao Laicheng & Chu Bingbing. 2008. Ion microprobe zircon U-Pb age and geochemistry of the Myanmar jadeitite. Journal of the Geological Society of London 165: 221-234.

Shi Guanghai, Cui Wenyuan, Wang Changqiu & Zhang Wenhuai. 2000. The fluid inclusions in jadeitite from Pharkant area, Myanmar. Chinese Science Bulletin 45: 1896-1901.

Shi Guang-Hai, Jiang Neng, Liu Yan, Wang Xia, Zhang Zhi-Yu & Xu Yong-Jing. 2009. Zircon Hf isotope signature of the depleted mantle in the Myanmar jadeitite: implications for Mesozoic intra-oceanic subduction between the Eastern Indian Plate and the Burmese Platelet. Lithos 112: 342-350.

Shi Guanghai, Jiang Neng, Wang Yuwang, Zhao Xin, Wang Xia, Li Guowu, E. Ng & Cui Wenyuan. 2010. Ba minerals in clinopyroxene rocks from the Myanmar jadeitite area: implications for Ba recycling in subduction zones. European Journal of Mineralogy 22: 199-214.

Shi Guanghai, Wang Xia, Chu Bingbing & Cui Wenyuan. 2009. Jadeite jade from Myanmar: its texture and gemmological implications. The Journal of Gemmology 31: 185-195.

DRE @ 12 Weeks Old by mark fox

2

DRE @ 12 Weeks Old

HISTORY OF THE STAFFORDSHIRE BULL TERRIER

Mankind has enjoyed the faithfulness of the dog by the side for countries. Few dogs desire to please their human masters as mush as the staffordshire bull terrier. Dogs in general have accommodated man and his every whim for generations anything to please the master. Today's Staffordshire Bull Terrier, in mind and body, echoes that sentiment with night and determination.

A SPECIALIST IN BODY AND MIND

before the days of dog shows and the purebred mating of champions, human recognised the merit in dogs that specialise in performing a specific job or task. We bred dogs that could hunt, herd, haul, guard, run, track and perform countless other tasks geared towards making humans lives more comfortable, enjoyable, and manageable. Each dog's anatomy reflected the task tha men set before him. The hunting dog had an insulated coat, a super sensitive nose, a short coupled body, a deep chest and straight, strong legs. The coursing dog had longer legs, a tucked-up abdomen (for speed), a deep chest (for lung capacity), keen eyesight, and a narrow, long muzzle (to slice the wind). The guard dogs were true heavyweights: massive and solidly boned with punishing jaws and nerves of steel.

Understand the Staffordshire Bull Terrier as a pet

required knowledge of the dog's history as a baiting and

fighting dog. No dog matches this breeds devotion to

it's master, in mind and body

The physical characteristics that set apart the staffordshire bull terrier are its impressive musculature, its strongly undershot strong jaws and large teeth, very pronounced cheek muscles, loose shoulders, roach black, low-slung body and long legs that bend in the forequarters. These are the characteristics of a fighting or baiting dog that enable it to perform the tasks that breed indeed all the bull and terrier dogs, were created to tackle. The decree'Go Low, pin and hold!' was in sooth a battle cry! This imposing physique was needed for the dogs to fight one another, as well as dodge and grab an ornery bull with their powerful gripping jaws and hold on to it without being tossed aside!

Baiting a bull, an animal twenty or more times the size of a dog, placed some obvious demands on the dog, its anatomy and temperament. The desired temperament of a bull and terrier dog for baiting was not a vicious, risk-taking daredevil. Instead, the baiting dog required an even-keeled, level-headed, obedient temperament, peppered with patience, indomitable courage and tenacity. The bulldog excelled in the pinning and holding of the bull, but lacked the flexibility required in the dog pit. thus, the smaller bull and terrier dogs were designed to take on this challenge and each other.

The characteristics of a fighting dog still distin

guish the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, including the

pronounced cheek muscles, long legs and loose

shoulders

Image the heart of the dog that willingly undertake such a task for the sake of pleasing his master! Baiting and fighting dogs were not the only kinds of dogs that risked their lives for their human counterparts. Indeed, harding and droving dogs, hunting dogs, and even the smaller terrier risked their lives for the sake of accomplishing their task. Nonetheless, the bloody endeavour of slaying bull overshadows almost any other taskset before dog.

The original fighting types were large, mastiff dogs with heavy, low-slung bodies and powerfully developed heads. Some accounts also descibed the deep, frightening voice of the mastiffs. In appearance, the mastiffs were appalling and frightful. Mastiff dogs yielded not only fighting dogs but also flock guards, scent hounds and other powerful hunters. Consider the size and fearlessness of such modern-day mastiff as Great Pyrenees, Kuvasz, Dogo Argention and Spanish Mastiff. Consider the size and features of the bloodhound, Great Dane,Newfoundland and Polish Hound. All these dogs derive from crosses to these powerful mastiffs of yesteryear.

ORIGINAL PURPOSES OF THE GREAT MASTIFFS

Historians have recorded many impressive duties amongst the purposes of these original mastiffs. Dogs used for war armoured,spiked, and collared became valuable weapons for human strying to defend themselves from t heir enemies. These dogs were not only brave but aggressive and resource full. As early as 2100B.C. dogs were employed for warring purposed. Many famous kings and tribes used dogs to claim their victories. The dogs were trained in combat and were uniformed with impenetrable metal shields and spiked collars to protect them from their foes who carried spears and other primitive weapons.

