#Kate her Horst

[alanmalcherhistorian]

Kate her Horst the 'Angel of Arnhem'.

During the ill-fated Operation Market Garden (17-26 September 1944) the British 1st Airborne Division suffered heavy casualties fighting in the Dutch city of Arnhem, the town of Oossterbeek, the villages of Wolfheze and Driel. Kate her Horst, described as a housewife and mother, turned her house into a makeshift hospital for the wounded and dying. She personally helped 250 wounded soldiers and…

[aimeedaisies]

Princess Anne to represent King at events to mark 80th anniversary of Arnhem

12th September 2024 at 4:42pm /// Forces News

Princess Anne will travel to Oosterbeek in the Netherlands to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Operation Market Garden – one of the Second World War's most famous battles.

The Princess Royal will be representing the King at events during the two-day visit accompanied by her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence.

In 1944, the Allies came up with an ambitious plan – codenamed Market Garden – to cross the River Rhine, advance deep into northern Germany and shorten the war.

It involved the seizure of key bridges in the Netherlands by the 101st and 82nd US Airborne Divisions and the 1st British Airborne Division, supported by Polish airborne forces, which would land by parachute and glider.

If successful, the plan would free the Netherlands, look to outflank Germany's frontier defences, the Siegfried Line, and make possible an armoured drive into Germany's industrial heartland.

It unfortunately failed to achieve its objectives, with 30 Corps unable to reach the furthest bridge at Arnhem before German forces overwhelmed the British defenders, but the bravery shown by the airborne troops is honoured annually.

The failure of Market Garden ended Allied expectations of finishing the war by Christmas 1944 – it would not end until 2 September 1945.

Operation Market Garden was an unsuccessful Allied military operation that took place in the Netherlands in September 1944 (Picture: Alamy)

Princess Anne and Vice Admiral Laurence will attend commemorations at the Airborne Museum Hartenstein accompanied by Colonel Commandant of The Parachute Regiment, Major General Oliver Kingsbury.

In September 1944, it was where Major-General Roy Urquhart, the commander of 1st Airborne Division, set up his headquarters.

At the Airborne Museum, Princess Anne is set to tour the building, viewing displays on remembrance, occupation and commemoration.

She will later present four honorary MBEs then, following the presentation, the Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Laurence will watch the Red Devils carry out a parachute display before meeting veterans, local dignitaries, military representatives, and volunteers.

After the display, Princess Anne will make a speech to mark the anniversary of Operation Market Garden, acknowledging the bravery and sacrifice of British, Dutch and Allied Troops.

The King (then Prince of Wales) laid the first wreath at a Polish Memorial and paid tribute to the bravery of Polish paratroopers during Operation Market Garden in 2019 (Picture: MOD)

On Sunday 22 September, Princess Royal, as President of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), will attend the annual service to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of Operation Market Garden.

At the start of the service, the party will process into the cemetery towards the Cross of Sacrifice where there will be approximately 1,000 guests gathered ahead of the service.

Princess Anne will then read a lesson and, at the conclusion, lay a wreath at the foot of the Cross of Sacrifice.

There will be a flypast by the Historical Flight of the Royal Netherlands Airforce and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

After the service, Princess Royal will pay a private visit to the home of the daughter of The Angel of Arnhem, Kate ter Horst, who bravely tended to hundreds of injured British soldiers during the battle.

[steveleeuk]

“They performed a feat of arms which will be remembered as long as the virtues of courage and resolution have power to move the hearts of men” (Winston Churchill) 

On this day in 1944 a World War Two battle to capture the bridge over the River Rhine at Arnhem was reaching its climax. An enemy counterattack had overrun the British lines pushing a remnant of the 1st Airborne Division back to the town of Oosterbeek. 150 men ran for cover in the church among the candles and the pews. The commanding officer stood in the pulpit to address a most unlikely congregation with these words “We will stay here and hope, we will stick together and we will fight for our lives”. 

