Claiming Pissarro

I read an article recently about a Pissarro painting that had been stolen but later found and sold during World War II. The painting has changed hands many times since and is now the center of a potential U.S. court case. The painting now resides at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection in Spain.

U. S. resident, Claude Cassirer, is claiming ownership for the 1897 painting, Rue Saint Honore—Afternoon , Rain Effect, that was stolen from his grandmother. Although the painting was stolen by Nazi’s, Cassirer’s grandmother, the original owner, was compensated by Germany. Spain now possesses the painting and does not believe the case belongs in the U.S. courts.

We will probably learn more about this unusual claim as arguments are presented in the months to come.

Camille Pissarro, one of the leaders of the Impressionist movement, would probably be amazed about the case if he were alive today. Pissarro excelled not only in painting but also with various graphic techniques. His work can be found in many public collections.

You can find a great selection of art books, art exhibition catalogs and magazine back issues at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.


www.nelllasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com

Hooray for Dr. Seuss

A few years ago, I had an opportunity to work in an elementary school library. I always felt a lot of excitement when the month of March approached. Some of you may know that Dr. Seuss (also know as Ted Geisel) is synonymous with reading as far as elementary schools are concerned. As a matter of fact Read Across America Day coincides with Dr. Seuss’ birthday on March 2.

Each year the National Education Association promotes the nation’s largest reading celebration on Dr. Seuss’ birthday. Most schools plan some type of reading event during the period. In my small school we would decorate the library with everything we could find about Dr. Seuss. I would bring in my collection of stuff dolls, Sam I Am, The Grinch and others along with of my personal collection of Dr. Seuss books. My greatest enjoyment was opening a Dr. Seuss book to read to the young students who sat patiently listening and appeared to be hypnotized.

The dozens of books by Dr. Seuss continue to be popular with both the young and old. The rhyming words as well as the pictures of the unforgettable characters all contributed to the success of the author and cartoonist, Dr. Seuss.

The book, The Secret Art of Dr. Seuss, contains some of the art work of Ted Geisel created for his own pleasure . This book along with other art books, art exhibition catalogs and magazine back issues can be found at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.


www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com

Art Making a Comeback

A newspaper article reported that recent auctions may indicate that art lovers are buying again. A record was set for the amount paid at an auction for art work. Some experts, however, are cautioning that this may not be the end of the global financial decline that has slowed the sales of art work in recent months.

A large auction house reported the sale of one of Giaocometti’s scupltures, “Walking Man I”, for more that $100 million dollars. Reported also was the sale of Gustav Klimt’s landscape “Church in Cassone” for 42.4 million. Art auction houses for the last year or more have been slow to generate estimated prices for many of their items.

Maybe art is making a comeback. Has the economic downturn ended for the art world? We will just have to wait and see.

If you are looking for some post-auction catalogs, check out Nella’s Books and Collectibles. You will also find a nice selection of art books, art catalogs and magazine back issues.

www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com

Painting the Stormy Seas

Winslow Homer, one of the great painters of the 19th Century, was a self-taught artist. He devoted a significant part of his career to painting crashing waves and stormy seas. It has been said that Homer had the ability to recreate nature’s harsh and stormy weather unlike any other artist.

Originally an illustrator he moved on to paintings—first oil then watercolors. He was the first to display his watercolors as finished works. He believed in using marine watercolors that were luminous and bright. The medium of watercolors is credited to Homer.

If you have had an opportunity to view Homer’s work, it becomes obvious why he is known as the major American marine painter and watercolorist of all time.

You can find books on Homer Winslow and other artist at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater

An Artist in the Making

I had the opportunity to volunteer at a museum on MLK day. I worked in the the arts and crafts area where we invited guest to create a legacy timeline that would be presented on a gallery wall. Using 3 x 5 cards, visitors were instructed to add something memorable either in words or picture dating from the 1990's to the future.

Many of the young people were of course thinking about the future. Many of this age group submitted cards reflecting this time period. I was amazed by one young boy's work. This young boy sat down and after listening to the instructions began to quickly draw on his card with a blue colored pencil. He drew with a lot of detail what looked like two tall structures. Later he added red lines to fill in some of the spaces.

I asked him what he was drawing and he said it was the Twin Towers in New York. I learned from his mother that he loved art and had demonstrated this by unfortunately painting his bedroom walls . After the drawing was completed the boy took a pair of scissors and began to cut the card. His mother and I were able to stop the young man from destroying his work. We taped what remained on another 3 x 5 card and it was added to the legacy timeline on the museum's wall.

This reminds me of the stories I have read about the lives of some of the great artists of the past. I wonder how much art work could have been saved if a mother had stepped in?

Visit Nella's Books and Collectibles and discover the art of reading.

http://www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com/

Dismantling the Past

It has been said that Ettore Sottsass, architect/designer, devoted his life and work to dismantling the past. Recently some of Sottsass' work was exhibited in New York. Sottsass' career spanned over 60 years and produced work in the fields of architecture, furniture, and industrial design, glass, ceramics, painting and photography. He spent much of his career designing landmark products.

Sottsass experimented with many artistic materials but had a great fascination with ceramics. His first ceramics were made in 1956. Although the ceramics were not popular early on some believe this was his framework for developing the radical design group, Memphis.

In the 1980’s breaking the rules began along with experimenting with the unconventional. Sottsass has been credited with being a major contributor of the postmodern design movement.

You can find some of the work of the design collective, Memphis in a Sotheby’s catalog, Memphis, La Collection Karl Lagerfeld , at Nella’s Books and Collections.

www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com

Finding Dali

I recently read that Salvador Dali’s 1942 painting on a stage curtain was discovered at the Carnegie Museum of Art. This stage curtain was painted by Dali for the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. It appears that the curtain was lost after it was transported in 1976. Surprisingly this huge oil-on-canvas painting was discovered in the storage area of the museum.


Dali of course is the Spanish Surrealist known for using realistic techniques to present hallucinatory scenes. Dali was said to have been inspired by his dreams. The artist would place a canvas beside his bed and gaze at it before sleeping. He recorded what he believed were his dreams when he woke up. I can imagine that when this work was rediscovered, many may have thought they were dreaming.

You can find books on Salvador Dali along with other art books and catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.


www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com