A Sydney art dealer bought the portrait of Josephine Bonaparte, stolen in 2014, for the bargain price of $250 on the online marketplace.
Napoleon
Posted inBooks
Plunder Dissects Napoleon’s Obsession with Stealing Art
Using a mix of art, military, and intellectual history, Cynthia Saltzman argues that controlling art is a powerful way to control hearts and minds.
Posted inArt
Taxidermists Restore Napoléon’s Beloved White Horse
Napoléon Bonaparte reportedly rode over 130 horses during his 14-year reign, but only one ended up as taxidermy: the Arabian stallion named le Vizir.
Posted inArt
Political Cartoons from a Golden Age of British Satire
In late 18th-century Britain, etched cartoons and caricatures abounded, poking fun at kings, noblemen, society ladies, French revolutionaries, the institution of marriage, and countless other people and things.
Posted inArt
Wondrous Museum Relics Go Online for the 200th Anniversary of Waterloo
Museums around Europe have rallied a troop of artifacts to commemorate the Battle of Waterloo’s 200th anniversary.
Posted inArt
Propaganda at the British Library
As a way to guide public opinion to a collective obedience, governments around the world have employed art. These visual modes of propaganda can be powerful and moving, and they haven’t disappeared, as proved by the playing cards showing members of Saddam Hussein’s regime distributed by the US during the 2003 Iraq invasion. The British Library in London is opening an exhibition that examines extensively this tradition of control.
Posted inOpinion
Required Reading
This week on Required Reading … a look back to Napoleon in Egypt … a history of mural whitewashing in Los Angeles … the preservation of the Watts Towers … Steven Heller tracks dowing the master style guide to the Master Race … what is “The Future of Art” … are you ready for the Singularity?