Two men approach a canon and fire it. Rifle-range dummies sway in the wind. A dancing ballerina turns into a strange bearded man. Two men on a roof-top terrace play a game of chess. A funeral procession, moving in slow motion, follows a coffin .
This extraordinary early film from director René Clair was originally made to fill an interval between two acts of Francis Picabia’s new ballet, Relâche, at the Théâtre des Champs- Elysées in Paris in 1924. Picabia famously wrote a synopsis for the film on one sheet of note paper, headed Maxim’s (the famous Parisian restaurant), which he sent to René Clair. This formed the basis for what ultimately appeared on screen, with some additional improvisations. Music for the film was composed by the famous avant-garde composer Erik Satie, who appears in the film, along side its originator, Francis Picabia. The surrealist photographer Man Ray also puts in an appearance, in a film which curiously resembles his own experimental films of this era.
Entr’acte is a surrealistic concoction of unrelated images, reflecting Clair’s interest in Dada, a fashionable radical approach to visual art which relied on experimentation and surreal expressionism. Clair’s imagery is both captivating and disturbing, giving life to inanimate objects (most notably the rifle range dummies), whilst attacking conventions, even the sobriety of a funeral march. Taken from filmsdefrance.com.
I don't know what it all means. It sounds a bit like a David Lynch film. Ballerinas with beards?! I've never seen it. But this is just a subtle way to say I'm taking a break for a while. My mother is ill and The Clever Pup is not a priority at the moment. I'll post when I can - when I'm bored, or inspired. I'll try to catch up with your lovely blogs too. I'll miss you, mes amis. I'll see you around.
Seriously though, we bought the first sofa at auction about 7 years ago and are just getting around to having it recovered. Like the above picture we will be using lots of colours. The inside will be the Suess Marble shown below. The outside will be a green and purple striped woven chenille - couldn't find a swatch to demonstrate - and the seat cushions will be Eggplant on "Her" days and Cognac on "His" days.
I'll show you the finished product soon.
The crazy couch, which I do love by the way, is from a London upholsterer, Squint Limited
Well, that was something. The biggest production I’ve ever seen.
Junior Pup and I got there first after walking completely around “The Dome”. I’ve lived here 26 years and I didn’t know that Gate 14 was next to Gate 1. I'll have to remember that next time.
We emerged from our entrance on Level 5- just about as high as one could get. We were practically vertical. I felt like a limpet on the side of a spaceship and staring us down was this Kling-on octopus thing that was to be U2’s stage. Everything was huge.
Snow Patrol opened while the sun was still out. The Irish band was good and they looked like nice young men. I can say that now because I’m pushing 50. My husband arrived right on time, ready to rock (sort of) and saw most of the opening act.
The only other time in history that The Dome’s (sorry, Rogers Centre's) roof’s been open for a concert was for Bruce Springsteen in ‘03. It was open again tonight and what a sight. The CN tower loomed directly over us, putting on a light show of it’s own, changing colours - whoop, whoop - every 10 seconds or so.
Some well-kempt but extremely drunk middle-aged women (even older than me) and their adult daughters arrived late and the worst of them was destined to rub elbows with me. As she kept drifting off I knew she was in trouble. “Don’t throw up on me- don’t throw up on me,” I muttered to myself. Thankfully, she lasted until “Vertigo” and then she had to leave. Suburbanites!
U2 started at 9:00 and played 23 songs. We were directly in line with the stage but about half a mile away. Their video screen took care of that and at times I had to remind myself that it was real men down there as I was constantly drawn to the live video images and accompanying effects on the screen.
I’m not that familiar with the material from “No Line on the Horizon”. The band opened with that and quickly moved on to the things I’m most familiar with. I’ve appended a set list below.
Bono was an excellent ring leader and amused us with lots of banter about Toronto. The crowd sang the balance of the vocals for "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" witnessed in one of the Youtube vids below. Twice I felt as thought I was participating in an experiment from "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Once was the call and response mentioned above and the second - when the people in front of me did a weird hand-clap to the song "Moment of Surrender".
Out of the ordinary was the 30 or 40 youth that “Walked On” the stage all wearing Aung San Suu Kyi masks in tribute of the Burmese activist who cannot “Walk On” as she is under house arrest.
Bono also pulled a boy named Lucas out of the crowd to accompany him on “City of Blinding Lights.” Jogging around the outer rim of the stage, he did an admirable job. I kind of cringe at this thing but Lucas will remember it all his life.
