Happy New Year - The End of the Decade

It is a great pleasure for me to write this post because none of you (except my mother who reads the blog) knew me 10 years ago, in 1999. In 1999, I finally began to read in Tudor History which was to become my primary subject of research until 2004. I started my studies at the Department of Medieval and Early Modern History at the Lomonosov Moscow State University. And I also wrote a play in verses; it was similar to those Tudor and Jacobean plays that were composed on occasion, and our occasion was New Year and winter holidays. The play was called "A Midwinter Night's Dream", in obvious reference to William Shakespeare, and was witty, funny, and involved our entire group (about 13 people). I also directed them, which experience I recently recalled: we had literally one square meter to work with, so it was a challenge. But all went well, and at the end of it I as an author received a huge round of applause.

Next year, in 2000 I went to a conference in St Petersburg, a former Russian imperial capital, where I spent 15 days, insisting that I would return home on my birthday, and not a day earlier. There was something symbolic for me in marking my 20th on the train where nobody knew me. Having always lived with parents, I felt like this would let me break free and break away.

It took me another 3 years to finally break away, but boy, did I break! In six years I have never been back, and not quite because I did not want to.

This is one lesson of the decade: "be careful what you wish for" is very true. However, in my case I do not feel I can - or should - complain.

I've just looked at the "Happy New Year" posts I wrote previously, in 2006, in 2007, and in 2008. Every single of those years I was looking forward to meeting great, interesting people, which I did. Every single year I wanted to travel more, and in 2009 I outdid myself, having taken 21 trips, the last one on Dec. 29th. I wanted to write better, to work harder, and I am pleased that I enter 2010 with two photos published in print, and a Blog of Note nod from Google. Once again, what you passionately want absolutely does come true, so I have no doubt that 2010 is going to be brilliant, spectacular, and happy - simply because that's how I want it to be.



One thing I will not be doing this year is drawing a list of resolutions, things to do, and goals to achieve. The idea I found on Chris Brogan's blog last year is very inspirational, and I will be sharing plans and goals (needless to say, I always make them). But in the last 2-3 months I have noticed an unhealthy interest in certain quarters towards what I do, as well as some other things. This is not going to make me "cautious" because caution has never got anyone anywhere. Yet I am listening to my inner Tiger, so here goes. No resolutions or goals in this post.

As always, my huge thankyous and sincere greetings go to you, dear readers. Without going too far into details, a lot of success I have had since 2005 with my online endeavours I owe to you, to your searches, to your interest, and to your comments and emails. This I say both as a person and a blogger. And as a person only, I have lit candles in Sheffield for all of us and for those few close people who, to various degrees, support, inspire, teach, and comfort me. It was the first time I ever did any such thing, and Sheffield was simply the place where I found myself at the end of 2009. But maybe it wasn't all that coincidental after all, for I don't think I'd do the same if I stayed in Manchester.

The post is illustrated with postcards by John Grundeken and Arthur Tserikh, and a handful of Russian postcards (one of them features the work by Anne Geddes). I bet that you'd love to see more, though. If yes, check out this blog after 00:00 GMT on January 1st, 2010. I'm sure you will not be disappointed.

Last but not least... a massive thankyou, commendation, and lots of love to my parents, and all the more to my mother who since 2008 has scanned a lot of images upon my request. Some of the posts on this blog, including this and the one you are about to see on Jan. 1st, would not be possible without her help.

Happy New Year 2008

Happy New Year 2007

Happy New Year 2006 

2009: The Da Vinci Year

Update (30 December 2009): On December 25, 2009, it was announced that a team of Italian scientists were planning to exhume the remains of Leonardo da Vinci from his grave in Amboise in France. They want to establish if the remains are, indeed, Leonardo's, and if he was indeed a vegetarian. And if his scull has survived and in a decent condition, there is a possibility that the master's face will be restored.

Original (23 December 2009)

The end of the first decade of the new millennium was rightfully marked by several events and discoveries associated with the name of one of the genuine men of the past millennium: Leonardo da Vinci.

First, Nicola Barbatelli has discovered a portrait of Leonardo; it may also be by Leonardo, although this is contested, but it is certainly not that of Galileo.

(on the aside, Galileo's fingers were discovered, so perhaps we may call 2009 the year of Italian discoveries).

Then, Piero Angelo armed himself with the help of the police forensic experts, art historians, and graphic artists to conclude with a degree of certainty that the faint image he found in the Codex on the Flight of Birds may be a self-portrait of Leonardo.

Before and during Barbatelli's discovery, 10 drawings by Leonardo da Vinci from the Royal Collection were visiting Manchester Art Gallery. Da Vinci - The Genius is currently attracting visitors to the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester.

