The Vienna blog is now complete and on-line. There are 3 parts, so watch for the other two links along the right side. Preliminary plans are going ahead for Frankfurt in the Spring, and possibly adding in Cologne, too. The two cities are only an hour apart by high speed train.
We went looking for a new wood stove today, but the good ones proved too expensive. Our old one is having difficulties. Someone will come out near the end of November to have a look. It's very hard to get a wood stove person in this county.
We have resumed walking, following a pretty long hiatus after returning from Vienna. I have also returned to Iaido training, though I will have to scale back my ambitious plans to reach 75 classes by Christmas. Maybe 65. Piano practice has also resumed, and the new pieces are coming along. Actually, very few pieces are totally new to me. Many I have learned before, though most of these I have never performed. I used to just learn pieces and record them.
Today's artwork from the DIA is another Dutch painting. The Dutch and Flemish collections are so rich that I could easily pull all 10 or 12 of the museum's "greatest paintings" from these galleries. Here is Detroit's Rembrandt masterpiece, "The Visitation." This painting is so good that when Detroit was visited by Rembrandt scholars from the Netherlands a few years ago to reappraise the works, one of them remarked "There is only one thing wrong with this painting; it is not in the Rijksmuseum."
Rembrandt's Visitation, Detroit
Thursday, October 26th/17
The teaching week is over at last! It seemed longer this week as I had to be chairperson at a student recital downtown last Sunday. So it was, in some ways, a 5-day work week. Now I'm off until next Tuesday! Deb got back last night from Lindsay, where she spent two nights and a day visiting with her Mom. They played cards and watched DVDs, while I stayed home and worked. Something is wrong with my retirement plan.
I have completed two parts of the Vienna website--look to the left on this page for the link to Travels Abroad: London and Europe. I am already working on the 3rd part, which will have the most photos, and the best ones. Though we have been back for nearly a month, the excitement of the trip has not worn off. We are both looking forward to returning next autumn.
I began introducing some of the top DIA paintings a few weeks ago, and I want to continue. It is pretty amazing how many great painters have their best and most famous painting hanging in the Detroit galleries. At least half a dozen examples pop into my head. So this time around I will show one of those painting. Jacob van Ruisdael is one of the most famous landscape painters in European history. He painted in the 17thC and was Dutch. He has a lot of very dramatic paintings to his credit, as well as more sedate ones. The Detroit version of The Jewish Cemetery is one of the most famous paintings in the world, and considered Ruisdael's chief masterpiece. There is a different version of the work in Dresden Germany, considered to be inferior (it has darkened, it has been cut down). This painting also sums up our weather here in Essex County, Ontario, on Monday through Wednesday of this past week.
This is a very large painting, and it is quite awe-inspiring to stand before it.
The Jewish Cemetery, by Jacob van Ruisdael.
Collection Detroit Institute of Arts
Sunday, October 22nd/17
Astronomy season is done for October. The notes are done, too. Some summary work remains for later in the week. Today was the ORMTA recital at the university, which I chaired. There were only 9 students in it, but most of the pieces were very advanced and quite long. It turned into a pretty great concert! Afterwards, it was home to roast some coffee, do laundry, and get Deb packed for her visit to Lindsay tomorrow. I will be on my own till Wednesday night. I plan to do a large amount of piano work, as well as work on the Vienna website. So it is possible that I will having something ready to publish later tomorrow evening (Monday).
Amanda paid a visit Saturday evening, sharing some photos and short movies from her visit to Barcelona in June. I was very tired from a week of late-night observing, and ended up having too much caffeine. I didn't fall asleep until after 2 am. So I am still pretty much run down. Up very early Monday morning to get Deb to the train station. Looking forward to a long autumn nap that afternoon.
Speaking of Deb, she has just won her third 1st Place award for one of her films! This time it was Voyage of the Golden Hinder's turn, which won the short film category in a festival in Anglesey, Wales. Her short coffee film has won two prizes so far, in a festival in Toronto, and one in Brighton, England. Not too shabby!
Friday, October 20th/17
If I haven't been blogging much, don't assume it's because nothing is happening. Usually it is just the opposite. After 5 cloudy nights in a row to begin the October observing session, we are now wrapping up a week of clear nights. I have also returned to Iaido. So my time has been spent observing, writing up notes, and sleeping in late. Tonight I leave early to go to Iaido, then I will head back out to the observatory, which is becoming like a second home. On Sunday I am the chairperson for the first ORMTA student piano recital of the new season. Deb has helped me get the program set up, and I have to stop off on my way to Iaido tonight to get it printed. Practicing my new piano pieces has more or less been abandoned until cloudy skies return, possibly Saturday. I have also had no time to work on my Vienna blog. Hopefully soon. Perhaps Sunday. At least the book got written.
Deb is going off to Lindsay to visit her mom on Monday until Wednesday. She will take the train to Toronto and then a bus to Lindsay on Monday, then return the same way Wednesday. I, along with our two male cats and male tortoise, will be bachelors for three days. I still have three more weeks of teaching until our next break, which will happily coincide with the next observing session. More writing here as time permits. Check back often!
