Category Archives: Uncategorized

1963: A Tumultuous Day

Posted on May 24, 2017 by corvusfugit

Front and back of New York Times file photo of Martin Luther King, Jr. From a collection entitled “Unpublished Black History,” online here. Here is the story behind the King portrait: Consider the close-up of Dr. King above. It is … Continue reading →

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1750: Falsos silogismos de colores

Posted on May 24, 2017 by corvusfugit

The Mexican feminist, philosopher, and poet Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (1651 – 1695) wrote in Latin, Spanish, and Nahuatl. While a nun, she wrote prose, poetry, and drama on love, the status of women, and religion. When her … Continue reading →

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1685: Lift Up Thine Eyes

Posted on May 23, 2017 by corvusfugit

The masterful trompe l’oeil frescos on the (flat) ceilings of the Church of Sant’ Ignazio di Loyola in Rome were painted by Andrea Pozzo in 1685. One depicts the apotheosis of St Ignatius—he rises up out of the ceiling into … Continue reading →

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1991: Won’t Get Off the Ground

Posted on May 23, 2017 by corvusfugit

Anselm Kiefer: Melancholia (1990-1991).  Made of lead, glass, steel, and ash. Found here.

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1505: The Dog Hidden Under the Hidden Unicorn

Posted on May 22, 2017 by corvusfugit

In 1934, restoration work on this early 16th-centruy portrait by Raphael revealed that sometime in the mid-17th century, an anonymous artist had painted over it in places, transforming it into a representation of Saint Catherine of Alexandria holding a spiked … Continue reading →

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5th Century AD: Wings of Parchment

Posted on May 22, 2017 by corvusfugit

Two pages from the Cologne Mani Codex, “a lump of parchment fragments the size of a matchbox,” that tells the story of the early life of Mani, the Persian prophet and the founder of Manichaeism. The work—made in 5th century … Continue reading →

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1921: Green Lightning on the Sea

Posted on May 22, 2017 by corvusfugit

Léon Spilliaert: L’éclair vert sur la mer [Green Lightning on the Sea] (1921) From a listing at Sotheby’s, although there titled L’eclair vert sur la mer—“the green eclair on the sea.”

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1943: Lena Horne Doesn’t Entertain Racism

Posted on May 21, 2017 by corvusfugit

From Bartlett’s Book of Anecdotes (2000): Al Duckett, a freelance journalist during World War II, recounts the following story about Lena Horne: “She had been sent to a camp in the south to entertain the troops. She was scheduled to … Continue reading →

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2016: 揺・カプリス

Posted on May 21, 2017 by corvusfugit

Sculpture by Yoshitoshi Kanemaki: 揺・カプリス [Shaking ・ Caprice] (2016) See more here.  

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1900: The Magician Entertains the Queen

Posted on May 21, 2017 by corvusfugit

Henry Gillard Glindoni: John Dee Performing an Experiment before Elizabeth I (c. 1900) (source) The enigmatic John Dee was one of the most learned men of the Elizabethan period. Having amassed one of the largest libraries in England, he was … Continue reading →

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