Kate ter Horst and her family lived in the vicarage next to the church. Her daughter, Sophie, still lives in the house today. On September 21st the church descended into full scale carnage and inside the vicarage, the furniture was thrown into the garden. The children were taken down into the cellar for safety while the house was transformed into a military aid post. For the next four days, Kate ter Horst comforted the wounded and prayed for the dying. She took water from the boiler and then the toilet to keep the men alive as she walked throughout the house reading the Bible to the soldiers. 

They called her the ‘Angel of Arnhem’

[ancientbrit]

Natter  #2  6/6/2020

My Dad moved us from Essex (east of London) to Surrey (Southwest of London) when I was 3 months old (there's that steel-trap memory again) My Dad's sister Kate moved in next door with daughter Joyce and Uncle Jim. Joyce and my sister Joan were the same age - three years my senior. Uncle Jim was something of a character even though he was right under the thumb.

To stay sort of independent he had a workshop at the bottom of the back garden and he built a greenhouse nearby. Uncle Jim was a good gardener and he came up with a great method of getting seeds off to a fast start by placing a seed tray directly above a roasting pan filled with water. The roasting pan was held in a sealed box containing a light bulb. The bulb heated the water, warming the seed tray evenly and maintaining an even moisture content. Ergo the seeds germinated very quickly and the seedlings grew away.

   Being a gardener and living fairly close by Kew Gardens, he wanted to visit and I was one of the beneficiaries when he took Joyce and me to see the whole garden. This was around 1941 when I was seven and Kew made an enormous impact on me. There was the Chinese Pagoda and the Palm House - an enormous glasshouse which had palms which had grown out through the roof. Inside the Palm House are the huge Victoria water lillies with their enormous round leaves which are capable of supporting the weight of a fully grown man. One thing that truly made a lasting impression on me was when I saw bananas for the very first time - still on the tree. These were distributed to hospitalized children who had compromised digestive systems with intake restrictions. The atmosphere in the Palm House was also memorable too, being humid and warm and it was probably the first time I could remember being thoroughly warm during the winter due to the effects of fuel rationing. Of course, coming outside again felt awful. It was obviously much colder and the humidity on your clothing dried off, sucking heat from you for a time. Uncle Jim was also something of a chrysanthemum addict and he raised some magnificent blooms, which lined the central path in pots from the top to the bottom of his garden. When the family went on holidays I was given the job of looking after these beauties and also the greenhouse. This was really my first experience of working in a greenhouse and I loved it. When Jean and I were first married back in 1963 we moved into a new house that had a generous sized garden. The house was located at the end of a cul-de-sac on one of the corners, so of course, the garden opened up radially.

I wanted a greenhouse, remembering Uncle Jim's and my Dad's down in Devon. When we visited my parents, after the usual greetings and hugs, I used to go straight through the house, into the garden and into the lovely atmosphere of his greenhouse.Talking to him about my proposed purchase he advised thinking hard about what I intended to use the greenhouse to grow, calculate what size that would necessitate and then double it.  But it doesn't seem to matter what size you finally buy - it is never big enough.

I finally settled on 20' x 10' as I certainly had the room. The structure was of Redwood which has a similar reputation to Cedar for resistance to rot. When the boxes of goodies arrived I was so excited to get it built, but it took a little more than the weekend I had put aside for that purpose. I did add to the work during the week and finished the following weekend, but a short while later I was working ridiculous hours, 7am - 9pm  seven days a week, week after week and I was unable to do anything with the greenhouse apart from planting tomatoes by moonlight. At the end of this year I was sent to Atlanta in Georgia with a load of my friends to finish off the work we had been doing on the Lockheed C5-A  wing design. Our wives came with us and we had a wonderful time, traveling all over on weekends, managing to get badly sunburned sometimes in the process.  Our work took us about six months and we then returned home to the UK where we found that our company had nothing to offer us - except a contract with Boeing on the 747  In Seattle.