Lights seemed to shoot up to a point in the sky. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see the “Bat Insignia”. At one point light from a huge disco ball dotted the crowd, the CN Tower and the surrounding condos. More that once Bono implored the condo dwellers to flick their lights if they were listening. How could they not be?
Towards the end of the show, the mercurial Bishop Desmond Tutu spoke to us on the video screen, and in his own way introduced the song “One”.
Then the limos arrived and I thought the show was over but Bono reappeared for the second encore in a suit trimmed with red neon lights. He sang into a dangling neon microphone reminiscent of those used in old radio shows. With a life of its own I thought that Bono would have to perform a Cirque du Soleil move to keep it in place.
It was a great evening. I’m sure it was the biggest and the best spectacle I’ve ever seen. The best $32 plus handling I've spent in a long time.
Set List
Breathe No Line On The Horizon Get On Your Boots Magnificent Mysterious Ways Beautiful Day Elevation I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For Unknown Caller New Year's Day Stuck In A Moment The Unforgettable Fire City Of Blinding Lights Vertigo Crazy Tonight Sunday Bloody Sunday / Rock The Casbah (snippet) MLK Walk On
Encore
One / Amazing Grace (snippet) Where the Streets Have no Name Ultra Violet (Light My Way) With Or Without You Moment of Surrender
Thanks to backpackdave09
Thanks to Sobriquet77
I've been borrowing pictures willnilly off Flickr. Thanks to Onion for the top image and Kmaraj for the 2nd image and the shot of the Tower. Kmaraj must have been sitting close as we seem to have had the same sightlines.
If you like timeless, classic fashion, great poetry, and all things Parisian you will love Secret, Fragile Skies and Ageless Beauty Always. These blogs are a revelation for me and full of Aha! moments.
Curated by the same person, she has an unerring eye for quality and beauty - whether it is a Neruda poem or a pair of Annie Hall frames; Audrey Tautou or Shakespeare and Co.
Canada's national health insurance program, often referred to as "Medicare", is designed to ensure that all residents have reasonable access to medically necessary hospital and physician services, on a prepaid basis. Instead of having a single national plan, we have a national program that is composed of 13 interlocking provincial and territorial health insurance plans, all of which share certain common features and basic standards of coverage. Framed by the Canada Health Act, the principles governing our health care system are symbols of the underlying Canadian values of equity and solidarity.
Canada's health care system has its share of problems, (long wait times, doctor shortages), but if Canada's governing party decided to scrap the Canadian Health Act and go with the American system, I would bet that not one member of parliament would be re-elected.
Medical debt is the principal cause of bankruptcy in the United States. Give Obama a break - he's just what the doctor ordered.
I won't be in Chicago but I will be at Toronto's Roger's Centre tomorrow night to see U2. I'll be one of those dots in the crowd. I've never seen them before.
My 15-year-old son said " Are we sitting close to the stage?"
"No," I say "As far away as humanly possible. I couldn't afford 3 seats together any closer than the fifth level."
"Good" says the Junior Pup. "It won't be too loud."
Er...
When I saw The Police in 07 my trousers were trembling. Not from being so close to Sting but from the sheer wall of noise.
Here's some stills from Milan for my Mum who can't play video on her 'puter.
I don't drive so it's really funny to me when my husband points out various cars on the street or in print and says, "Hey, that's a Hazel car!"
From what he's picked out for me so far I guess I'm small, quirky, well-rounded with a good set of head lamps.
Here's a selection of what he would call "Hazel Cars".
The Nissan Figaro. I love this car. Made for the Japanese market in 1991 it's becoming a bit of a collectors item in North America and England. I would use this for my Spy Girl missions.
The Fiat Jolly. Aptly named, but unsafe at any speed. Where are the seatbelts? But look how cute. It's got wicker seats. This car was made in the early 60s. It would be my Provençal marketing car. "Bon Jour, Jean-Paul! Comment ça va?"
The 2CV. Swoon. A classic - but I'd have to smoke Gitanes to drive a Citroen. You could find this parked quayside next to my barge.
The Hillman - the ultimate Hazel Car probably because it's a looks a little bit mean and is the most "English" of the 4. One could be a sexy Miss Marple in this car heading for the book club.
Can you imagine the parking lot of your local mall dotted with these beauties? I'd love it.
I'll probably never learn to drive, but Baby, YOU can drive my car.
Born today in 1916, Roald Dahl wrote many books for adults but he is renowned for his children's stories.
Here's the best list I could compile. As a family we read most of these. I asterisked our favourites. Do you have a favourite Roald Dahl story?
