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Posts filed in art

Color

10/11/2018•art, Culture, history

20th Century Byzantine

Evening top, Gianni Versace, 1991/1992

Versace’s  autumn/winter collection was inspired by the Byzantine mosaics of the churches and religious buildings of Ravenna, Italy. The  halter top shown above was part of the 2018 Heavenly Bodies exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.  The photograph below shows a detail from a mosaic depicting the Empress Theodora from the 6th- century Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna.  Theodora (c. 500– 548) was empress of the Eastern Roman Empire, also called Byzantium or the Byzantine Empire, by her marriage to Emperor Justinian I.

Theodora (basilica San Vitale, Ravenna), By Petar Milošević –  Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60461082

Join Ragtop’s Daily Prompt: Color 

Imitations of Flight

10/04/2018•art, Culture, Denmark

View From Below

Storks, ceiling painting, Johannes Larsen, Queen’s Reference Library, Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark

Johannes Larsen (1867 – 1961) was a Danish nature painter noted for his images of birds. This ceiling painting in the Queen’s Reference Library at Christiansborg Palace is one of several he painted in public buildings.

 

Join Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: In Flight

Oh My! Look Up!

10/01/2018•art, Denmark, history

Heavens to Sophie Amalie

Ceiling Panel by Abraham Wucherts, mid-17th century,Christian IV’s Bedroom, Rosenborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark

Three ceiling paintings in “Christian IV’s Bedroom” in Rosenborg Palace depict the gods of earth, the heavens and the oceans. The center panel shows Hera, Queen of the Gods, and and her husband Zeus on Mount Olympus.  The nude figure of Hera is said to resemble Queen Sophie Amalie,  wife of Frederik III, King of Denmark-Norway. Frederick (ruled 1648-1670) and Sophie Amalie used the bedroom after his father, Christian IV, died in 1648. Tradition says that Sophie Amalie, a beautiful and power hungry queen, actually posed for the painting. The painting was added to the Baroque stucco ceiling, which was installed in the 1630’s under Christian IV, in the mid-17th century. Abraham Wuchters, a Dutch painter in the Danish court, painted the central panel.

Join Lens-Artist Photo Challenge #13: Look Up.  For more information on how to join the Lens-Artists Photo Challenges, click here.

Baubles and Bangles

09/17/2018•art, Culture, Denmark

After palaces, castles, and old churches, what do I like best: jewels. Big, gaudy jewels. And the Danish crown jewels aren’t bad.

In the sub-sub basement beneath Rosenborg Castle you can visit the treasury, in which some beautiful things are displayed along side the jewels.

Christian IV’s crown dates from 1596 and is the oldest crown in Denmark.

The crowns used between 1671 and 1731 by the “absolute monarchs.” Labels in all the places I visited were very precise noting items, monuments, and actions related to the period of the absolute monarchs, as opposed to today’s constitutional monarchy.

The crown jewels (four sets) can only be worn by the queen and only in Denmark. They were willed to the crown in 1746 by Queen Sophie Magdalene.

A few other trinkets in the Treasury. The glass cases make the photos a bit fuzzy.

Pink It Is #14

09/15/2018•art, Portugal, religion

Lady of Loreto Pink

Ceiling decoration,18th-century, Our Lady of Loreto, Lisbon, Portugal

Details from an 18th-century ceiling panel in the Church of Our Lady of Loreto in Lisbon, Portugal. Also called the Church of the Italians , Our Lady of Loreto is in the Chiado district.

Join BeckyB’s Square in September: In the Pink. Photos must be square, and for September, have to contain something pink. See this link for more information on how to take part in BeckyB’s quarterly square challenge..

Pink It Is #10

09/11/2018•art, Portugal, religion

Lisbon Pink

Virgin Pink, Estrela Basilica, Lisbon, Portugal

Statue of the Virgin Mary and three worshipful angel heads, Estrela Basilica, Lisbon, Portugal. Note the of pink flowers in the fine painted details on her garments. Unfortunately, her crown didn’t fit in the square.

Join BeckyB’s Square in September: In the Pink. Photos must be square, and for September, have to contain something pink. See this link for more information on how to take part in BeckyB’s quarterly square challenge..

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