Degas and the dancers
[Hat tip: Open Blogger at Ace’s.] When I was a child I used to greatly admire Degas’ dancer paintings. My family had a reproduction of one of them, and I used to study it and marvel at how well it … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Arts
Charlotte Bronté« and the eccentricity of genius
The Bronté« family were all geniuses, probably including brother Branwell who dissipated himself with coke and booze. Why genius ran so rampant in the family has been the subject of countless books, one of which I’m currently reading: Charlotte Bronté«: … Continue reading →
Chopin
I do believe that Chopin just might be my favorite composer. I fixed on him when I was still a very young child, because he was the most-played composer to accompany my ballet classes. I didn’t even know his name … Continue reading →
Gives “Finger lickin’ good!” a whole new meaning
Hey, why not?: If you can’t seem to kick that awful nail-biting habit, you might as well get some flavor out of it with KFC’s new chicken-flavored edible nail polish. It comes in two different flavors ”“ ”˜Original’ (beige), and … Continue reading →
Henry James ♥ George Eliot
George Eliot was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans, the 19th Century English novelist who lived for years with the married critic George Henry Lewes and wrote seven novels, including the highly-praised Middlemarch. I’ve never read it. In fact, … Continue reading →
Allan Bloom: on undermining the American vision
I’ve written in praise of Allan Bloom’s book The Closing of the American Mind several times before, but here I go again. It was published in 1987, which is now very close to 30 years ago. And yet its relevance … Continue reading →
I ♥ Richard Thompson
I’ve said it before and I’ll probably say it again—I love this guy. Been to about ten concerts, which is ten more than I’ve gone to for almost every other singer, even ones I like. You can get a taste … Continue reading →
Harris Wofford: the second time around
Democratic bigwig and former US senator Harris Wofford, 90, is engaged to be married for the second time. To a man. A man who is 50 years younger than Wofford. It’s that last part that’s probably the shock to most … Continue reading →
Those baby ballerinas
Here’s a piece of ballet history that isn’t all that well-known anymore—the so-called “baby ballerinas” of the 1930s. I love these old clips. They’re blurry and short, but you get an idea of how much ballet has changed since then. … Continue reading →
Glenn Gould and the Goldberg Variations
Let’s go to something timeless: classical music. Although “timing” has a lot to do with it. To wit, pianist Glenn Gould and the Goldberg Variations by Johann Sebastian Bach. For a while during the mid-80s Gould was a fascination of … Continue reading →
Van Gogh on his life’s mission
From one of Van Gogh’s letters to his beloved brother Theo: What am I in the eyes of most people – a nonentity, an eccentric or an unpleasant person – somebody who has no position in society and never will … Continue reading →
RIP Prince
I can’t say I know much about Prince’s music except that he was mega-famous and a tremendous number of people loved his work. I know the song “Purple Rain” and very little else. However, the reports about his cause of … Continue reading →