The Gremlins (1943) James and the Giant Peach (1961) * Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964) * The Magic Finger (1 June 1966) Fantastic Mr Fox (9 December 1970) Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator (9 January 1972) A sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Danny, the Champion of the World (30 October 1975) The Enormous Crocodile (24 August 1978) The Twits (9 October 1980) * George's Marvellous Medicine (21 May 1981) The BFG (14 October 1982) * The Witches (27 October 1983) The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me (26 September 1985) Matilda (21 April 1988)* Esio Trot (19 April 1990) The Vicar of Nibbleswicke (9 May 1991) The Minpins (8 August 1991)
The Victoria and Albert (V&A) Children's Museum in London recently hosted an exhibition entitled Snozzcumbers and Frobscottle, featuring the collaboration of Roald Dahl and illustrator extrordinaire, Quentin Blake. That would have been fun but unfortunately I live on the wrong side of the pond.
roalddahl.com also has a great interactive website that would appeal to kids around 8-10.
A remarkable sketchbook containing over 80 spectacular watercolours by Count Amadeo Preziosi, is one of the highlights of London's Bonhams’ Fine Art Auctioneers next Travel and Exploration Sale.
The sketchbook accompanied the watercolour artist, Count Amadeo Preziosi (1816-1882) on his Grand Tour of Europe in 1875, which he titled ‘Souvenir de mon dernier voyage’ (Remembrance of my last journey) and is estimated to sell for £320,000-500,000. A better and more revealing image can be seen at http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp. The one I’ve used really doesn’t do it justice.
Preziosi’s album documents, in glorious technicolour, every stop on his momentous journey, beginning and ending in Constantinople (Istanbul), but also includes Romania, Hungary, Germany, England, France, Italy and Malta.
Giles Peppiatt, Head of Travel and Topographical Pictures at Bonhams Auction House says: “To find one picture by Count Preziosi would be a pleasure, but to find no fewer than 81 of his works in his own personal sketchbook is astounding. The book provides a brilliant insight into a lost world, one that our forbears inhabited just 135 years ago, but a world utterly transformed. Yet one can page through this remarkable document and marvel at images that architecturally are still intact. This is an object that is more than the sum of its parts because of it is one man’s overview of Europe in works of delicate beauty.”
The fascination for Constantinople in 19th century Europe made the city a popular destination for western travelers. Many of them, including artists Thomas Allom, Eugene Delacroix, Alexandre Decamps and Eugene Fromentin, illustrated what they saw and did, leaving a legacy of paintings and engravings depicting the city’s mosques, palaces, fountains and squares. But Preziosi’s portrayals of the citizens of Constantinople are full of original detail not to be found in the work of others. The artist’s appreciation for locals in their colourful traditional clothing is evident among the pages.
Born into a wealthy and aristocratic Maltese family, Preziosi had been passionate about art since childhood, further carrying out his avocation by studying at the Paris Academy of Fine Arts. His father was strongly opposed to his artistic inclinations and so Amadeo high-tailed it to Turkey. Having studied in France, Prezsiosi was well-aware that European painters were flocking to Constantinople. He set out in 1842, traveling to Italy and then on to Constantinople, intending to stay for two years. Amadeo Preziosi loved the city and intended to spend the remainder of his life in Constantinople.
Despite his father’s appeals Preziosi refused to return to Malta, where the other members of his family followed ‘respectable’ careers. Preziosi remained true to his passions of painting and Constantinople. He married a woman there and the couple had four children. When he was 65, he was wounded by his own gun following a hunting expedition. Count Amadeo Preziosi is buried in the Catholic cemetery in Yeşilköy, where his grave still stands today.
I never liked Gertrude Stein. I think her poems are wretched and that she was a domineering, manipulating person. I don’t know what Alice B. Toklas saw in her (maybe it was her Tender Buttons) but on this day in 1910, Alice B. Toklas became the lifetime house mate of Stein.
Gertrude who had been sharing a house with her brother Leo for many years, met Toklas in 1907. Leo and Gertrude were the children of a railroad executive who made prudent investments in San Francisco’s cable car lines, therefore making his offspring wealthy and able to travel and live without really working.
Alice would later write that when she met Gertrude Stein: "She was a golden brown presence, burned by the Tuscan sun and with a golden glint in her warm brown hair." I’d like to know who her optometrist was.
Alice was a chain smoker with a slight moustache. She had a penchant for great hats and cool earrings. Every morning for an hour she manicured, buffed and painted her finger nails. In 1908 Alice used those tidy fingers to type manuscripts for Gertrude Stein.
1909 found Alice staying with Gertrude and Leo in Paris. On September 9, 1910, she moved in to 27, rue de Fleurus permanently. Toklas took the reigns of Stein's household. Leo packed his trunk in 1914.
The two women turned their Parisian home into an important artistic and literary salon, where they entertained Picasso, Matisse, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, and many others. Alice was an excellent cook and fond of art, decorating, tapestry and flowers. She was left to entertain the wives of many of the painters Gertrude held court with.
In 1933 The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas was written by Gertrude Stein and is basically Stein’s memoirs. I enjoyed reading it, as I love reading about that time period in Paris but Ernest Hemingway called it a 'damned pitiful book'; Henri Matisse was offended by the descriptions of his wife; Georges Braque thought Stein had misconstrued Cubism; and Leo Stein deemed it to be a “farrago of lies”.
I have the The Alice B. Toklas Cookbook in my collection. Used, it smells strongly of smoke and I can pretend it was actually Alice’s.
For those who are curious, the "B" in Alice B. Toklas’s name stands for Babette.
image: Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas and their poodle Basket. France, 1944.Photograph by Carl Mydans.
I usually make Pineapple-Cheese Party Cake for my husband's birthday but this year he opted for chocolate as that was what the Junior Pup agreed to make him.
So we had this yesterday as sort of a Labour Day/End of Summer cake. Once one of my mother-in-law's hits, it feels incredibly light (but, believe me, it isn't). You'll find it's more of pineapple dessert than a cheesecake. It really is sooo good that it's impossible to have just one slice.
We can't seem to get Pineapple Jello anymore, so I use Peach. The result is better in my opinion.
Here goes.
Ingredients
1 large can Carnation evaporated milk 1 package pineapple (or peach) Jello 1 large package Philadelphia Cream Cheese 3/4 cup white sugar 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 3 tbsp lemon juice 1/4 cup butter. 1 small can pineapple chunks in juice
First make the crust. I think this will make enough for 8"X 13" rectangle or a round flan dish of about 12 inches across. I make it round so it looks more like traditional cheescake.
Toss together the graham cracker crumbs, the butter and 1/4 cup of the sugar. Press into the pan. Leave a little extra to sprinkle when cake is done.
For the filling.
In a large bowl, whip cold evaporated milk with the lemon juice. It will foam up like crazy.
In another bowl, cream the cheese and remaining sugar together. Gradually add to the whipped milk.
Drain the pinapple but reserve 1/2 cup of the juice.
Dissolve the Jello in 1/2 cup of hot pineapple juice. The microwave is very handy for this. I do this step in a Pyrex measuring cup. When Jello has cooled down a little, add to the milk and cheese mixture.
Add half a cup of the crushed pineapple.
Beat well, for a minute or two. Pour into the crust. Sprinkle with the left over crumbs. Let stand in the fridge for at least 6 hours. (Overnight is best).
It's really,really good.
I'm not responsible for the photo. That's from www.lovemyphilly.com
I hope everyone has an enjoyable Labour Day. The weather's beautiful here in Toronto. Summer may be all but over but I think that the good temperatures will continue for at least another month.
I feel so invigorated at the first of September that I think NOW is the time to make resolutions. Hmm.
Oil on board Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of the United States, representing the six million women who entered the workforce for the first time during World War II, many of whom worked in the manufacturing plants that produced munitions and materiel. These women took the places of the male workers who were absent fighting in the Pacific and European theaters. The character is now considered a feminist icon in the US, and a herald of women's economic power to come.
The “Monuments Men” were a group of approximately 345 men and women from thirteen Allied nations who comprised the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section during World War II. Founded in 1943 this group of Allies was established to assist in the protection and restitution of cultural property in war areas during and following World War II. As the war came to a close, they worked to locate and return works of art and other items of cultural importance which had been stolen by the Nazis.
Countless monuments, churches, and works of art were saved or protected by the dedicated personnel of the MFAA section. Frequently entering liberated towns ahead of ground troops, Monuments Men worked quickly to assess damage and make temporary repairs to paintings, frescoes, sculpture and statuary, before moving on through conquered Nazi territory with the Allied Armies.
In the last year of the war, they tracked, located, and returned more than 5 million artistic and cultural items stolen by Hitler and the Nazis.
Many of the groups personnel were museum directors, curators, art historians, and educators and went on to have prolific careers in institutions such as the National Gallery of Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as in museums and other institutions in Europe.