Friday, October 13th/17
I've just finished reading my 150th book since June 2016 related to the Avon Equinox SF series. The last book was another great one by Edgar Pangborn, called "Davy." Check out the review on my Avon page, or better yet grab a copy of the book and enjoy. I give it a high recommendation, as I do most of his novels. I read four novels on the Vienna trip, non related to the Avon series. I thought I needed a break, but I really didn't. Still, I have a huge backlog of reading to do not related to my project, so I guess these will get read on long trips, especially involving 9-hr. flights.
I have just finished writing the Vienna journal, with about 60 photos included, along with maps and such. Perhaps tomorrow I can begin selecting images for the website version, which will include less chatter and be more focussed on the images. When updates are ready, you will read about it here first. It won't be long.
I completed my new week of a revised and slightly lengthened teaching schedule. Instead of two days a week I now have to teach four days, though three of those are pretty light. I have one adult student Monday morning, after which we usually head to Detroit for some R & R. Tuesday I have seven students, then two on Wed., and three on Thursday. I haven't had this many students in a long time. So far all is good. I like the fact that all day Friday I keep thinking it is Saturday. It seems to give me a longer weekend.
During my last entry I began a new feature, showcasing a favourite painting from the collection in Detroit. Today's offering is a real prize, Bruegel's Wedding Dance. Even people I talked to in Vienna did not believe that Detroit had an original Pieter the Elder--they just assumed it was a copy. And so the folks in England thought when the museum director at that time, a very shrewd man by the name of Valentiner, bought the Wedding Dance in 1930 from a private collector. He paid around $30,000.00 for it, and it turned out to be a pretty big bargain. After it was cleaned up it became obvious to one and all what it was. Painted in 1565, it is the earliest of Bruegel's now legendary peasant painting. Even after innumerable visits to see this great painting, there is always something new to discover--some clothing, a facial expression, a pose...it is a truly great painting. It also goes really well with a piano piece by Bela Bartok, namely the first movement of his Sonatina, entitled "Bagpipers."
The Wedding Dance, by Bruegel the Elder, painted in 1565. It is a large canvas. The artist may have painted himself into the picture, right, foreground, in yellow and brown and wearing a black cap.
Collection of Detroit Institute of Arts
Wednesday, October 11th/17
Sometimes I look at this blog and cannot believe how long it's been since my last entry! Time moves way too fast. Well, it's astronomy time once again. It rained all day, our first good rain in over a month, and it looks to be cloudy all through the weekend. Nice to know there are some constants in the universe. Tomorrow is report card day for Anita G. She and Randy will be in London for her 3rd cycle of chemo, as well as her first assessment since it began two months ago. Tomorrow should tell us a lot, and we all desperately hope the news is highly positive!!
I have been working steadily on the written journal of our stay in Vienna. I am just about to write up the final day spent there, and then talk briefly about the flights home. The last entry will be a summary of the entire trip, our first new European destination in many years. Next Spring Frankfurt is looking very possible, and then back to Vienna in November. Hopefully I will begin work on the website version of Vienna this weekend, more likely if it remains cloudy.
The main reason for our visit was to see the paintings in the Kunsthistoriches. With about 1/4 of the painting galleries closed due to an upcoming special exhibition, we needed only two long visits to see what we wanted. The museum is so rich in treasures and masterpieces that it is pretty hard to get a grip on things. Every room has something breath-taking and world famous. It got me thinking about the Detroit collection, also extremely rich in rare treasures, especially paintings, and not nearly so well patronized. Over the next several blog entries I am going to highlight some of the best works in the museum, any one of which would make a visit there worthwhile. Here is my first choice, a tiny jewel that we have loved since we first saw it back in the 1970s. Deb also did a very cool comic book story about the painting.
St. Jerome in His Study, Detroit Institute of Arts. Variously given to Jan Van Eyck or Petrus Christus, or the workshop of one of them. Whomever did this remarkable painting (it's tiny, at 8" x 5") did a remarkable job. Filled with religious symbolism, it provides a veritable course of study in early Flemish painting. Flemish art doesn't get any better than this. Once owned by the Medici family, and the Duke of Mantua, it is a justly famous work. I love the sleepy expression on the Saint--I feel exactly the same way when I read too long!
Thursday, Oct. 7th/17
Anita had a break from chemo this week. She has completed two cycles now, with three weeks of chemo and a week off between. Yesterday she went for tests that will tell if she is making progress, but results won't be known till mid-week next. Fingers crossed! We will visit tomorrow and drop off some small gifts we purchased for her and Randy in Vienna.
Speaking of Vienna, I am hard at work on the written journal. I printed 59 of the 300 photos I took. Many more should make it on-line over the next few weeks. Our head is still filled with the sights of that city. Despite the hordes of tourists in places, it is a remarkably quiet city. We often found ourselves in inner courtyards without hearing any sounds coming from beyond. There were many places for quiet contemplation, reading, or just sitting and thinking. My kind of city. Vienna marks the 5th major European city we have visited, though one could almost count Mexico City, as much of it is European in design.