This was a whole new area of the States and Jean and I thought about it for a very short time and signed up. I came over via Vancouver in August, Jean followed on the 20th of December, just in time to catch her breath before we hosted a large Christmas Dinner. I have never been allowed to forget this - understandably. We bought into the oldest house on Mercer Island - built in 1906, which we loved. Loads of garden where I kept bees and raised veggies and fruit Then came 1972 and Boeing famously lowered the boom. I was very lucky as I had quit some months before and was now working downtown with a firm of Architects and Engineers. During the five years here our daughter Heather put in an appearance and we had to return home again as we still had our original house and the mortgage interest rate had been rising over that five years. Partly to counter that rise we had been forced to rent out the house which we did with great reluctance, having seen the state that rented houses were left in after some renters left. Our renter was deliberately nasty - he was just a few sandwiches short of a picnic. He was interested in keeping birds apparently - which he accommodated in the greenhouse, which I had fitted with automatic vents. Of course, when the first warm and sunny day arrived, the vents opened and the birds flew south for the winter. Not to be beaten, this hobbyist fixed the automatic vents by nailing them shut. Although this didn't break the glass, the next warm day did. The vents strained to open against the nails and finally, not to be denied, they burst the vent frames apart, shattering the glass. Eventually, we decided to sell and return to Mercer Island, and I had to bring another greenhouse with us, but because it was going to have to travel I decided to opt for an extruded aluminium, powder-coated structure of the same 20' x 10' size which I had never been able to find time to use. It also was ordered with the same four automatic roof vents as the original,m but as it would be traveling via ship and truck, I decided that including the glass would be too risky.

The saga of it's long time in-crate and subsequent construction I have Nattered about before, so I won't repeat it. Now my greenhouse is doing well, apart from gradually being overshadowed by trees and bushes and I have some judicious pruning to undertake. Before I forget, there is a possibility that we might be holding our September plant sale at the BBG. There will not be accompanying education classes and it all depends on the Governor putting phases 3 & 4 into effect. Also, because it has been sprung at the last minute - sort of -  I am sure that there are few who have much in the way of stock to bring to such a sale. Since NPA was considering their own sale around the same time at the same place, I checked with them and we will be able to use a stall at the combined event. As I said, this is dependent on the Gov. making the appropriate decisions, which of course are co-dependent on the infection rate going down. Quite honestly, I cannot imagine that happening following the closeness of all those demonstrators downtown, many, if not all of them shouting and yelling, expelling breath and CV19 if any were infected. Most wore no masks and I think that infection rates have to rise. They have already started to climb again in a couple of places and it seems inevitable to me. Sorry to be a Jonah but I am just running the idea and my thoughts up the flagpole, so that if I come to you a little later and ask if you have any decent plants that would reflect well on us at a sale you won't be able to say you didn't know. See how I am?

This is all a little different to the Natter I intended to send. The original one was 80% completed a couple of days ago when it suddenly disappeared. I have no idea what if any key I hit or what happened to it, but gone it was - and is, not to be found anywhere. I don't think that computers and I are sympatico somehow and I am sure everybody out there is saying how the heck can he keep losing stuff like this? But this time I was not dumping stuff deliberately to grab back my memory. Incidentally my recent appeal for anybody with Natters on hand that could let me have them has been magnificent. Janet sent me a stream from the whole of 2015, Horst has 90 of them saved and Jo & Tom delivered a flash drive to the house containing 126 Natters - count 'em - 0ne hundred and twenty-six., and Carin contributed a whole bunch too I think that they are safe, so thank you all so much. The grand total is now some 160 odd.

Your fearless and overjoyed leader,

Gordon

[derekhernandezfuentes]

Kaitlin Chieco known as Kate Chieco goes by another name, possibly a new married name, as a lesbian bisexual, and disguising her motives through ever-changing facial makeups daily, is spying on me through a Cyber Hacking Certificate program she received from her computer and college by which she collects my private data as “artifacts”, spies on me while I meditate to my Spirit, pray to God in my shower and while I poop on my toilet, sleep and talk in my sleep at night, eat, check my blood sugars, give myself insulin, and set my home security alarm system while she uses words such as “honeypots” to find more personal information on me. She is a member of a gang with Joe Schuck, a slave owner related to Oregon, Washington State and Montana, and they are both from Little Ferry, New Jersey. She uses her iPad to conduct body detection screenings on me on my iPad in my kitchen, dining and living room from far away, through the help from police officer Christopher Charles Horst, without a warrant being told to me. They send sextortionist Noelle O’Brien to my psychiatric clinic to watch me leave my psychiatric clinic after my injection. I was diagnosed with type 1 autoimmune diabetes when these adults - Chris Horst, Kaitlin Chieco and Noelle O’Brien - were in my Middle School learning how to cause diabetes and autoimmune reactions in other students by causing “Stress Tests” on others as instructed by Nurse Lynn Ladas, the Healthcare Teacher.

