Follow Up Friday
A little summary of the week that’s just been!
Including art history news, DIY tips, exhibition & literature reviews, auction announcements, etc.
Email me with your ideas. I’d love to hear from you.
1. Recruiting the Next Monuments Men
The Art Newspaper reports that the US Army is recruiting museum directors, conservationists, archaeologists and other cultural professions to help preserve and restore the history of today’s war torn areas:
After years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq, and a new conflict in Syria, including the large-scale looting of ancient objects and the intentional destruction of heritage sites, the army recognises the need for experts in the field to advise commanders and work with civilian authorities after battles to help restore order.
This isn’t just about trying to clean up a mess that’s been created, it’s about moving forward for the areas that have been affected. Read more on this in TAN here.
2. 10 News Words to Fake It in the Art World
Think that most art speak is pretentious and incomprehensible? Arts Hub has documented the progression of critical art language, and it sure is interesting:
‘O’ used to be the way to go – ontology, oeuvre, ostensibly, objectification, not to mention the compulsion to use the pronoun ‘one’ in an objective manner, standing in for the writer with a kind of aloof elitism – authoritarian and undoubtedly artificial.
It’s fascinating that certain words for describing what we see can go in and out of fashion. It’s a constant battle to be misunderstood (so it seems). Read more about this on Arts Hub here.
3. Researching Mr Turner
If you’ve ever wondered what goes in to creating a period biopic, The Guardian might have some answers for you. Research for the film Mr Turner, which documents the career of English landscape painter JWM Turner took two years. The team behind the production cut no corners when it came to getting every detail right – including doing research at Kensington Palace, The Soane Museum and The British Library. Read more about this incredible process here.
4. 60s Fashion in American High Schools
Individualization and customization was what the fashion of the 1960s was all about. Mashable has created a great compilation featuring the teenagers of the time. Check it out here, and pay special attention to their tights!
5. Dressed for Excess
If you follow the auction world, you’ll know that it was Old Masters Week. There were Facebook posts reminding people that the galleries were open during Snowpocalypse Juno (so underrated) and lots of fun articles to read. The Sotheby’s blog is upping it’s game recently, trying to build a more loyal, younger readership. This week Jonquil O’Reilly, the NYC Old Masters specialist, wrote about the history of the ruff, comparing it to today’s fashion trends:
Impractical, high maintenance and expensive, the ruff was the most immediate way, in the 16th and 17th centuries, to convey that you had loads of money and all manner of staff dedicated to maintaining your appearance. From monarchs to merchants, no prosperous woman, man or child in Europe would sit for a portrait without first donning the appropriate, crisply starched neckwear.
Read his whole post here.
