4.03.2008

More on John Adams and Art

Diane Durante over at Forgotten Delights has posted some really cool information about the John Adams miniseries. I have been thoroughly enjoying this series, though I missed the most recent episode (#4), and I now have something else to look for when I catch up on it. Diane discusses a hot air balloon ascension that Adams and Jefferson witnessed in Paris and that was portrayed in the series. She then relates it to a real sculpture commemorating the event that is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, and even posts a picture.

From there I checked out her website and she has a ton of really interesting articles and references, and even offers walking tours of outdoor sculptures in Manhattan, as well as occasional tours of MMA. I may need to make a drive down to NYC this summer...

Finally, I wanted to mention that the pieces she has written for The Objective Standard are superb. Specifically, 19th-Century French Painting and Philosophy is fantastic, and if you didn't have enough reason to buy a subscription to this journal, this should push you over the edge. Hint: buy the back issues so you can see this article in print, because... This article comes with nearly 60 images of the paintings under discussion, and it's a fascinating examination of the role of reason and philosophy in art, with concrete examples of what happens when bad philosophy replaces good.
The web-version is also good and includes the photos, but there's something about seeing it in print.

No comments: