Amsterdam, Netherlands
The world has been abuzz this week at the discovery/authentication of a painting by Vincent van Gogh that had long languished in a Norwegian attic (top image). Entitled ‘Sunset at Montmajour,’ the piece was painted near Arles in the South of France in 1888, during the time many consider to be the famous Dutch Impressionist’s most productive period.
Earlier this summer I came across a great link… The Google Art Project is a collaboration with museums large and small, classic and modern, world-renowned and community-based from over 40 countries. Together they have contributed more than 40,000 high-resolution images of works ranging from oil on canvas to sculpture and furniture. Some paintings (like The Starry Night) are available in ‘gigapixel’ format, allowing you to zoom in at brushstroke level to examine and appreciate the incredible detail of these masterpieces. In addition to the high-resolution images, each artwork also features expertly-narrated videos, audio guides, viewing notes, detailed information, maps and more. It’s a remarkable online resource and one that’s worth exploring, here.
(source)
I designed this poster in 2005, as one of 24 individuals invited to contribute to Lest We Forget: Canadian Designers on War, an exhibit at the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton, Alberta. I first saw the ironic message on a photograph (shown below) of two women participating in a San Francisco peace rally in 2003 on the eve of the U.S.-led war on Iraq.
Today, in the lead-up to what appears likely to be another U.S.-led bombing campaign (on Syrians this time), I thought it appropriate to “unroll the poster” once again. The above poster (click on the image for a larger version) is “copyfree” so please use, share, or disseminate it however you wish…
From The Art of Kissing: A 1936 Guide for Lovers
“A kiss can never be absolutely defined. Because each kiss is different from the one before and the one after. Just as no two people are alike, so are no two kisses alike. For it is people who make kisses. Real, live people pulsating with life and love and extreme happiness…”
(source— with a great book review, more hilarious quotes, and great links)
Lake Louise, Alberta
Earlier this month Ev and I once again crossed the prairies with Bettie Blue (my 1988 VW Westfalia camper van) for a holiday in the Rockies. For a number of reasons, not least of which being that I took up fly fishing earlier in the summer, I decided not to climb and scramble as usual, but rather stick to the valleys, streams, rivers, and lakes of Banff National Park.
Above are a few images from our sortie “out west.” Ev informs me that crispy-skinned pan-fried trout are her new favorite fish… which is a nice reward for doing something I’ll admit is almost as much fun as climbing. (-:
While we were in Banff we heard the tragic news that my long-time friend and frequent climbing companion, Peter Aitchison, had been killed in a fall while attempting an ascent of the south summit of Mount Victoria. This came as a real blow, from which I’m still recovering (ergo the absence of blog posts over the past few weeks).
We ended our trip a few days early with a visit to Lake Louise, where we could sit and take in the spectacular view that would have been Peter’s last… climb on, Peter, climb on.