Kaitlin Chieco known as Kate Chieco goes by another name, possibly a new married name, as a lesbian bisexual, and disguising her motives through ever-changing facial makeups daily, is spying on me through a Cyber Hacking Certificate program she received from her computer and college by which she collects my private data as “artifacts”, spies on me while I meditate to my Spirit, pray to God in my shower and while I poop on my toilet, sleep and talk in my sleep at night, eat, check my blood sugars, give myself insulin, and set my home security alarm system while she uses words such as “honeypots” to find more personal information on me. She is a member of a gang with Joe Schuck, a slave owner related to Oregon, Washington State and Montana, and they are both from Little Ferry, New Jersey. She uses her iPad to conduct body detection screenings on me on my iPad in my kitchen, dining and living room from far away, through the help from police officer Christopher Charles Horst, without a warrant being told to me. They send sextortionist Noelle O’Brien to my psychiatric clinic to watch me leave my psychiatric clinic after my injection. I was diagnosed with type 1 autoimmune diabetes when these adults – Chris Horst, Kaitlin Chieco and Noelle O’Brien – were in my Middle School learning how to cause diabetes and autoimmune reactions in other students by causing “Stress Tests” on others as instructed by Nurse Lynn Ladas, the Healthcare Teacher.

[jeremystrele]

How To Start A Productive Garden TODAY!

How To Start A Productive Garden TODAY!

Gardens

by Amelia Barnes

Ben Shaw in his Geelong garden. Photo – Marnie Hawson.

Now is a great time to be growing your produce before the chilly months set in. In fact, if you start planting your winter crop today, you could be greeted with delicious vegetables in as little as four weeks.

No idea where to start? We asked chef-turned sustainable-farmer Paul West, permaculture expert Ben Shaw, and TDF’s in-house gardening enthusiast Alice Ziebell for their beginner’s tips!

Rich, healthy and alive soil is key to growing successful productive gardens. Photo – Marnie Hawson.

Ben Shaw also hosts permaculture workshops and consults with people wanting to integrate permaculture principles into their own gardens. Photo – Marnie Hawson.

Photo – Marnie Hawson.

Peas! Photo – Marnie Hawson.

Getting started…

Contrary to popular belief, very little is needed to get started in the garden. Permaculture expert Ben Shaw is the owner of a thriving productive garden in suburban Geelong, and he says no tools are needed, especially in the beginning stages. He simply advises ‘access to a patch of dirt – either a backyard, community gardens or pots.’ 

‘It is very cheap to build a ‘no-dig’ garden. No tools required – just some time to collect all the ingredients! Longer-term it’s helpful to have a wheelbarrow, a fork and shovel to speed up the process.’ 

Get the best quality potting mix (for garden beds) or planter mix (for pots) you can afford, plus organic compost to mix in so the soil is nice and rich.

There are several locally based, online stores that can deliver seeds and seedlings straight to your home such as The Diggers Club and The Little Veggie Patch Co.

Paul West advises that you shouldn’t expect to be a pro straight away, and that rather the reward is in the process of growing (you and the plants!). Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

For Paul West, nothing trumps a deeply nourishing meal and made with ingredients you have grown yourself. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Harvest time in the vegetable garden with Frankie and Wilco, in the garden of Horst Schoeps in Narre Warren! Photo – Kate Ballis for The Design Files.

