Retiring this blog

 Update: I'm retiring this blog. Looking at copying some posts to my main blog...

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Klimt's Portrait of a Lady is residing in Piacenza

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A compelling headline in ArtNews today: Stolen Gustav Klimt Painting May Have Been Discovered in an Italian Gallery’s Wall . So, if you've dreamed of visiting Piacenza, Italy, but have held back because the prized Klimt was missing, your dreams may soon come true. A little history of the lady: 1916-17: Gustv Klimt paints his famous Portrait of a Lady. The oil on canvas painting measures 60 by 55 centimetres (24 in × 22 in). It depicts a portrait of a female figure, composed in an unusually lively expressionistic style. 1925: It was acquired by the Galleria Ricci-Oddi in Piacenza, Italy. 1996: X-ray analysis revealed that the portrait was an overpainted version of Klimt's lost work Portrait of a Young Lady (in hat and with scarf), which disappeared in 1917. The original portrait showed a woman with whom Klimt is believed to have had a love affair, but after she died suddenly, he painted over the work. February 22, 1997: The painting was reported stolen, shortly...
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Birth of Venus Causes Case of Stendhal's Syndrome

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The Birth of Venus, painted by Sandro Botticelli in the 1480s, is one of he world's truly beautiful artworks. I still remember it taking my breath away in when I stood before it. If you've seen it, you know what I mean. If you haven't, then go. Just GO. Though here is a tale from last week that might give you pause. "A man suffered a heart attack after he became overwhelmed by the beauty of Botticelli's The Birth of Venus. The unnamed Italian, 70, was gazing at the 15th century masterpiece in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence on Saturday morning when he had an intense artistic experience. He was the latest to fall victim to an apparent condition known as Stendhal's Syndrome - defined as dizziness, fainting, hallucinations and even heart palpitations when seeing something of 'great beauty'..." [ read more in the Daily Mail ]. Stendhal Syndrome Stendhal syndrome was named after Marie-Henri Beyle (1783–1842), better known by his penname Stendhal...
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