And in October 2009, Martin Kemp, the Professor Emeritus in History of Art at the University of Oxford, has claimed that a portrait of a beautiful Italian girl, previously thought to be painted in the 19th c., in fact belongs to Leonardo's hand. The Master's fingerprint was revealed thanks to the revolutionary "multispectral" camera, and, by eliminating one historic figure after another, Professor Kemp was able to establish that the sitter is Bianca Sforza, the daughter of Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan, and his mistress Bernardina de Corradis.

Kemp believes the portrait must date from around 1496 when, aged 13 or 14, Bianca married the Duke’s army captain, Galeazzo Sanseverino (a patron of Leonardo’s). Tragically, she died four months after the wedding.

This would be Leonardo’s first known Sforza ‘princess’ portrait, although he painted two of the Duke’s mistresses: Cecilia Gallerani (Lady with an Ermine in the Czartoryski Museum, Cracov); and Lucrezia Crivelli (La Belle Ferronière in the Louvre).

The painting's price rocketed from £19,000 to £100mln, and La Bella Principessa is hopefully displayed in March 2010 at a show called And There Was Light: The Masters of the Renaissance Seen in a New Light in the Eriksbergshallen, Gothenburg. The show's artistic director is Alessandro Vezzosi, the Director of Museo Ideale in Vinci, Leonardo's home town.

2009 is yet to end, and there may be another Leonardo discovery waiting. But even so, this has been a gigantic flood of exhibitions and new evidence shedding light on one of the most prodigious and enigmatic figures of the past.

Image credit: Antiques Trade Gazette.

Christmas in Sculpture: Fatherhood of St Joseph

I am finishing 2009 on a high note with a trip to Sheffield on 29th December. It was a good trip and an interesting experience, which I will be talking about... in 2010!

In the meantime, a visit to Sheffield Cathedral has brought us two examples of Christmas-themed sculpture. I could not establish the author of the wooden carved group, although what I did manage to find suggests Arthur de Mowbray as the sculptor. It is a boldly carved Nativity scene, with careful work carried out on the minute details.

The second example is a now complete Nativity group by Brian Fell. It was produced in parts for Sheffield Galvanize Festival, and this year Mary that was created in 2008 was joined by Joseph and Jesus, and all three can now be found at the west end of the church (this part of the cathedral was built in 1966). Fell follows the same approach to depicting the baby Jesus as we have seen in the marble group at Manchester Cathedral: the newly born is wrapped up in sheets. In this sense, the wooden Nativity group that stands close to St Katharine Chapel is traditional in that it appears to follow the canonic depiction of Jesus in the nude. Fell's group, with Joseph holding the baby, produces a similar effect of intimacy and parental amazement, as does the work by Josefin de Vasconcellos in Manchester.

A slightly different example, still in Sheffield, is this painted sculpture of Joseph and the baby Jesus in the wall of the Roman Catholic Cathedral Church of St Marie. It is simply beautiful and deserves to be included in the post. Together with Fell's Nativity and de Vasconcellos's Holy Night, this is a fairly rare example of Joseph with the baby Jesus depicted in art, especially in sculpture. Joseph is seen here with his flowering staff. In short, Sheffield has brought us several Nativity scenes that focus on fatherhood of Joseph rather than motherhood of Mary.
 
Inside Sheffield Town Hall there was an elaborate Nativity display, one of the loveliest ones I have seen in the last few years. And below is a Nativity scene from Llandudno photographed outside Marks&Spencer in December 2007.

Links:

Sheffield Cathedral of St Peter and St Paul
Cathedral Church of St Marie

Full-size photos on Flickr: 

Nativity by Brian Fell
Holy Family
St Joseph and Jesus
The Holy Night

(the same are added as enclosures to the post, check them out in your RSS reader).

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Magical Mystery Tour: Liverpool Has Now Got Its Own Big Wheel

At the end of November I went to Liverpool, more or less on the spur of the moment, as I often do. My adventurer's spirit was well rewarded with a visit to Liverpool One Wheel. The report below was first written for NowPublic.com. The photos can all be found on Flickr, and at the end of the post is a short video I made during my ride.


This Christmas Liverpool has added a new item to the long list of city's attractions: Liverpool One Wheel. Rising 60 metres above the ground (with vantage height of 80 metres and weight of 365 tonnes), the observation wheel is a perfect present to the residents of Liverpool and Merseyside.

Rivalling, among many, the London Eye and the big observation wheels in Blackpool (Lancashire) and Manchester (Greater Manchester), Liverpool One Wheel is supported by the city's radio station, Radio 96.7 that provided the audio guide. The ride lasts 15 minutes, and during three rotations you are treated to spectacular panoramic views of the city and the River Mersey.

In particular, some of the landmarks noted in the audio tour include the Albert Dock with the Royal Liver Building, the Catholic and Protestant Cathedrals of the City of Liverpool, and the Radio Tower. Arguably, the most impressive sights are to be seen at dusk, when sunset begins. Yet the night watch from a gondola may be just as amazing: on Friday and Saturday the wheel rolls until 11pm.

While offering a plenty of entertainment to adults and children, Liverpool One Wheel is already an eye candy for photographers. As December progresses, there will doubtless be more and more photos of this long-overdue landmark that is only a short walk away from the Mersey banks and the city centre.

If you are planning a trip to the UK this Christmas, and have a soft spot for riverside and The Beatles, spending some time in Liverpool may be almost a natural choice. Indeed, what can be better than to travel across the universe for a magical mystery tour in the former European Capital of Culture?

Tartans: The Love of My Life

One of my childhood memories about books is connected both to knitting and to Scotland. In one book there was this illustration: a man in kilt and long socks was sitting by the chimney, knitting. I learnt to knit, as you know, while tartan has become one of the favourite materials. Pretty similar to my adored streetlights, tartan has made it into my poems on a couple of occasions already.


I cannot say that I own many clothes made of this fabric. In fact, the only one is the skirt I am wearing in the photo on the top left, and it is obviously not the "proper" tartan. But I do like men in kilts, so when I saw this post about tartan, men in kilts, and Highland sports, I knew I had to mention it. As a matter of fact, one of my close friends and a member of extended family belongs to the Elliott clan. Their tartan is shown on the right. Personally, I like their mottos: Soyez Sage (Be Wise), the old one, and the current Fortiter et Recte (Boldly and Rightly, or With Strength and Right).

There are some good resources on the web, particularly House of Tartan that helps you weave your own tartan. You can try your hand at creating a tartan over at Victoria and Albert Museum's website. The interactive service is dedicated to the Vivienne Westwood exhibition there in 2004; and in 2008 Westwood incorporated tartan in her collection once again. The photo of the checkered bag and purse was taken during my trip to York in September 2008.

The closest I have yet got to Scotland was in 2004 when I visited Shap Wells Hotel. It is technically in Shap, near Perth in Cumbria, but in fact it is ideally located to explore not only the Lake District, but also North Pennines, Yorkshire Dales, and the Scottish Borders.

I've not written any New Year resolutions here, and in fact I won't be doing it this year, as I have decided I was going to inform you of the results of my intentions, rather than intentions themselves. But one of the resolutions is to finally visit Scotland. And I am being drawn all the more there as I view Tour Scotland Photographs each day in my Blogger dashboard.

Lastly, I have been experimenting with making tartan-like knitting patterns. I did not make a real effort to handknit a proper multicolour tartan, but this is where I got so far (see below). This is the pattern of one of the sweaters I made for myself, and I wear it with the same degree of pride as the Scottish people - their kilts.

And here are "tartan" results from Google Images. Are you a Scot? Do you have a tartan to wear?

Christmas in the City: Manchester Snow

I have already reported about the spectacular snowfall in Manchester, but here are the photos I took during the week of Winter Wonderland. These include portraits of several amazing snowmen and one snow-woman.

Shakespeare and the Beatles

The Great Unknown (Julie Delvaux)

From time to time during our life we find ourselves in the Great Unknown. It's possibly similar to the proverbial situation when things are moving very fast. I do feel like they are moving very fast for me, even though I am actually taking time. I am sure I have been here before, but it was this year that I wrote the poem about the "experience", and I dedicate it to all of us who are going through this stage.

The rock of life is overthrown,

All novel streams are flooding in.

I’m now in the Great Unknown:

No peace without or within.

I’ve almost shedded all illusions,

Like autumn leaves in winter winds. 

Oh, happy thoughts and sad conclusions!

Whatever may the future bring,

I’m now in the Great Unknown,

But there is no better place

To be for someone, so prone

To change their voice, and name, and place.

Oh dear stranger, don’t be jealous!

But if you’re strong in heart and faith,

Do follow us, the reckless fellows,

The Great Unknown’s almighty race!

November 2009

© Julie Delvaux 2009

Things to Do Before You Die? Waterstones Can Help!

During my journey to Liverpool in early December I went in Waterstones where I was instantly greeted by this display. Christmas time undoubtedly brings with it thoughts about both life and the end thereof, so the prominence of stuff "to do before you die" should not be surprising. Yet the titles of the books do not cease to strike me. Nor their potential content.