Start simple, perhaps with one pot of parsley? Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

What to plant if you have little space

Not everyone has access to a backyard, but luckily there are plenty of fruit and vegetable varieties that lend themselves to being grown in pots and styrofoam boxes, either on a windowsill or balcony. This is Paul West’s area of expertise, and he recommends herbs such as parsley, thyme, rosemary, oregano, coriander and basil. Edible leafy greens such as rocket, mizuna, mustard greens, butter lettuces and cress are also great options. 

Once you’ve planted these varieties, it’s important to give them consistent love and attention. If you have two or three pots on an apartment balcony for example, dedicating an hour a week to maintenance is ample, but this must be spread out across multiple days. You can’t set up your garden to ‘set and forget’, or think one blitz on a weekend will provide you with food for months to come. ‘Plants need regular food and water just like us, so it’s best to think of food growing as a gentle marathon where you do a little bit every day, rather than a sprint where you go mad for two days and then never look at it again,’ Paul says.

Judy Sederof’s overachieving garden in Brunswick! Photo – Annette O’Brien for The Design Files.

What to plant if you want food quickly

Those leafy vegetables and herbs Paul West mentioned above? Not only can they be grown in pots to suit a small space, but if you put them in the ground right now, they’ll be ready to begin harvesting in four to six weeks! ‘When you do start harvesting, be sure to harvest the outermost leaves first, and never take more than one-third of the plant mass,’ he says. 

Of course, you don’t need to be a literal expert to grow your own produce at home, as shown by TDF’s very own gardening enthusiast (aka our partnerships manager) Alice Ziebell! Alice spends every weekend tending to her crop of plants alongside her landscape architect husband, Marlon Ziebell. (Once your vegetable garden is underway, be sure to try out some of this pair’s delightful recipes!)

Alice says right now is the perfect time to plant your winter crop while the weather (and soil) remains warm. ‘It will give them a nice head start so that come the cooler weather you’ll have a thriving winter veggie garden. We’ve just put cabbages, broccoli, bok choy, carrots and beetroot in the ground.’ 

If you’re looking for something that you can start picking ASAP and is easy to grow, Alice says you can’t go past radish seeds. ‘Pop them straight in the ground and you’ll be picking and eating them in just a few weeks! (Don’t forget, radish tops are also delicious and can be used for making pesto, so you really can eat the whole thing!)’

What to plant now, for down the track results…

Garlic has to be one of the most used ingredients by any home chef, and if you’ve got a head on hand already, you can literally separate this into cloves, place them 2cm deep in soil, and start the growing process today! They should be ready in six to nine months. That being said, try to buy organic, Australian garlic where you can for the best results. 

Fruit trees are a much longer investment, but one that’s incredibly rewarding. These are generally fine to plant in winter, but keep in mind they won’t yield fruit for a few years! Ben Shaw has had great success with plums, pears, apricots, tamarillos and limes. Be sure to research what fruit trees are most suited to your garden’s climate before getting started.

Our very own Alice Ziebell at her father-in-laws incredible Leongatha property! Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Photo – Marnie Hawson.

[newstfionline]

Headlines

Loud sex, thunderous dancing: how coronavirus strains neighborly ties (The Guardian) Locked-down Americans are learning more than they ever wanted to know about their neighbors. One day a month into quarantine, Christie was leading a Zoom board meeting of the local political club where she’s president when the floor in the unit directly above started creaking. It was just as she feared: her upstairs neighbor had decided to engage in loud intimate activities. Americans are spending more time than ever at home and that means redefining relationships with neighbors—for better and, sometimes, for worse. Disturbances like a baby crying or a particularly thunderous living-room dance-off can quickly drive the best-intentioned neighbors to despair. A Maryland police department recently entreated local residents to put on pants before retrieving mail. Coronavirus has also brought neighborly connections to new heights. Italy’s balcony singalongs have been repeated around the globe and across the country, from Boston to Indianapolis to Wichita, Kansas and San Jose, California. Residents of Marin county, California, have organized a nightly howling. Harriet Riley, a writing instructor in New Orleans, was at first distraught about the prospect of having to cancel her annual crawfish boil, a beloved Louisiana tradition. That is, until she realized there was still a way to connect. “We set up a long table at the end of our driveway with the four ice chests of crawfish,” she said, and each family had just one designated person approach. “Everyone took their crawfish to their front porches and we laughed and yelled around to each other. We also saw some neighbors that we don’t see as often. The crawfish really brought everyone out.”

