Ceramics
Collecting Chinese Snuff Containers
Until the early 1900s the volume of snuff produced in China far exceeded that of tobacco for smoking or chewing. Everyone took it – from the poet Alexander Pope to naturalist Charles Darwin, actress Sarah Siddons and the Duke of Wellington. Lord Nelson took large quantities to sea with him, while Napoleon sniffed over seven pounds a month. Physicians made great claims for it, prescribing snuff for headaches, insomnia, toothache, coughs and colds and recommending it as a measure against contagion. Today snuff bottles remain eminently collectible. The enormous variety in materials, subject matter, colour and shape provides a fascinating trail for the dedicated collector.
CLASSIC: Artists & Artisans – Renaissance to Restoration
Classic – is the SECOND part of our four (4) segment course the Evolution of Art, Design & Style. It is available in video, ebook or podcast format and can be watched, read or listened to on your computer, iPad, Kindle or iPod.
The Mistress and the Consort, Paying the Wages of Beauty
Jeanne Becu managed to make Louis XV forget his sorrows and, the fact that he was sixty. By all accounts she displayed genuine compassion and affection for the melancholy old man so haunted by death. Even the discovery she was not married did not dissuade the King arranging a fraudulent marriage that would make her the very infamous Comtesse du Barry. Marie Antoinette as wife and consort of his successor Louis XVI was painted several times by the artist Marie Élisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun (1755-1842). Woman of complexity and contradictions, the Queen and the Consort lived during a time of society scandal and political turmoil.
Antique & Art Dealers Association Show at Sydney in Spring
The Australian Antique & Art Dealers Association (AA&ADA) Show is on at Royal Randwick Racecourse at Sydney from the 7 – 11th September. It is the leading industry body representing antique and art dealers in Australia today. Their Code of Practice is surety that your investment in the past is also an investment in your future.
CLASSIC Artists & Artisans Day 20 Great Treasure Houses
Day 20 – England and its Great Treasure Houses King James II threw the Great Seal of England into the Thames and fled England when Dutch Protestant rulers William and Mary of Orange claimed the throne of England. Around 1688 some of the grandest architectural gestures in England occur, including Chatsworth, a country palace wholly [...]
Classic: Artists & Artisans Complete Course
Join us for CLASSIC, the SECOND part of our four (4) segment course of study The Evolution of Art, Design & Style CLASSIC: ARTIST & ARTISANS Renaissance to Restoration This part of the course (Days 11 – 20) covers the periods from the rebirth of humanism in Italy during the fourteenth century to the restoration [...]
First Stirrings of the China Trade Precious Cargoes of Cathay
Ceramic traditions since ancient times have undergone many cross fertilizations by their exposure to various cultures. The first stirring of what we now describe as the China Trade began when Europe was still emerging from the medieval period and would build momentum slowly peaking during the nineteenth century.
Giuseppe Castiglione – At the Court of the Chinese Emperors
It was during the Yuan dynasty (c1260-1368) that knowledge of ancient Cathay (China) first filtered through to the west. Mongolian leader Kublai Khan gained the title Great Khan, by defeating his brothers and embracing Chinese culture. In 1260 Kublai Khan (1215-1294) set about rebuilding the city of Peking as his winter capital, governing along Chinese [...]
What Is: Art Nouveau, more than a tendril in time?
At the turn of the 20th century Europe was inspired by the style Art Nouveau as artists and architects produced sensuous, sinuous lines far more eloquent than words
At the Beginnings of Art – Precious Cargoes from Cathay
Italian adventurer, Marco Polo, perpetuated the western predilection for exotic goods in the European mind from early in the thirteenth century. He related fascinating stories about visiting a far off luxurious land called Cathay.
The Power of Art and Design in the Modern Age at Vienna
In 1898 The Vienna Secession with youthful idealism, spirit of sacrifice and willingness to work hard siezed the day leading Vienna into the age of modernism
WHAT IS: Art Deco
Art Deco was the perfect expression of the salons at Paris during the 20’s to the 30’s. It embraced every area of design and the decorative arts including architecture, interiors, furniture, jewellery, painting and graphics, bookbinding, costume, glass and ceramics. Art Deco was about integrating contemporary living with art, and turning life into art, against those consciously working for the undoing of art and its purpose was enjoyment.
The Block, a Renovating Nightmare or, a Restoration Delight
Do the protagonists on television’s real estate renovating reality show, The Block at Melbourne in 2011 face a renovating nightmare, or a restoration delight?
Elegance, a refinement of taste to cultivate polite society
An evening of traditional elegance, say at the White House or Government House Australia, still requires a perfection of planning and wise organisation so that it appears not to be contrived at all.
Antiques, Art, Culture & Commerce for Breakfast @ Tiffany’s
One of of the most enduring shows on television since the end of 70’s is about antiques and art. It’s all about finding out if an object is a valuable antique or a worthless copy from someone able to decode its message and decipher the truth about its authenticity and origins.
A Hidden Jewel – The Nicholson Museum Sydney University
The Nicholson Museum at Sydney University is the second largest teaching collection of ancient artifacts in the world, certainly the biggest such collection in Australia. It is a stunning array and humbling in that there are so many objects from many ancient civilisations we will recognise and connect with, despite them having been created thousands of years ago.
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