Earlier this year I compiled a list of books of things and places to "cover" "before you die", having goldmined Amazon: 1000 Things to Do Before You Pop Your Clogs. But following my Waterstones' walk-in I decided to check whatever their online outlet had in store. I wasn't disappointed, to say the least. As if we didn't think this could be so, there was a book literally on every subject of one's life, including the most intimate moments. And so, I collected the most jaw-dropping titles, although not omitting some conventional ones, like "Classical Recordings". A lot still remained behind, so jump to Waterstones' list to plough through.

For the purposes of the post, let's imagine you're planning to travel somewhere. You may refer to my original post, or you may opt in for a more structured compendium: 1001 Places to See Before You Die: Page a Day.

Thinking of what you may be doing in all the places? Legion is the name to your choices. To help you cope, here are 1001 Paintings you must see and 1001 Classical Recordings you must hear before you die. Add to this a touch of luxury by choosing from 1001 Wines and 1001 Foods.

A nature lover? Here is 1001 Gardens you must see before returning to the Garden of Eden. You can go birding, although the authors of the book only scratched some 50 places for that. However, if you are seriously after "1000 things" and birds, why not scoring a birdie at any of 1001 golf courses? Prefer fishing rods to golf clubs? I am sure some of 1001 places to see will have fishing facilities where, with any luck, you will catch one of sought-after 50 fish.

Shopaholics can spice things up with 101 Things to Buy and 52 Things to Do in a Car. The latter may particularly be useful for those who have exhausted the repertoire of Crash the movie and got enough of Roxette's antiques. Beer lovers aren't forgotten either: there are a book about 300 Beers and then a special book on 100 Belgian Beers. Absolutely to die for, I say.

Your curiosity will be tempered by Five Secrets You Must Discover Before You Die. And if you ever exhaust any one thousand of things, try 2001 Things to Do Before You Die. Never forget: the proverbial perpetuum mobile is you, so keep going.

The younger generation may refer to 10 Things to Do before they turn sweet sixteen, and 1001 Videogames to play. (You can refer to the latter book, too, if you are their parent).

Understandably, carrying the world on your shoulders while also trying to do all those things may be difficult. If you can't be arsed, then you can surely sod that; I am sure there will be no harm in doing so. However, you may just make an escape to one of the unforgettable islands.

Whatever takes your fancy - paintings, shopping, videogames, one hundred or two thousand of those - there will always be a moment when you crave the most natural and intimate experiences. And sometimes you will have obstacles in your way. To help overcome them and to sparkle your imagination, there are 1001 places to pee and 101 places to have sex. Before you die, of course.

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Christmas on the Web: Doodles, Logos, and Gifts

"Big" events usually offer a great opportunity to various sites to add that "festive" touch to their logos. Google has been prolific for a number of years with Google Doodles, but what about other sites?

Starting with Google, this has been their Doodle throughout the build-up to Christmas. Cards did change, though. On the other hand, Bing dedicated its entire mainpage to a festive display.

Surprisingly, Twitter did not add any festive notes to its logo or main page, and neither did YouTube or Flickr. Quite unlike FriendFeed that revamped their logo Xmas-style. And it only seems to be LiveJournal that showed some festive love in their logo.

And out of many Social Networks, my eye caught the German StudiVZ and the Russian Odnoklassniki.ru and VKontakte.ru making an effort to mark the day on the "surface" of their websites.

Finally, a few days ago I've received the link to Google's Gift. "Because charities are experiencing their toughest year in decades, we have committed $20 mln (£12.4mln) to helping those who help us all. Our gift to you is a gift to them", reads this page.

Thank you, and Merry Christmas to everyone!

Christmas in E-Cards: Merry Christmas to You!

My sincere Christmas greetings go out to all my friends and readers, and to everyone who visits this page. Merry Christmas to all of you, wherever you are!

Christmas in Poetry and Song: Gladys Knight

All of us who love soul will know Gladys Knight. Midnight Train to Georgia, I Heard It Through the Grapevine... And a wonderful version of a traditional Christmas song, Do You Hear What I Hear? I don't know about you, but for me Knight's has long been the best version of this song, soulful, strong, magical, and the most hopeful. And the video below contains not just this beautiful song, but also Gladys Knight's recital of a poem 'Twas Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore (1779-1863).

Other posts in 2009 Xmas.



Image credit: Christmas Carols.

Reporting Live in Manchester Snowfall

The week leading up to Christmas 2009 has brought amazing weather. It is snowing, it is slippery, it is everything I was used to when I lived in Moscow for 20-odd years. Sadly, in the UK, particularly in Manchester, the weather like the one I went out to record on camera is not at all usual. It is only natural therefore that such weather conditions are regarded as extreme. But isn't it beautiful, proper, winter weather?!

Snow in Manchester 2009 - Live Report
Uploaded by avidadollars. - Explore international webcam videos.

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How I Didn't Recognise Parma Ham

Do you remember this passage in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, chapter IX 'Queen Alice'?

