Monthly Archives: April 2015

Art Du Jour

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: Bernardo Bellotto, “View of the Grand Canal and the Dogana,” 1743. Click on the image to enlarge.

Posted in Architecture, Art | Tagged Bernardo Bellotto, Italian art, landscape painting, vedute | 1 Comment

Art Du Jour

Posted on April 20, 2015 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: Jan Brueghel the Elder and Hieronymus Francken II, “The Archdukes Albert and Isabella Visiting a Collector’s Cabinet,” 1621-1623. More here. Click on the image to enlarge.

Posted in Art | Tagged Flemish art | Leave a comment

Architecture Du Jour

Posted on April 20, 2015 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: I spotted this at Design Within Reach, a chic national chain that sells modernist furniture, at their location on 3rd Avenue. Erasing the boundaries between inside and out is one thing if you live in Newport Beach, CA … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged interior design, mid-century modernism, modernism, postmodernism | 1 Comment

A Walk Down Bedford Ave.

Posted on April 19, 2015 by Fenster

Fenster writes: I wrote here about a walk down Moody Street in Waltham, Massachusetts, a half-mile slice of interesting grit and glamour–mostly grit–in the otherwise upscale suburbs west of Boston. It was night time at 5 PM near the shortest … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Commercial art, Personal reflections, Photography | 6 Comments

Architecture Du Jour

Posted on April 19, 2015 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: Bruges, Belgium. Click on the image to enlarge.

Posted in Architecture | Tagged Belgium, Bruges, traditionalism | 2 Comments

Mad Men Notes: S7, Ep9 — “New Business”

Posted on April 18, 2015 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: Lots of people are disappointed with this episode, but I enjoyed it. What’s wrong with an action-packed installment filled with hook-ups, rebuffs, and comic interruptions? Does every episode have to be slow and ponderous? 1. Betty is going … Continue reading →

Posted in Television | Tagged Mad Men, Matthew Weiner | 1 Comment

Notes on “The Great War”

Posted on April 14, 2015 by Fabrizio del Wrongo

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: The 1959 “The Great War” is appropriately titled: it may be one of the great war films. Certainly it’s a thoroughly Italian one: a war film in which no one is sure who’s in charge or … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies, Performers | Tagged Alberto Sordi, Film, Italy, Mario Monicelli, movies, The Great War, Vittorio Gassman, World War I | 2 Comments

Mad Men Notes: S7, Ep8 — “Severance”

Posted on April 12, 2015 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: Someone once said that TV recaps are the lowest form of writing — which is probably true — but why should that stop me? Therefore, I’ll be spouting random opinions and observations about the last half season of … Continue reading →

Posted in Television | Tagged Colonel Sanders, David Ogilvy, James M. Cain, John Dos Passos, Mad Men, Matthew Weiner | 1 Comment

Science Fantasy

Posted on April 12, 2015 by Fabrizio del Wrongo

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: Gawping at “science” evangelists has developed into one of my favorite pastimes. I use the scare quotes because, more often than not, the people who are celebrated as science evangelists (typically at places like Reddit) seem to … Continue reading →

Posted in Computers, Science, Technology | Tagged artificial intelligence, Elon Musk, Hari Seldon, Isaac Asimov, Neil deGrasse Tyson, nerds, Science Fiction, Star Trek | 9 Comments

The Trendiness Trend

Posted on April 11, 2015 by Paleo Retiree

Paleo Retiree writes: Could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure that this is the first time I’ve run across the adjective “trendy” being used (non-ironically, anyway) as an enticement. Is calling something “trendy” and meaning it as praise becoming a trend?