The American Staffordshire Terrier, shown here,

derived from the Staffordshire Bull Terrier from

crosses to other terriers in the U.S

Spanning the millennia, Hammurabi, Kambyses, Varius and henry VII were among the monarchs that valued dogs in their militia. These dogs were necessarily vicious and trusted no one exept their one master. Appropriately these war dogs were labelled Canis bellicosus.

The great mastiff also assisted man by hunting large, ferocious game. These dog commonly hunted in packs, maintained by the royals, and were used to pursue bison and aurochs in the wild forests. Dogs were also used to track the stag, considered a noble game,as well as the wild boar, the most dangerous of wild game, revered for its ruthless, nasty disposition. The mastiffs worked in conjunction with lighter, swifter dogs that tired the boar before the mighty mastiffs were releases to slay it, many men, dogs and horses were killed by the wild boars fighting for their lives. There are accounts of boar dogs being kept in kennel 6000 dog strong. Today, mastiffs are rarely used for these purposes, but there are still boar hunts in the U.S., Germany and the Czech Republic.

Bear hunting, even more popular today than boar hunting,was also a noble pursuit of the dogs of antiquity. The dogs were required to track the bear, cornerit and keep it occupied until the hunter arrived with their firearms. The bear is highly intelligent creature that could weight much as 350 kgs and could easily outmatch a dog. Mastiffs in India produce the most coloful tale of hunting, including the pursuit of buffalo, leopards, panthers and elephants! Regardless of the actual truth of many of these accounts, the stories underscore the fearless tenacity of these mastiff dogs that the ancestors of our Staffordshire Bull Terrier.

Astro by Matthew Wells

1

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

Gromit Unleashed: Golden Gromit by Matthew Wells

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

Looks like I'm gonna be as cheap as you F$$Kers on none discounted & none specific colour Friday..... . Sorry to all my friends & family for ruining your surprise😕 Saving up the pennies to move to my £2.99, 5 bedroom house in 'Marditch'™ where by Aida Wilde

via Instagram ift.tt/2hsc9yC

No. 33: Bear Necessities by Matthew Wells

Welcome fellow Paddington Bear spotter! My photostream features all 50 Paddingtons. If you would like to shortcut to a specific one, please use the links below

No. 1: Love, Paddington X (Lulu Guinness) |

Felix Gonzalez-Torres by Marc Wathieu

3

Visiting Felix Gonzalez-Torres "Specific Objects without Specific Form" retrospective at Wiels with Erg (Ecole de Recherche Graphique) students, february 2010.

WIELS premieres a major traveling retrospective of Felix Gonzalez-Torres’ oeuvre, including both rarely seen and more known artworks, while proposing an experimental form for the exhibition that is indebted to the artist’s own radical conception of the artwork.

Gonzalez-Torres (American, b. Cuba 1957-1996), one of the most influential artists of his generation, settled in New York in the early 1980s, where he studied art and began his practice as an artist before his untimely death of AIDS related complications. His work can be seen in critical relationship to Conceptual art and Minimalism, mixing political activism, emotional affect, and deep formal concerns in a wide range of media, including drawings, sculpture, and public billboards*, often using ordinary objects as a starting point—clocks, mirrors, light fixtures. Amongst his most famous artworks are his piles of candy and paper stacks from which viewers are allowed to take away a piece. They are premised, like so much of what he did, on instability and potential for change: artworks without an already preset or specific form. The result is a profoundly human body of work, intimate and vulnerable even as it destabilizes so many seemingly unshakable certainties (the artwork as fixed, the exhibition as a place to look but not touch, the author as the ultimate form-giver).

To present the oeuvre of an artist who put fragility, the passage of time, and the questioning of authority at the center of his artworks, the exhibition will be entirely re-installed at each of its venues halfway through its duration by a different invited artist whose practice has been informed by Felix Gonzalez-Torres’ work. A first version of Felix Gonzalez-Torres. Specific Objects without Specific Form by curator Elena Filipovic will open to the public and on March 5, 2010, the artist Danh Vo will re-install the exhibition, effectively making an entirely new show.

Text source :

www.wiels.org/site2/event.php?event_id=160

Increment Specific System Update briefing by NASA Johnson

JSC2013-E-079359 (30 Aug. 2013) --- Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata (front row, second right), Expedition 38 flight engineer and Expedition 39 commander; and NASA astronaut Rick Mastracchio (front row, right), Expedition 38/39 flight engineer; along with instructors and flight control team members, are pictured during an Increment Specific System Update briefing in a conference room in the Jake Garn Simulation and Training Facility at NASA's Johnson Space Center. The briefing is supported by 19 flight control team disciplines and gives the upcoming crew a quick review of the Soyuz 37 vehicle’s current health, status and upcoming operations. Photo credit: NASA

No. 3: Bushed by David Inshaw by Matthew Wells

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

Jingles by Vivi Cuevas by Matthew Wells

An additional Gromit to last years Gromit Unleashed, you can buy a raffle ticket at the Gromit Unleashed shop at Cribbs Causeway to buy Jingles if you wanted

Would you like a take a shortcut to a specific Gromit?

documenta-kassel--why-kabul---car-climate-change textile biennalist portee by Thierry Geoffroy / Colonel : Artist