At last the Red Queen began. "You've missed the soup and fish", she said. "Put on the joint!" And the waiters set a leg of mutton in front of Alice, who looked at it rather anxiously, as she had never had to carve a joint before. 
"You look a little shy: let me introduce you to that leg of mutton", said the Red Queen. "Alice - Mutton: Mutton - Alice". The leg of mutton got up in the dish and made a little bow to Alice: and Alice returned the bow, not knowing whether to be frightened or amused. 
"May I give you a slice?" she said, taking up the knife and fork, and looking from one Queen to the other. 
"Certainly not", the Red Queen said, very decidedly: "it isn't etiquette to cut any one you've been introduced to. Remove the joint!"

Believe it or not, I recently re-enacted the scene almost entirely...

In early December I went to Liverpool and on my way back to the station after 9pm I had to walk past San Carlo restaurant in Castle Street, described as "the best Italian restaurant outside London" by A. A. Gill of The Sunday Times. I had to stop by their window that offered a generous look at their stupendous bar. I've never been to San Carlo yet, and I was really impressed with a variety of bottles of all sizes...

...including the one that was beige and looked like a wine vessel made of animal skin. Due to its guitar shape, it stood on its side, supported by a wooden base, with cord around its neck.

I was amused, for never before did I see such bottle. Intrepid as I am on such occasions, I walked into the restaurant where I was instantly welcomed by un Italiano vero: a gentleman with a small beard, his black hair streaming down to his shoulders.

He wanted to invite me in, but I explained that I was impressed by the bottle I saw in the window. "Oh yes, we have many bottles", he nodded with a smile. "Which one was it?"

"Oh, it was beige, and it stood on its side...", I began.

I wanted to show it, and as I turned I noticed exactly the similar bottle standing by the door on the counter. Next to it there were eggs on a heap of flour and a basket with fresh paninis.

"That's the bottle!" I exclaimed.

"This is not the bottle", the gentleman replied. "It is Parma ham".

Credits:

The images for this post are taken from Rolf Hicker's website and from Cartoon Stock. Rolf is a professional photographer; and over at Cartoon Stock you can find a gallery of illustrations to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by the renowned illustrator, Sir John Tenniel. And if you feel like diving into Carroll's imaginary world, go to Project Gutenberg for Through the Looking Glass's text, or to LibriVox for Through the Looking Glass as an audiobook.

Films As Christmas Presents: Stella Artois Brings the French Cinema Classics Online

The creators of The Auteurs website listed five questions that got them set up the new social cinema experience:

#1: Why can’t you watch In the Mood for Love in a café in Tokyo on your laptop?
#2: Why is it so hard to meet people who share the same love for Antonioni?
#3: Wouldn’t it be great to instantly send Tati’s Playtime to a friend if you think they needed it? (There’s nothing like film therapy!)
#4: Why do films on the internet just look awful?
#5: Why are we talking as if we were John Cusack in High Fidelity?

I would add two more questions:

#6: Are you getting tired of trolls and opinionated madmen that populate IMDb.com discussion boards (so it seems sometimes, anyway)?
#7: Do you love visionary films but are breaking your neck trying to find them anywhere, online or in shops?

If you answered "yes" to questions #3, #6 and #7, and have asked the questions #1, #2, #4, and #5 previously and had no answer, then welcome to The Auteurs - "your online cinema anytime, anywhere".

Supported by Stella Artois, The Auteurs

is not just about discovering wonderful new cinema or classic masterpieces. It’s also about discussing and sharing these discoveries, which makes us like a small coffee shop—… a place where you can gather and talk about alternative endings, directors’ cuts, and whatever those frogs in Magnolia meant. Heated debates and passionate arguments are welcome.

Some films may be free, others will cost a modest fee (far less than anything you may have to pay at your local cinema), but from 15 until 22 December you can watch a few films online for free, all thanks to the generous support from Stella Artois. Best of all, of course, is that what I have seen so far is streamed in the original languages, although with subtitles. Thus, if you want to practise your French skills, join the club.

Renowned for its advertising feats that saw beer ads produced as witty and colourful mini films, Stella Artois has sponsored an impressive selection of the French movie classics: Lola (1961, Jacques Demy), Les 400 Coups (1959, Francois Truffaut), Jules et Jim (1962, Francois Truffaut), Masculin, Féminin (1966, Jean-Luc Godard), Vivre Sa Vie (1962, Jean-Luc Godard), La Jetée (1962, Chris Marker), and Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959, an adaptation by André Resnais of a screenplay by Marguerite Duras). Aptly called Le Recyclage de Luxe, this selection makes for a great introduction to the French cinema for those who are only just discovering it, and a wonderful Christmas present for the converts.

