Books and Art

Portrait of A. and V. Gagarin (1802). Vladimir Borovikovsky...

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:27:36 -0500

Portrait of A. and V. Gagarin (1802). Vladimir Borovikovsky (Russian, Rococo, 1757-1825). Oil on canvas. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.

The portrait depicts the daughters of Actual Privy Councilor Gavriil Petrovich Gagarin. On the right, with the musical score is Anna Gavriilovna Gagarina (1782—1856). On the left, with a guitar is Varvara Gavriilovna Gagarina (1784—1802).

Dancing in silk gown with flower emblem, price upon request at...

Thu, 23 May 2013 22:17:54 -0500

Dancing in silk gown with flower emblem, price upon request at Roberto Cavalli.

Float Like a Butterfly by Andreas Sjödin. New York Magazine, Feb 8, 2008. Featuring dancers Devon Teuscher and Melanie Hamrick of the American Ballet Theatre. Styling by Harriet Mays Powell.

In the Cafe (2008). Jerry Salinas (USA, 1967-). Salinas began to...

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:36:37 -0500

In the Cafe (2008). Jerry Salinas (USA, 1967-).

Salinas began to study painting at the Art Institute of Chicago, going to America Academy of Art where he majored in Illustration and Painting. He is dedicated to a wide variety of topics as well as a variety of techniques ranging from painting to digital.

Bookplate, 1902. Robert Hall, an avid collector of Kemscott...

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:53:49 -0500

Bookplate, 1902. Robert Hall, an avid collector of Kemscott Press books.

On the library table are Kelmscott works, including William Morris’s The Glittering Plain and his 1895 translation of Beowulf. All the books are clearly bound in the distinctive Kelmscott full limp vellum tied with silk ribbons. The Wood Beyond the World is open to show a Morris-designed woodcut border and frontispiece. Leaning against the bookcase is a copy of the 1896 edition of Chaucer.

Princess Charlotte of Belgium as a Child (1864). Franz Xaver...

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:24:00 -0500

Princess Charlotte of Belgium as a Child (1864). Franz Xaver Winterhalter (German, Neo-Rococo, 1805-1873). Oil on canvas. Musée d’Orsay, Paris.

Carlota of Mexico, born Charlotte of Belgium (1840–1927), empress consort of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico, the former Archduke of Austria.

In the early 1860s, the ambitious Napoleon III initiated the French intervention in Mexico and placed Maximilian as the figurehead to serve as the nominal emperor of Mexico.

Our Alphabet of Toys. Mary B. Grubb. Harter Publishing...

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:44:12 -0500

Our Alphabet of Toys. Mary B. Grubb. Harter Publishing Company, Cleveland, 1932. Illustrator: Carolyn S. Ashbrook. In publisher’s black color printed pictorial wrappers that have been repaired.

“V’s for velocipede, come take your ride, I’ll put on my skates and go by your side.”

Peaceful Reading. Fernand Toussaint (Belgian, 1873-1956). Oil on...

Thu, 23 May 2013 12:26:58 -0500

Peaceful Reading. Fernand Toussaint (Belgian, 1873-1956). Oil on panel.

According to Mario de Monchi, Toussaint was the “incontestable master of the grace and charm of the woman.” His classical artistic schooling in drawing gave his work a certain precision, but it was Toussaint’s travels and friendships that influenced his choice of palette and the tender sensuality with which he endowed the paintings he most loved creating, his portraits of women.

Jane Russell reading at home. At the height of her career,...

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:51:10 -0500

Jane Russell reading at home.

At the height of her career, Russell started the “Hollywood Christian Group,” a weekly Bible study at her home which was attended by many of the leading names in the film industry. In 1953 she tried to convert Marilyn Monroe during the filming of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes; Monroe later said “Jane tried to convert me (to religion) and I tried to introduce her to Freud.”

The Bust (1919). Georges Jules Auguste Cain (French, 1856–1919)....

Thu, 23 May 2013 08:47:43 -0500

The Bust (1919). Georges Jules Auguste Cain (French, 1856–1919). Oil on canvas.

Cain was a historical painter, and writer who found inspiration in the history of Paris, its theaters and its monuments. A square in Paris is named after him: the Square Georges Cain, at the 8 Pagan Street, in the Marais, in the 3rd district, against the Carnavalet Museum to which he devoted much of his life.

LIFE. Theatre Number, October 5, 1922. W.T. (Wladyslaw Theodor)...

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:57:12 -0500

LIFE. Theatre Number, October 5, 1922. W.T. (Wladyslaw Theodor) Benda (Polish-American, 1873-1948).

Benda studied art in Kraków and in Vienna before coming to the US in 1899. He is best remembered for his masks, which were used in theatre and dance performances throughout the world. Benda wrote the book Masks (1944).

At the Breakfast Table. Carl Vilhelm Holsøe (Danish,...

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:44:15 -0500

At the Breakfast Table. Carl Vilhelm Holsøe (Danish, 1863-1935). Oil on canvas.