Shift on shopping habits (CNN) With much of the wealthy world stuck at home in front of their screens, curious shopping habits are emerging. According to an analysis of digital retailers by Adobe Analytics, customers seem to be saying no to pants, and embracing the pajama lifestyle. Pajama sales were up 143 percent between March and April, but sales of pants were down 13 percent. Despite the shift in habits, they are unlikely to be enough to offset the overall slump in U.S. consumer spending. “It will take a long time for sales to get back to normal and for people to feel comfortable heading back to stores,” Sucharita Kodali, a retail analyst, told CNN.

Manhattan Faces a Reckoning if Working From Home Becomes the Norm (NYT) Morgan Stanley. JPMorgan Chase. And Nielsen, the research firm. All of them occupy large amounts of expensive commercial space in Manhattan—and all of them expect to occupy considerably less space once the pandemic passes. “They were forced by the crisis to figure out how to function productively with workers operating from home—and realized unexpectedly that it was not all bad,” Matthew Haag reports. “When the dust settles, New York City could face a real estate reckoning.” The same could happen in other cities. “Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey emailed employees on Tuesday telling them that they’d be allowed to work from home permanently, even after the coronavirus pandemic lockdown passes,” BuzzFeed News reported.

Couples turn to ‘minimonies’ to salvage wedding plans (AP) Couples trying to salvage weddings put on hold by the coronavirus are feeding a fresh trend in the bridal industry: the “minimony.” Rather than wait, they’re getting hitched alone or with a few local loved ones looking on at a safe social distance as other guests join virtually. Then they plan to reschedule larger celebrations when allowed. “We were about to put a $15,000 deposit down on a venue when coronavirus hit,” said Kate Whiting, 35, in Northern California’s tiny Lake Almanor Peninsula. “Why would I want to wait to marry my best friend?” The 300-guest wedding of her dreams, and those of her 40-year-old fiance, Jake Avery, will happen once a COVID-19 vaccine is in place. For now, a close friend recently ordained will marry them in their yard June 6. Their approach, born of necessity, is a play on micro weddings, the first choice for some couples looking for a more intimate experience or unable to afford splashier affairs. The average cost of weddings pre-pandemic was teetering at just under $34,000, and the average guest count at 131.

Mexico prepares to start getting economy back in gear, looks to U.S. (Reuters) Mexico’s government said it will on Wednesday set out plans to reboot the economy after weeks of disruption from coronavirus, in a move that is likely to see highly automated industries lead the way in coordination with U.S. business partners.

Latin America’s Outbreaks Now Rival Europe’s. But Its Options Are Worse. (NYT) Deaths doubled in Lima, rivaling the worst month of the pandemic in Paris. They tripled in Manaus, a metropolis tucked deep in Brazil’s Amazon—a surge similar to what London and Madrid endured. In Guayaquil, a port city in Ecuador, the sudden spike in fatalities in April was comparable to what New York City experienced during its worst month: more than five times the number of people died than in previous years. As the coronavirus’s toll eased in New York and in European capitals, a devastating wave has struck cities in Latin America, one that rivals the worst outbreaks in the world, an analysis of mortality data by The New York Times has found. Brazilian cities are resorting to mass graves to bury rows of stacked coffins. Hundreds of Ecuadoreans are still searching for the bodies of family members who went to hospitals and never returned. And while the catastrophes in Europe and the United States were closely monitored, playing out under intense international media scrutiny, much of Latin America’s pain is unfolding far from global view, under governments that can’t—or won’t—offer a full tally of the dead.

