Month: January 2017

Rudolph Tegnér

Rudolph Tegnér, “Hercules and the Hydra”, 1918

Rudolph Tegner) was a Danish sculptor linked to the Symbolist movement. In the early 20th century his work caused considerable controversy in Denmark. A large number of his works are on display in the Rudolph Tegner Museum north of Copenhagen.

He travelled to Greece and to Italy as a young man, where he was particularly impressed by Michelangelo’s sculptures in the Medici Chapel. His first major work, A Faun (1891) was installed at Charlottenburg Palace. From 1890 to 1893 he collaborated with the Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland, and then moved to Paris, where he resided until 1897.

Tegner’s sculptures developed the stylistic innovations of Art Nouveau and the erotic realism of Auguste Rodin. This caused widespread debate in Denmark, which was still heavily influenced by the restrained neo-classical ideals of Bertel Thorvaldsen. Tegner, in contrast, emphasised violent monumental forms which were both eye-catching and provocative.

Mario Mera

Paintings by Mario Merz

A key member of the Arte Povera group, Mario Merz produced expansive mixed-media paintings, sculptures, and installations, through which he propagated an egalitarian, human-centered vision. Through art, he counteracted what he saw as the dehumanizing forces of industrialization and consumerism.

Together with compatriots including Jannis Kounellis and Michelangelo Pistoletto, Merz eschewed fine art materials in favor of everyday and organic matter, like food, earth, found objects, and neon tubing. In 1968, he presented his first igloo, which became a motif in his work, representing the fundamental human need for shelter, nourishment, and connection to nature.

By 1970, the Fibonacci sequence became central to his work, shaping the tables and spiraling forms for which he was known, and incorporated into his igloos and canvases. In these Merz sought limitlessness, against the confines of modern life.

Andrew Sinclair

Andrew Sinclair, “Loki”

Andrew Sinclair ARBS is recognised as a master of world-class figurative sculpture. His impressive catalogue of work graces distinguished historical properties and public places such as the Royal Box at Ascot, Epsom Racecourse, and Crosby Hall (Sir Thomas Moore’s old palace) in London. Working to commission during his 25 year professional career, Andrew’s sculptures are in collections across the globe.

His talent extends across all genres of sculpture, from historic bronze re-creations for public spaces and private commissions, commemorative portraits for museums and industry magnates, to award winning fantasy sculptures such as dinosaurs and dragons.

Andrew’s passion is figurative sculpture and he has singularly changed the world of sculpture through his inventions: ‘The Sinclair Methodology’ for creating sculptures and ‘Plastishim’- a product used in mould-making, adopted by major foundries and the film industry as the method of choice.

Yoshitoshi Kanemaki

Skeletal Sculptures by Yoshitoshi Kanemaki

Based out of Chiba Prefecture, Japanese sculptor Yoshitoshi Kanemaki carves life-size sculptures from camphor wood, but with a twist of mortality and transience. The disturbing pieces hinge often hinge on grotesque as the combination of the bulging weight and density of wood heightens the certainty of death that looms over all his creations.

Ponder / Ponderous

Photographer Unknown, (Ponder / Ponderous)

Origin: Late Middle English: via French from Latin “ponderosus”, from “pondus”, ponder- ‘weight.’

In the 20th century, the Newtonian concepts of absolute time and space were challenged by relativity. Einstein’s equivalence principle put all observers, moving or accelerating, on the same footing. This led to an ambiguity as to what exactly is meant by the force of gravity and weight. A scale in an accelerating elevator cannot be distinguished from a scale in a gravitational field. Gravitational force and weight thereby became essentially frame-dependent quantities.

This prompted the abandonment of the concept as superfluous in the fundamental sciences such as physics and chemistry. Nonetheless, the concept remained important in the teaching of physics. The ambiguities introduced by relativity led, starting in the 1960s, to considerable debate in the teaching community as how to define weight for their students, choosing between a nominal definition of weight as the force due to gravity or an operational definition defined by the act of weighing.

–Igal Galili, 2001

Hermann Hesse: “But Every Man is More than Just Himself”

Parva Scaena (Brief Scenes): Set One

“But every man is more than just himself; he also represents the unique, the very special and always significant and remarkable point at which the world’s phenomena intersect, only once in this way and never again.”

― Hermann Hesse, Demian. Die Geschichte von Emil Sinclairs Jugend

Magical Staves

Magical Staves from Iceland

Icelandic magical staves (sigils) are symbols credited with magical effect preserved in various grimoires dating from the 17th century and later. According to the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft, the effects credited to most of the staves were very relevant to the average Icelanders of the time, who were mostly substitence farmers and had to deal with harsh climatic conditions.

Reblogged with thanks to http://chaosophia218.tumblr.com

Populating Our Tall Buildings: Gargoyles

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Populating Our Tall Buildings: Gargoyles

“Crouching in position posing in perfect posture
On the rooftop of a gothic cathedral sits a monster”

― Justin Bienvenue, The Macabre Masterpiece: Poems of Horror and Gore

“Towers jostled with gables, beams with columns. Gargoyles leered from the eaves, tongues sharp as the heads of arrows, eyes like shelled eggs.”

― Rupert Thomson, The Five Gates of Hell

Snow Ghosts, “And the World Was Gone”

Snow Ghosts, “And the World Was Gone”, Live Version

Producer Ross Tones (aka Throwing Snow) and vocalist Hannah Cartwright (aka Augustus Ghost) first met and started collaborating in 2008, having a shared interest in British folklore and experimental electronic music.

The first Snow Ghosts record, the ‘Lost At Sea’ EP, was released through Black Acre Records in 2011. Following this initial release, Tones and Cartwright spent the next two years compiling their debut album ‘A Small Murmuration’, which was released on London nightclub Fabric’s record label Houndstooth in 2013.

In 2014, Tones and Cartwright joined forces with multi-instrumentalist Oliver Knowles, and Snow Ghosts became a trio. The band’s second album, ‘A Wrecking’, was released on Houndstooth in February 2015. In August 2013, Snow Ghosts track ‘And The World Was Gone’ featured in a pivotal scene in episode 10 ‘The Overlooked’ of Teen Wolf (Season 3).

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)