'500 Years of Italian Master Drawings' at the Cantor Arts Center

http://www.examiner.com/article/500-years-of-italian-master-drawings-at-the-cantor-arts-center?CID=examiner_alerts_article

Baroque Music

A whole page of classical Baroque music, courtesy of "As Time Goes By"

http://www.timegoesby.net/weblog/2015/05/elder-music-australias-favorite-baroque-pieces-no-20-11.html#comments

Top things to see and do for Memorial Day Weekend SF

http://www.examiner.com/article/top-things-to-see-and-do-for-memorial-day-weekend-sf?CID=examiner_alerts_article

Thursday Links

Complete Alice in Wonderland on Line

In the 150 years since the publication of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll’s story has become more than a literary classic; it is part of our collective cultural imagination. Its illustrations, originally conceived by Carroll, realized by John Tenniel, and reinterpreted by hundreds of artists, are instantly recognizable; its nonsense songs and memorable lines are frequently quoted and repurposed by countless admirers.

This exhibition explores the incredible influence the book has achieved, through Houghton Library’s rich collection of Carrolliana, compiled principally by Harcourt Amory (Harvard 1876) and given to Harvard by his widow and children in 1927.

http://hcl.harvard.edu/libraries/houghton/exhibits/alice/introduction/

Photoset of Albrecht Dürer's work: Featured in this post is the 1535 Latin edition of Four Books on Measurement printed in Paris: http://uispeccoll.tumblr.com/post/119525860713/albrecht-durer-1471-1525-was-born-in-nuremberg

Marks of Genius at the Bodleian - Four centuries of works which can be considered works of genius: http://genius.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/exhibits/browse/

Guess we all know what this means: 'ISIS Captures Most Of Ancient Syrian City Of Palmyra' http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/20/isis-captures-palmyra_n_7341748.html …

Check out all of the amazing workshops and events we have to offer this year at the @sfiaf!: http://www.sfiaf.org/events

Weekend Guide from 7x7: http://www.7x7.com/play/weekend-guide-art-point-reyes-sidewalk-sales-runs-view 

Summer Art Destinations: http://ww2.kqed.org/arts/2015/05/20/day-trippin-summer-art-destinations-around-the-bay-area/

'Letters to Afar'

Only a few days left to see "Letters to Afar" by Péter Forgács at Contemporary Jewish Museum

http://www.examiner.com/article/letters-to-afar-at-the-contemporary-jewish-museum

Only two more weeks to see 'Botticelli to Braque' at the de Young

Botticelli’s “The Virgin Adoring the Sleeping Christ Child" (ca. 1485), greets the visitor at the entry. The painting, never before shown in the US, is one of Botticelli’s masterpieces, showcasing his delicate linear style in tempera, oil and gold on canvas.

The subject of Rembrandt's luminous "A Woman in Bed" (1647), could represent any one of several important women in his life. A woman with her back propped by a pillow pushes the bed curtain aside to welcome an unknown visitor. Signed, dated 164* (the last digit is missing), the picture is one of those Rembrandt's that no one questions.  Nor should they; the intense emotion, the play of golden light over her face and form are identity enough.

El Greco’s “Allegory of a Boy Lighting a Candle” is one of his rare secular works. It could be a representation of human lust, since a delicious young woman – and a not so delicious monkey flank him.  Whatever the meaning, the elongated figures and strong color contrasts make the work stand out, even in a gallery of old masters.

John Singer Sargent. "Portrait of Lady Agnew."

The most impressive landscape painting in the show is Frederic Church’s sublime “Niagara Falls, From the American Side” (1867)—an atmospheric vision of water, mist, rocks and distant hills. The de Young Museum itself has an impressive collection of American art, including paintings by many members of the Hudson River School, including Church, and devotes a large gallery within the museum overlooking its expansive garden with grand-scale land scape paintings.

The next to last gallery has a wall of impressionists including one of my favorite Cezanne’s. “The Big Trees” (c 1904), painted shortly before his death (1906) encapsulates his art with a landscape etched out with geometric squares and muted color schemes.

 Gauguin's "Three Tahitians" - an allegory of vice or virtue. When Gauguin, it's always safe to pick the more risque interpretation.

more at: http://www.examiner.com/article/only-two-more-weeks-to-see-botticelli-to-braque-at-the-de-young

Coffee

First Bay-To-Breakers, 1912

Cross City Race January 1, 1912. Runners heading up Divisadero Street and Golden Gate, part of the original race course.

Picasso's 'Women of Algiers' is the most expensive painting ever sold at auction

The dizzying highs in this month's art auction market reflect increasing levels of global inequality:

http://www.examiner.com/article/picasso-s-women-of-algiers-is-the-most-expensive-painting-ever-sold-at-auction

CJM: The Jewish Alms box reimagined

TzedakahSelfie contest winner is Janis Yerington, IG user Maxsbible! Nothing #selfie about her handmade tzedakahbox

The Hebrew word tzedakah has no satisfactory equivalent in English, but “it’s often translated as 'righteousness,’” says Claire Frost, curatorial assistant at the Contemporary Jewish Museum. Frost has had much occasion to think about tzedakah lately; she is the curator of the CJM’s 10th Dorothy Saxe Invitational, which this year asked 38 West Coast artists to create their versions of the tzedakah box, a small container for contributions to the needy. Tzedakah boxes are traditionally found in Jewish homes and synagogues.

 More at:  http://www.examiner.com/article/weekend-picks-moad-omca-cjm-and-peninsula-women-s-caucus-for-art

'Portraits' At MoAD

Sista Sista Lady Blue” (2007), a chromogenic 1970s-style print by feminist artist Mickalene Thomas.

Ironic use of assemblage piece to indicate the public masks that we all wear. A extra gold star for the resemblance (accidental or otherwise) of traditional African masks.

Necklines” (1989), gelatin silver prints and engraved plastic plaques by Lorna Simpson.

“Wedding Portrait” (2012), an acrylic, pastel, marble dust, fabric and electrostatic transfer by Njideka Akunyili Crosby.

"Three Men" (1966–67) printed and painted papers, watercolor, and graphite on canvas by Romare Bearden Collection SFMOMA

 Nick Cave. Soundsuit. 2009

“Portraits and Other Likenesses” got started with its MoAD and SFMOMA curators surveying the latter’s holdings of works by artists of the African diaspora. What has resulted proves that who or what you are goes far beyond traditional portraiture.

http://www.examiner.com/article/weekend-picks-moad-omca-cjm-and-peninsula-women-s-caucus-for-art?CID=examiner_alerts_article

Happy Birthday Orson

http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/50-years/2015/may/06/orson-welles-100/

Painting in the current show at Big Crow Studio

http://www.examiner.com/article/art-weekend-extravaganza-san-francisco

Calendar Page for May (Gemini)

http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2015/05/a-calendar-page-for-may-2015.html

Detail of Gemini from May Calendar. Book of hours @MorganLibrary MS G.1 I.