Donc le Père Noël nous a presenté une fête du cinéma classique, et tous la peuvent joindre en s'inscrivant au site. Et ceux qui ne vivent que pour les réseaux sociaux vont connecter le site avec le Facebook, pour partager les chefs-d'oeuvre du cinéma mondial avec leurs ami(e)s.


To start watching films, click here: LE RECYCLAGE DE LUXE.


Other posts in Stella Artois. 


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Christmas in Vintage Postcards: Christmas Angels

Over at People's Almanac there are several impressive galleries of rare postcards. In a way, there is something for everyone, be it Soviet World War II posters, pin-up girls, or Picasso's paintings. And if you are into plants, there is a plant drawings gallery for you.

In the Vintage Holiday Vignettes album there are many old-style postcards on the main festive occasions, like New Year, St. Valentine's Day, Easter, and, of course, Christmas. You will probably find some that you like, but here are my favourites.

These days you may be able to find a lot of Christmas cards, but I was particularly impressed by the designs over at Zazzle. Sadly or not, I cannot copy anything for illustration purposes, but when you click on the link you will be sure to find many lovely vintage Christmas postcards. This is a United Kingdom website, so it may be especially useful to those of us who bought the presents but is hunting for postcards.

And the card that impressed me so much was a vintage Christmas card showing a girl standing with her little dog by the Christmas tree.

Last but not least, there is the video on YouTube, a beautiful angelic collection by Pixie Rose Design. I am sure a few readers will be delighted to watch it. I recently found out that, just like I am mad about collecting photos of streetlights, there are people who are equally in love with angels. So, here is to you, my friends.



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You Can't Stop the Music (Julie Delvaux)

Back in August when I was taking a week off blogging, I posted a playlist with my covers. Well, what do we have in December? Imeem was acquired by MySpace - congratulations to both of you, darlings, but I've lost my playlists and the ability to embed individual songs in my blogs. And I can't wait until something gets sorted out because I've got stuff to upload.

So far it seems that I've sorted out the problem - and at the same time have added more songs to the original playlist. They were all recorded between 2001 and 2009, always at home but in various styles: sometimes with background music, sometimes a capella, and, as in the case with Have You Ever Seen the Rain, I accompanied myself on the piano (the record was made in Moscow in 2001). Or, as in the case with Lady in Red, I wasn't even familiar with the original song by Chris de Burgh. I merely found an instrumental version on an audio cassette, dug out the lyrics on the web, and the rest is music.

If, for whatever reason, the player does not work, you can listen to all "Julie Delvaux covers" on my Posterous. And for your convenience, I've enclosed some files, too.

I can't help but wanting to hear what your think - which one is your favourite?

Update: image above is the work of one of my most attentive and caring fans and readers, Naukishtae. His favourites are "It's a Heartache" and "Woman Who Sings" (they are mine, too!!)

Go To FileFactory.com

To download:

Go to folder - FileFactory.com

Christmas in Painting: El Greco

El Greco, Adoration of the Shepherds, 1605 (Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain).

A variation on this theme was painted by El Greco in 1610 and is now housed at Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York .

Other posts in 2009 Xmas .

Liverpool 2009 - Sunset

Liverpool 2009 - 8, originally uploaded by loscuadernosdejulia.

I took this photo on my recent visit to Liverpool, and it captures just about everything I've ever loved about sunsets - and what I presently miss. In all time in England I rarely had a chance to watch sunsets, which was quite a dramatic break in habit I used to have, when in Moscow.

Here, as well, I was struck by the solid texture of the clouds in the background and the towering cupola, and the contrast thereof with the building site in the foreground. With us expecting something around the year 2012, could this be an image of the future emerging against the cloudy, dramatic, and dreamy backdrop of the past?

(original post - 28 November 2009)

Update (14 December 2009): the photo was published in Liverpool Echo on 4 December 2009. Many thanks to the editorial team for making the choice.

Christmas in the Street: Angels in Piccadilly Gardens

Angels, originally uploaded by timdifford.

Tim Difford who regularly blogs at One Greener Day has taken this lovely photo of angels in Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester. And while in London he made this magical photo of the merry-go-round outside the Natural History Museum.

Christmas is a very inspirational time for many of us, surely. Thanks a lot to Tim for taking photos, and you can view more in his photostream.

The Width of the Door in a Medieval Abbey

The Width of the Door, originally uploaded by loscuadernosdejulia.

I've never done this before, but this summer during my trip to Wales I had this picture taken. It was quite spontaneous: it just made sense to stretch my arms to the sides of this door in Valle Crucis, a medieval Cistercian abbey in the middle of Denbighshire. Little did I think, though, that I would actually be able to stretch my arms to the full width of the entrance. But now we know how wide this entrance was.