We discovered that the major Rubens exhibit opening in Vienna in a few weeks will travel to Frankfurt in the Spring. There is a very good chance we will be in Frankfurt to see it. Then back to Vienna next November for the Bruegel exhibit. I still can't believe that this momentous event is happening. There is no info about it as yet. I only heard about it from a shop girl in the Kunsthistoriches book shop, who seemed to have her finger on the pulse of the whole museum. She had the look of an art student. I wanted to purchase the Rubens catalogue, but it was not yet available. We did come home with a giant Bruegel calendar for 2018, though, with the Kunst's collection featured. And the catalogue of a very unique artist we stumbled across in an exhibit at the Albertina. More about him later.
I have resumed piano practice once again, as of yesterday. I had a little accident in Vienna and broke the 4th finger of my right hand. It appears to be healing nicely. We also resumed our walking program today. We walked ourselves to distraction in Vienna, six days in a row. We needed a long break from walking, but we are back to it. The weather here continues to be abnormally warm, with virtually no rain in weeks (1/10" yesterday). It has been too warm to have our first indoor autumn fire, which we always used to do on Sept. 22nd. Lately not so much, but this is the longest period we have ever waited before having it. Possibly next weekend.
Wednesday, Oct. 4th/17
I have enjoyed my final Wednesday off from teaching. Another new student has arrived, so I have to open up Wednesdays again, beginning next week. I will likely transfer two of my Tuesday students there as well, to make that day a bit easier to survive. So far this year I have acquired a new adult student for one hour, and two new school girls for half an hour each. Other students have increased their time for a further 30 minute increase. My most recent new student is the young daughter of a former Amherstburg Public School student I taught many years back. Jen was in my advanced recorder group and traveled with us across Ontario on tour. Anyway, as long as my piano teaching career continues we will be able to travel anywhere we wish at will.
We are mostly back on track here at the Homestead, after having been physically tired on Monday and Tuesday. We pushed ourselves to our limit exploring Vienna, and were on our feet for six days straight, walking and exploring. It is mostly flat in the old town, but our day out in the Vienna Woods featured a very big hill climb. I am still editing photos, and preparing some for printing, hopefully on Friday. Then I can work seriously on the written journal, and afterwards create the on-line version. I have several days available for this, as the new astronomy session does not begin until next Wednesday.
Tomorrow is Detroit day, following Deb's check up and teeth cleaning at the dentist. Then back home for more after school teaching, followed by a bit of full moon celebration. We have yet to have our Equinox indoor fire, as it has been too warm. Friday is supposed to be coolish and rainy, so perhaps we can have it then. The weekend is supposed to be very warm. It is Canadian Thanksgiving. We are prepared to make vegan pumpkin pie, but not if it is hot. Turning on the oven is not recommended in such weather. Someday Autumn will truly arrive. Until then, we continue to enjoy above average temps.
Monday, October 2nd/17
We are just back from a fabulous 6-day visit to Vienna! The weather was sunny and warm each day, and we had a most enjoyable time. The main purpose of the visit was to explore the many fine works of art in the main art museum, especially the paintings by Bruegel the Elder. Out of 14 works I hoped to encounter, 10 were hanging on our visit. However, the Albertina Museum had a major Bruegel graphic arts exhibit on, with loans from all over the world. Virtually all of his actual drawings were on display, and many prints and etchings. We were thrilled to hit this exhibit right on time! Even better, we found out that next year they will have a major Bruegel painting exhibition at the Kunsthistoriche Museum. Many of his paintings will be exhibited together for the very first time! So we are returning to Vienna in November of next year!!
I will be posting an entire blog on our journey soon, on the London and Europe page. In the meantime, here are a few photos to help contain your excitement until that happy day.
Photography was allowed everywhere. My detail from "Hunters in the Snow" by Bruegel the Elder. I will have much more to say about this painting and the artist in my Europe blog.
We encountered not only Brahms, but Beethoven, Haydn, Mozart, Schubert and other great composers on our visit.
Greenland from 40,000 feet, from our journey home.
Thus endeth our travels for 2017, except for a weekend in Michigan sometime in November. 2017 took us to Chicago, London, Columbus Ohio, Sudbury, and Vienna, not to mention about 25 trips to Detroit. Next year might see us in Brussels, New Mexico, and Vienna once again. For now, it's back to teaching, practicing, reading, writing, astronomy, and iaido.
Speaking of Columbus, Deb's little films continue to be accepted in many festivals worldwide. She even won a first place recently in a festival in Brighton, England, with her coffee music video! Cash prize and a bottle of craft gin!! Now we're getting someplace!
Speaking of Columbus, Deb's little films continue to be accepted in many festivals worldwide. She even won a first place recently in a festival in Brighton, England, with her coffee music video! Cash prize and a bottle of craft gin!! Now we're getting someplace!