Beginning in late March 1945, Allied forces began discovering hidden repositories in what would become the “greatest treasure hunt in history.” In Germany alone, U.S forces found approximately 1,500 repositories of art and cultural objects. While many of these caches of priceless treasures had been looted by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, others had been legitimately evacuated from German museums for safekeeping. Monuments Men oversaw the safeguarding, cataloguing and removal of all works from these repositories, regardless of their origin. The Monuments Men remained in Europe for up to six years following the conclusion of the War to oversee the complicated restitution of stolen works of art.
Here are some examples of what they found (courtesy of Wikipedia)
Berchtesgaden, Germany: The 101st Airborne Division, known as the “Screaming Eagles,” found more than 1,000 paintings and sculptures stolen by German Reichsmarshall Hermann Göring. The cache had been evacuated from his country estate, Carinhall, and moved to Berchtesgaden in April 1945 to protect it from the invading Russians.
Bernterode, Germany: Americans found four coffins containing the remains of Germany’s greatest leaders, including those of Frederick the Great (Frederick II of Prussia) and Field Marshal Paul Von Hindenburg. Also found in the mine were 271 paintings, including court portraits from the Palace of Sanssouci in Potsdam, which had been hidden behind a locked door and a brick wall nearly five feet thick. The site was originally used as an ammunition and military supply complex manned by hundreds of slave laborers.
Merkers, Germany: The Kaiserode mine at Merkers was discovered by the U.S. 3rd Army under General George S. Patton in April 1945. Reichsbank gold, along with 400 paintings from the Berlin museums and numerous other crates of treasures were also discovered. More dismal discoveries included gold and personal belongings from Nazi concentration camp victims.
Neuschwanstein Castle: Over 6,000 items including ERR (Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg, Alfred Rosenberg’s task force organized for the “legalized” looting of Jews) documents, furniture, jewelry, paintings and other belongings stolen by the ERR from private collectors in France were found here. Monuments Man Capt. James Rorimer oversaw the repository’s evacuation.
Altaussee, Austria: This extensive complex of salt mines served as a huge repository for art stolen by the Nazis, but it also contained holdings from Austrian collections. More than 6,500 paintings alone were discovered at Alt Aussee. The contents included: Belgian-owned treasures such as Michelangelo’s Madonna of Bruges stolen from the Church of Our Lady in Bruges, and Jan van Eyck’s Ghent Altarpiece stolen from Saint Bavo Cathedral in Ghent; Vermeer’s The Astronomer and The Artist’s Studio which were to be focal points of Hitler’s Führer Museum in Linz, Austria; and paintings from the Capodimonte Museum in Naples that had been stolen by the Hermann Göring Tank Division (Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring) at Monte Cassino.
San Leonardo, Italy: In the jail cell of this very northern town, Allied officials discovered paintings from the Uffizi that had been hurriedly unloaded by retreating German troops. Among the masterpieces were paintings by Sandro Botticelli, Filippo Lippi and Giovanni Bellini.
There’s a John Frankenheimer movie starring Burt Lancaster movie called The Train in which a German colonel loads a train with French art treasures to send to Germany. The Resistance (mainly Lancaster)must stop it without damaging the cargo. It’s pretty thrilling and different from the usual war movies made in the 60s.
Speaking of 60s war movies, the clip above promoting Robert M. Edsel’s book The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History, features the rousing theme music from the film Where Eagles Dare. A real eye-opener, I must say, first thing in the morning.
Where I sit and write right now, a few blocks north of Lake Ontario, I am enduring Toronto’s annual air show. It sounds as if we are under attack. Mon Dieu!
"What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You-you want the moon? Just say the word and I'll throw a lasso around it and pull it down. Hey, that's a pretty good idea. I'll give you the moon...Well, then you could swallow it. And it'll all dissolve, see. And the moon beams that shoot out of your fingers and your toes and the ends of your hair...Am I talking too much?"
In keeping with Brian Miller's excellent post "Star" and Willow's wonderful series of movie quotes at Overheard at the Manor I thought I'd post this famous movie quote. Who said it and why?
Sometimes I dreamily browse for foreign houses on this website. http://bluehomes.com/blue-en/ The the first house is gorgeous but unattainable. It's in the Loire region of France for 1,696,000 Euros. It can be found on their website under CD0212.
The second house - just my style - would be easily affordable to any Toronto homeowner with money to spare. The $127,000 Euros they want for this place converts to just under $200,000 Canadian. This place is just south of Bergerac and more pictures can be seen on the Blue Homes website under code PF3937. It's cute inside too.
