In the 1990s, I recall watching Sister Wendy Beckett, the reluctant celebrity spokesperson for a popular PBS series on art appreciation. This sequestered nun, who for decades had lived under a vow of silence, had gained notoriety for her views on famous works of art and now stood in her nun’s habit waxing vociferously before the prehistoric Altamira cave paintings. Self-taught and passionate about the history of art, she gestured at the figures of stampeding bison and elk behind her and said, “These images are 15,000 years old. In the millennia that followed, art didn’t get any better than this, just different.”
In a few words, she summed up the argument for why we should not apply the word, ‘primitive’ to any artistic or material object from cultures far removed from our own tastes and values, simply because we do not understand them.More
As the movers and shakers of the handmade rug industry, the interior design trade plays a pivotal role in shaping the end consumers’ purchasing decisions. After focusing on the greenness of the handweaving process from the manufacturers’ standpoint (See “Special Green Report—Handmade Rugs—The Original Green Floor Coverings,” ARTES (Oct. 13, 2009), this article takes a hard look at what the country’s most reputed and green-attuned designers and other members of the design community are thinking. Do they view handmade rugs as an eco-friendly floor covering as compared to machine-made?
Noted New York-based interior designer Darren Henault of Darren Henault Interiors, says, “To me, the fact that handmade oriental and decorative rugs are green seems only logical and obvious.” However, for most members of the design trade, awareness of handmade rugs as being green is limited, if not virtually nonexistent. States Laura Bohn of Laura Bohn Design Associates, New York, NY whose work has been featured on CNN Style and HGTV: “I didn’t know that and never thought of it until now!” Adds Mary Douglas Drysdale of Drysdale Design Associates, Washington, DC: “As a group, the designers’ mission is to make things look good and is focused more on instant gratification which is not born out of long-term thinking.” Echoes designer Annette Stelmack of Stelmack & Associates III, Denver, CO and co-author of Residential Sustainable Interiors:1“ For [most] designers, the greenness of floor coverings is not a major preoccupation.”More
'Through the glass, brightly', view of the Lyman Estate, Waltham, Massachusetts
As I pulled up the long drive, lined with sturdy, shag-barked Maple trees, the snow-covered fields and a distant copse of fledgling oaks and birches to my right offered a glimpse of a Boston of long ago. Suburban neighborhoods and office parks now surround this pastoral vista, a gently rolling reminder of what much of this region (and in fact, most of 18th century America) looked like when the Lyman Estate property (“The Vale”) was acquired in 17…
My destination was the non-profit organization, Historic New England, based at the Lyman Estate in Waltham, MA. From there, a small and dedicated staff manages and preserves 36 historic properties in five New England states. Constructed over the course of four centuries (1664-1938), each serves as a small, freestanding museum and cultural milestone along the road of American architecture,
The "Vale" or Lyman Estate, home of the Waltham, MA based Historic New England which manages 36 properties in 5 state
design and everyday living. In addition to their properties, the Otis House Museum, in Boston, houses their collection of over one-million records: historic photographs, architectural drawings, ephemera, manuscripts and other printed material pertaining to life in the region.
It was because of their historical archives and related research that I traveled to meet with Sally Zimmerman, Preservation Specialist, and an authority on historic paint colors throughout the period. Sally has devoted much of her professional life to investigating the composition, uses and fashion trends expressed by both exterior and interior paint in historic New England homes over the years. My goal was to discover how paint colors and technology has changed over the centuries and to learn more about the investigative techniques that are used to uncover this little-understood aspect of our cultural heritage.More
Tang Dynasty Camel and Rider is a thousand-year-old treasure within reach of many collectors
This extraordinary early Tang Dynasty (618-907 c.e.) camel and rider (20” tall x 14” wide) is representative of a golden period in Chinese cultural history. After hundreds of years of regional conflict and division, central China was unified under as series of powerful emperors and entered a long period of peace and creativity. Stimulated by contact with India and the Middle East, the arts flourished. Buddhism, originating in India, found its way to China in the time of Confucius and this introspective faith was soon adopted by the royal family to become a permanent part of Chinese culture. Not only painting, but music, opera and poetry also became popularized.
Another piece from the Mandarin Collection features an animated horse's head, a collectable feature
Much of the figurative clay and polychrome figures from this and the earlier Han Dynastry (206 b.c.e.-220 c.e.) were tomb figures, interred with the wealthy to accompany them in the afterlife. Currently very sought-after, these expressive and skillfully crafted figures tell a story of life little-changed over the centuries.
Technically, the structure and design of this camel and rider represent an innovation in the shaping and firing of the clay for that time. Since the long legs of the animal could not be rendered in wet clay without some structural reinforcement for the weight of the body of the animal and figure, internal cast iron supports were used for the extremities. These struts were first coated in wax before being surrounded by clay. In the firing, the melting wax would escape thought a tiny hole in the foot leaving a small space behind. This technique prevented the expanding metal from cracking the clay as the figure baked in the kiln. A delicate, gravity-defying figure was the result.
This rare and expressive sculpture is available through The Mandarin Collection in Westport, CT. It has been authenticated using Oxford University’s carbon dating system. Price: $66,000. Contact C.C. Wong at 203.454.4030 for more information.
Read more about China’s Tang Dynasty at: http://www.bambooweb.com/articles/T/a/Tang_Dynasty_art.html