Brazil and the military (NYT) As Brazil grapples with its gravest health and economic challenges in a generation, and President Bolsonaro flounders under the pressure, the specter of the armed forces is looming larger over public life than at any time since the fall of the military dictatorship in 1985. As scandals have engulfed his presidency, the right-wing former Army captain has broadened the powers of the generals and former generals in his administration, allowing one to introduce a large economic aid package, undercutting his own finance minister. His most radical supporters are urging a military takeover of the government—and Bolsonaro has attended their rallies, amplifying their calls. Most Brazilians view the possibility of a military intervention into domestic affairs as remote. But the threat, no matter how distant, has further unsettled the unpredictable political situation in this nation of 210 million. More than 11,000 people have died of a disease the president has dismissed as a little flu. The economy is collapsing. Many hospitals have reached capacity. The jobless poor are worried about going hungry.

American Travelers to Be Pariahs in Europe? (The Daily Beast) Gone are the days of the American abroad, at least for those hoping to summer in Europe this year. The new models on how to reopen European travel do not have room for the American tourist for the foreseeable future. The European Union is set to release new guidelines called “Europe Needs a Break” on Wednesday that will recommend replacing travel bans with what they are calling “targeted restrictions” based on contagion levels and reciprocity among European and neighboring nations, many of which have been under draconian lockdowns. The key to any successful reopening in Europe is based entirely on risk assessment, meaning anyone coming from a nation deemed risky or careless will be the first to be banned. Simply put, anyone who has been under the lax American approach to the pandemic, which has been the laughing stock of Europe, won’t be welcome any time soon. Americans, instead, will have to focus their getaway plans closer to home, like Latin America or Canada.

Coronavirus Renews Pride in U.K.’s Health Service (NYT) With its offer of free health care to all, based on need, the N.H.S. embodies qualities that Britons like to think represent the best of their nation. Now, with the health workers risking, and sometimes losing, their lives while the government is accused of mishandling the coronavirus pandemic, the health service—which was regarded before the crisis as deeply troubled after 10 years of austerity and neglect—has become a rallying point for the nation. “It is hard to explain how deeply embedded in our national psyche” the health service is, said Sarah Wollaston, a former lawmaker who chaired the House of Commons Health Select Committee. “Politicians mess with N.H.S. at their peril, because it is a national treasure.” Even before the virus struck, the health service, though struggling, was probably still Britain’s most respected institution. As a source of national pride, it ranked first and significantly above the royal family in one 2016 survey.

Portugal to take 500 refugee children from Greece camps (Reuters) Portugal is to take in 500 children from Greek refugee camps as soon as restrictions on movement imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus outbreak are lifted, the country’s Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva said on Tuesday. At least 5,200 unaccompanied minors live in Greece, many of them under harsh conditions in camps on islands in the Aegean, and concerns are mounting over how the disease has affected this vulnerable group.

Germany to start easing border controls from Saturday (Reuters) Germany will start to relax from Saturday some border controls introduced in March to slow the spread of the coronavirus with the aim of having free travel in Europe from mid-June, Interior Minster Horst Seehofer said on Wednesday.

Coronavirus drains Vatican coffers as income falls, deficits loom (Reuters) The pandemic has wreaked havoc with the Vatican’s finances, forcing it to dip into reserve funds and implement some of the toughest cost control measures ever in the tiny city-state. Against this bleak backdrop, top Vatican administrators held an emergency meeting in late March. They ordered a freeze on promotions and hirings and a ban on overtime, travel and large events. The pandemic has also drastically slowed the flow of funds from the Vatican Museums, which received some 7 million visitors last year and are the city’s most reliable cash cow. The museums, which generate an estimated $100 million yearly, have been closed since March 8 and are not expected to open until late May at the earliest, resulting in up to three months of lost revenue. Adding to the income shortfall, the two Vatican departments that manage real estate holdings in Italy offered reduced rents for commercial tenants whose businesses have been affected by the pandemic, such as some 600 stores and offices in Rome.

