“Any path is right, if— as according to Bach-- it leads to the divine”— music historian Paul Epstein on J.S. Bach’s fugues, to which Bach never gave a playing order. Aleatory art is art where the finished result is substantially out of the artist’s hands. It can involve chance or the musicians’ or audience’s choice. … Continue reading Aleatory art
Author: David Cycleback
Lab experiment becomes art
Massachusetts Institute of Technology electrical engineering professor Harold Edgerton became world famous for his invention of the strobe light and stroboscopic photography, the latter a form of ultra high speed photography using strobe lights. Edgerton was studying turbine engines in his 1930s Cambridge Massachusetts lab and wanted stop-action images of the engine in motion. However, camera … Continue reading Lab experiment becomes art
Curious physical forms of ancient money
Money has taken unusual material forms over the years. Cows, sheep and goats were first used as currency thousands of years before Christ. Cowries, the shells of a mulluscs, were a popular form of currency for many years. Bronze and copper cowrie imitations were manufactured by China at the end of the Stone Age and … Continue reading Curious physical forms of ancient money
15th century counterfeit protection
German painter and artist Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) is ranked as one of history's master printmakers, perhaps the most technically skilled in Western art. During his time, his etchings, engravings and woodcuts were emulated and glorified, and owned by kings. To help prevent his works from being counterfeited or plagiarized, Durer made his prints so detailed … Continue reading 15th century counterfeit protection
Tempera paintings
Tempera, often called egg tempera, is an ancient type of paint and painting that pre-dated oil paint in popularity. Many ancient Egyptian and Western Medieval paintings were tempera, and the paintings of Michelangelo and Botticelli are tempera. Tempera was the most popular form of painting until the 1500s, when it was replaced by oil paint. … Continue reading Tempera paintings
Milk glass photograph
Many are surprised when they learn that many 1800s photographs were not paper, but glass and metal. The pictured 1800s opalotype has the image on milky white glass and has a foil frame. Opalotypes were sometimes hand tinted or colored.
Dali’s bomb prints
Salvador Dali made prints printed from metal printing plates prepared in creative ways. To help create the design for one printing plate, he blew up a home made bomb in front of it.
How do you know if one of those big John James Audubon bird prints is original?
The wildly popular large Audubon "Birds of America" prints were originally printed in the 1820s-30s, and have been reprinted many times since, including as everyday posters. Luckily for collectors, identifying the original large prints are surprisingly easy if you know what to look for. An original large 1820s-30s Audubon "Birds of America" print should have … Continue reading How do you know if one of those big John James Audubon bird prints is original?
Authentic coloring?
1800s Harper's Woodcuts, or woodcuts prints from the magazine Harper's Weekly, are popularly collected today. The images show nineteenth century life, including stage actors, sports, US Presidents, war, high society, nature and street life. Though originally black and white, some of the prints have been hand colored over the years. As age is important to … Continue reading Authentic coloring?
A very basic guide to identifying ceramics
Ceramics (cups, bowls plates, jugs, figures, etc) are divided into three major categories: stoneware, earthenware and porcelain. This post is a very quick identification to which of the three is that figurine in the antique store, bowl in the estate stale, or coffee cup your kitchen cabinet. It is usually easy to make an identification, … Continue reading A very basic guide to identifying ceramics
Looking at Artifacts and Ideas 