Holsøe is a very much respected artist of the Danish school. His interiors are painted with quick and virtuoso brushwork and a sure sense of power.He painted landscapes, genre scenes and interiors and in this respect is very similar to Vilhelm Hammershøi and was, at times, called the poor man’s Hammershøi.

Nightmare Town. Dashiell Hammett. Dell #379, 1948. Contains four...

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:20:47 -0500

Nightmare Town. Dashiell Hammett. Dell #379, 1948. Contains four stories: Nightmare Town, The Scorched Face, Albert Pastor at Home, and Corkscrew.

Each of the stories is high quality, full of Hammett’s inimitable character descriptions and clean action prose. All four work very well together, exposing the corruption and crime that lay hidden beneath the seemingly banal surface of Western towns and small cities.

“The ebony stick swung swifter in his hand…Spun to the clicking tune of wood on bone, on metal weapons; to the duller rhythm of wood on flesh.”

The Pink Dancers, Before the Ballet (1884). Edgar Degas...

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:59:29 -0500

The Pink Dancers, Before the Ballet (1884). Edgar Degas (French, Impressionism, 1834-1917). Oil on canvas. Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen.

Degas likened the dancers’ training to his work as an artist. Just as he sketched the dancers’ every gesture and position to make his paintings as authentic as possible, the dancers performed countless repetitions to perfect their movements.

Degas sketched as he wandered the Opera House, filling his notebooks with drawings of dancers and then returning to his studio to compose and paint.

The star of Time Out of Mind (1947), Phyllis Calvert, reads the...

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:56:37 -0500

The star of Time Out of Mind (1947), Phyllis Calvert, reads the original novel.

Servant girl Kate Ferald (Calvert, in her first Hollywood film) falls in love with Christopher Fortune (Robert Hutton), the scion of a wealthy New England sailing family. Chistopher is likewise smitten by Kate, but the class structure of the 19th century precludes their marriage. Aware that their union is not to be, Kate renounces Christopher and encourages him to wed someone from his own social class.

Reading (1890). Ilya Galkin (Russian, 1860-1915). “To read is to...

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:49:12 -0500

Reading (1890). Ilya Galkin (Russian, 1860-1915).

“To read is to fly: it is to soar to a point of vantage which gives a view over wide terrains of history, human variety, ideas, shared experience and the fruits of many inquiries.” -- A C Grayling, Financial Times (in a review of A History of Reading by Alberto Manguel)

Flamin’ Mamie is a 1925 jazz classic composed by Paul...

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:09:00 -0500

Flamin’ Mamie is a 1925 jazz classic composed by Paul Whiteman and Fred Rose. Written as a “Fox Trot Song” on Jazz Age themes relying on the 1920s image of the vamp: “A Red Hot Stepper.” It was one of the top hits of 1925.

The lyrics describe Mamie as a Roaring Twenties vamp: “Flamin’ Mamie, a sure-fire vamp / When it comes to lovin’ / She’s a human oven / Come on you futuristic papas / She’s the hottest thing he’s seen since the Chicago fire.”

Young Boy Playing Flute At The Edge Of The Woods. Haynes King...

Wed, 22 May 2013 07:58:38 -0500

Young Boy Playing Flute At The Edge Of The Woods. Haynes King (British, 1831-1904). Oil on canvas.

King was born on the island of Barbados, then in the British Empire. In 1854 he moved to London where he studied art at the Leigh Academy. Many of his paintings were exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts.

Cherry Ames, Visiting Nurse (Cherry Ames #8). Helen...

Wed, 22 May 2013 00:44:39 -0500

Cherry Ames, Visiting Nurse (Cherry Ames #8). Helen Wells. Grosset & Dunlap, 1946. First edition. Original dust jacket.

Cherry reunites with her old Spencer classmates when they all decide to take an apartment together in New York City, and work for the Visiting Nurse Service. Greenwich Village is a far cry from Hilton, Illinois, and farm-raised Bertha is ready to mutiny when she tries to cook in their tiny kitchen.

A Pleasant Afternoon/Portrait of a Young Woman Reading. Lilian...

Tue, 21 May 2013 20:49:34 -0500

A Pleasant Afternoon/Portrait of a Young Woman Reading. Lilian Matilda Genth (American, 1876-1953). Oil on canvas.

Genth worked as a dress designer before winning the Elkins Scholarship, which allowed her to study with J.A.M. Whistler in Paris for a year. Upon her return to the US, she began painting female nudes in landscapes, for which she became well known. Later in her career, she abandoned the nude in favor of scenes from her travels across Europe and Asia.

Alessandra Ferri performs Manon. Photo by Fabrizio Ferri. Ferri...

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:14:09 -0500

Alessandra Ferri performs Manon. Photo by Fabrizio Ferri.

Ferri is a retired Italian prima ballerina assoluta. She danced with the Royal Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and La Scala Theatre Ballet and as an international guest artist, before retiring on 10 August 2007, aged 44.