Christmas in Literature and Film: Gianni Rodari, La Freccia Azzurra

La Freccia Azzurra (The Adventures of the Blue Arrow in English) is one of the books by the Italian author Gianni Rodari that I adored as a child. Even though he was better known in the USSR for his story of Cipollino (i.e. the Little Onion) that was even commemorated in ballet, I personally loved La Torta in Cielo (A Cake in the Sky, quite literally). This in part had to do with delicious illustrations in my book that made the cake look not merely edible, but actually desirable.

La Freccia Azzurra is a Christmas story at its best, in that it is touching, beautiful, and magical, while also promoting the "eternal" values of justice, kindness, and friendship. The train called "The Blue Arrow" escapes the shop of the old fairy and makes its way along the snowy streets to deliver presents to the kids from poor families. Rodari does not avoid pointing out to the fact that presents cost money, and thus poor children would unlikely be able to afford them. Yet he does not put the pressure of making amends on the shoulders of the fairy. Rather, he invests the toys with the human ability to recognise and fight injustice.

On their way the toys stay with children they choose to be with, and I possibly find this the most touching element because it overturns the usual process of people choosing objects: in Rodari's story, it is toys, not children or their parents, that make the choice. This also makes for a perfect fairy tale, as it is in such magical story would we have inanimate objects acquiring the ability to move, speak, and feel. Yet the element that is often associated with the fairy tale is that it should end; there always appears to be a boundary between the fairy tale world and the "real" world. In the case with La Freccia Azzurra, the magic forever becomes a part of the real world when a little teddy dog turns into a real puppy.

Update: my mum sent me a few illustrations from the book I used to read. They are on the left and right in the passages above.

Even from what I wrote The Adventures of the Blue Arrow looks like a welcome departure from the traditional Scrooge. In 1996 it was lovingly adapted to the screen by the Italian animators, headed by Enzo d'Alò. The full-length animated feature was in fact a European production featuring work from 400 artists from such countries as Czech Republic, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, and Luxembourg, in addition to the Italian crew. The composer is a renowned Paolo Conte. Giannalberto Beldazzi over at Animation World Magazine has more about technical aspects of making La Freccia Azzurra and on how it fits contemporary Italian animation landscape (the picture on the left is courtesy of AWM).

I have never seen the cartoon before, and luckily for us, it is presently available online. Regardless of whether or not you know Italian or have read Rodari's fairy tale, I hope you have pleasure watching it. And the Russian-speaking readers can access the Russian translation.

As for other languages, here are two French links: more information on production from Cinema Parlant and a synopsis and a few lovely screenshots from Planete Jeuness. Now, if you are in Belgium on December 24, you can watch La Fleche Bleue on TV. I cannot remember making a TV programme announcement on this blog before, so here goes.

And those who read in Spanish should benefit from the article by Beatriz Helena Robledo, Gianni Rodari: un defensor de la vida. In author's words, 'La flecha azul... es... una de la obras mas ermosas de Rodari' (one of the most beautiful works by Rodari - JD). I wholeheartedly agree.



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Christmas in Painting: Alessando Botticelli

Alessandro Botticelli, Adoration of the Magi, 1475/76 (Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy)

This painting was commissioned to Botticelli by a Florentine Gaspar di Zanobi del Lama for the church of Santa Maria Novella. Quite in line with the tradition of the time, the real-life characters were incorporated in this pictorial adaptation of the Biblical story: the three Magi are the Medicis, Cosimo (as Melchior, presenting the gift to the Virgin), Piero (in red mantle, as Balthasar), and Giovanni (next to Piero, as Gaspar). Curiously enough, all three were dead by the time the painting was made; but this also explains why Balthasar who by 1475 had already been sometimes painted as the black king appears distinctly European (or even Florentine, perhaps).


The commissioner of the painting is pictured on the right, he is an old man in light blue mantle behind the man in black and red costume, pointing at the observer. And the solitary figure on the right wearing golden mantle is Botticelli himself.

Giorgio Vasari thus described the painting in his Lives of the Artists:

The beauty of the heads in this scene is indescribable, their attitudes all different, some full-face, some in profile, some three-quarters, some bent down, and in various other ways, while the expressions of the attendants, both young and old, are greatly varied, displaying the artist's perfect mastery of his profession. Sandro further clearly shows the distinction between the suites of each of the kings. It is a marvellous work in colour, design and composition.

Before and after this painting, Botticelli would return to the topic in other works, and it is interesting to observe the similarities and differences in composition between all three paintings. In the 1475 work we only see a part of the stables. Undoubtedly, this allowed the artist to bring the "human" component of the painting into the focus, whereby we are looking at people, rather than contemplating the symbolic or religious meaning of the scene. There are also no strict horizontal divisions, although the figures are still "assembled" in a triangular mode.

Before that date, in a tondo painted between 1470 and 1474, Botticelli applies the perspective to his composition, as well as horizontal divisions. The stables vividly evoke the structure of the church, and the artist deftly manipulates the effect to create an impression of the depth of space. The divisions allegorically takes us from the world of people (the foreground populated with both people and horses) to the world of spirit (the elongated walls of the stables).

Finally, the 1481-82 painting does not boast too many figures, but the structure of the stables comes to the fore with its elaborate design. Perspective, but also landscape, play an equally important role. Mary now appears to be accepting the gifts of the Magi in the ruins of a classical temple or a Renaissance mansion, and the landscape that is visible through the aisle conveys the sense of idyll and peace. The sudden introduction of classical elements into the painting will become less unusual if we bear in mind that in the same years - 1481-1482 - Botticelli travelled to Rome and worked at the Vatican.



Alessandro Botticelli, Adoration of the Magi, 1470-74 (National Gallery, London, UK)



















Alessandro Botticelli, Adoration of the Magi, 1481-82 (National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, USA)

 

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Can't Help the Way I Am - Mina Mazzini

It has been a while since I posted any songs by Mina Mazzini. I only discovered her music and voice in 2007, but she has undoubtedly impacted not only how I sing, but even how I look. If it is possible to put it so, she's showed me how to be myself. And now I can't help the way I am.

Christmas in Painting: Pavel Filonov

Although the themes of Adoration and the journey of the Magi seem to be more common in the Western tradition in art, they are by no means alien to the Orthodox tradition, and these two works by the Russian painter Pavel Filonov (1883-1941) are good examples. Since painting on this occasion serves to interpret (i.e. to translate) the Bible, it is interesting to observe how Filonov "domesticates" his translation. On the one hand, he obviously does exactly what European painters did before him, i.e. giving the people on his canvas a distinctly Russian look. Yet on the other hand, he introduces to the Russian painting the new methods and techniques. The same is true about The Magi, which is a watercolour painting featuring the black Balthasar in the foreground. If both paintings, but particularly The Magi, offer a good example of application of the recent methods in Western painting (Futurism, Cubism) to the Russian tradition.

Derek Maus in his article explores how Andrei Bely and Pavel Filonov, the writer and the painter respectively, studied the dimensions of space, time and "strangeness" of things in their works. It seems that the "strangest" thing about Peasant Family is that Filonov had chosen to depict the villagers, not proletarians. This is partly explained by the painter's personal dislike of the city as the epitome of hustle and bustle. In a way, too, Filonov could merely follow the tradition that depicted the holy family in the "bucolic", and not urban, environment. But one can also agree with Maus that "widespread socio-political sympathy for the plight of the Russian peasantry as, minimally, an image of the rural proletariat, made it possible for Filonov to use this visual allegory to glorify, perhaps even deify, a peasant family".

Pavel Filonov, The Magi, 1914 (The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia)

Pavel Filonov, Peasant Family (Holy Family), 1914 (The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia).

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Christmas in Sculpture: Nativity

And this beautiful and touching sculptural group can be seen by visitors to Manchester Cathedral. Located Lady Chapel and Chapter House, it was carved by Josephine de Vasconcellos in 1992. I particularly like the mixture of intensity, love, adoration, tenderness, and peace in this sculpture. Mary, evidently tired after giving birth to her son, rests under Joseph's arm who also carefully cradles the baby Jesus that lies wrapped in cloth on Mary's knees. A beautiful if playful detail: Mary rests her feet on a small lamb.

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Christmas in Painting: Diego Velazquez

Diego Velázquez, The Adoration of the Magi, 1619 (Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain)

This painting was probably painted for the Society of Jesus and in the same year that Diego Velásquez's daughter Francisca was baptised. The year before, in 1618, Velázquez married Juana Pacheco, the daughter of his second teacher, on whom the artist modeled some of his paintings. The 1618 religious work, Immaculate Conception, for which Juana had modeled was likely to be very revealing, as far as the artist's personal life was concerned.

In The Adoration of the Magi, however, it is not just Juana and the new-born baby that are present in the painting as Mary and Jesus. Velásquez's former tutor, Francisco Pacheco, is also visible as one of the kings visiting and adoring Christ: he is Melchior, kneeling behind the young Gaspar. As often happened at the time, some of the figures are dressed according to the fashion of the day, hence Balthasar's white lace collar contrasting his black skin. The landscape in the background is painted in the effect of back lighting and reveals the wall of a hut.

This is undoubtedly one of the most intimate depictions of the story of Nativity and the Adoration of the Magi in Western Art.

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