China seals off northeastern cities to contain new coronavirus outbreak (Bloomberg) China is sealing off cities in a northeastern province that borders North Korea as a growing cluster of cases threatens to undermine its hard-won containment of the coronavirus epidemic. Jilin city, the second-largest city in Jilin province, saw bus and rail services halted and residential compounds closed off on Wednesday after the discovery of six new cases of infection. Recently reopened schools were closed again. These six people had contact with another cluster in the adjacent city of Shulan, which was earlier put under lockdown on Sunday, suggesting that some amount of undetected spread has already taken place before authorities ordered renewed restrictions.​

Built for a global economy, Dubai now threatened by virus (AP) Dubai built a city of skyscrapers and artificial archipelagos on the promise of globalization, creating itself as a vital hub for the free movement of trade, people and money worldwide—all things that have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. Now, with events canceled, flights grounded and investment halted, this sheikdom in the United Arab Emirates is threatened both by the virus and a growing economic crisis. Under pressure even before the outbreak, Dubai and its vast web of state-linked industries face billions of dollars in looming debt repayments. And though it was bailed out a decade earlier, Dubai may not be able to count on another cash infusion, given the crash in global oil prices.

Saudi Arabia to enforce nationwide 24-hour curfew for Eid holiday (Reuters) Saudi Arabia will enforce a countrywide 24-hour curfew during the five-day Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday later this month to help stem the spread of the coronavirus, the interior ministry said on Tuesday. The curfew will apply from May 23-May 27 following the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. Until then, commercial and business enterprises will remain open as they now are and people can move freely between 9 a.m. local time and 5 p.m., except in Mecca which remains under a full curfew.

[gigsoupmusic]

R&B and Electronic Jazz artist KID BE KID shares ‘Slide (feat. Julia Kadel & Simon Denizart)’

Avant Neo-Soul meets jazz musician KID BE KID has released her new single, ‘Slide feat. Julia Kadel & Simon Denizart’, on the 6th of March. The track premiered via BBC Radio 1Xtra's Jamz Supernova and is lifted off of her upcoming EP, Lovely Genders which will be released on 20 March via SPRINGSTOFF. While she composed and produced the EP herself, KID BE KID sought assistance from LAD AGABEKOV (Grand Corps Malade, Kollektiv Turmstrasse, Octave One) for the master engineering. She has made quite a name for herself on the jazz festival scene, appearing at Fusion Festival (Kate Tempest), Festival International de Jazz de Montreal (Norah Jones, Jacob Collier, Melody Gardot), Elbjazz (Jamie Cullum, Kamaal Williams, Jason Moran) as well as the European Hip Hop Studies Conference, where she appeared as both a speaker and a performer. A number of publications have begun to take note of KID BE KID with features appearing in COMPLEX, BADISCHE ZEITUNG and Qiez and airplay from Worldwide FM and KCRW. The two collaborators have either own rep list with Julia Kadel releasing her latest album via Blue Note Records and chosen as one of Germany's “Top Ten” key players in 2019 by Jazzthing magazine. While Simon Denizart won the Public's Choice Award at the Rimouski Jazz Festival and was nominated for the Best Jazz Album of the year at l’adisq in both 2017 and 2018. Between the two of them, they have collected over 260 000 plays across streaming platforms. Born and raised in Berlin, and an heir to two classical musicians, KID BE KID was placed in music lessons at a young age. At first, she struggled to find her own passion in the skill however, when she began to write her own songs a true fascination grew to develop. Discovering the world of jazz through a serendipitous twist of fate, in which her Philosophy teacher introduced her to his son, the style and energy of jazz music soon inspired her to pursue official studies of it at university. Choosing to not restrict herself in any way or form, KID BE KID finds inspiration in just about every genre with artists like Little Simz, Frank Ocean, IAMDDB, Ama Lou, Erykah Badu, Thom Yorke, Radiohead, Nina Simone, James Blake, Dorian Concept, Noname, Bill Evans, Flying Lotus and Noga Erez all coming in to play. With all of these diverse influences, KID BE KID’s own sound sits close to the avant garde likes of Arca, FKA Twigs and the vocals of Solange Julia Kadel, a German jazz pianist and composer, accompanies KID BE KID and Simon Denizart, a French jazz pianist on ‘Slide’. The two pianists along with the experimental electronic musician create a force to be reckoned with as the keys both cascade and crash around the listener’s ears. With flashbacks and strong associations to the jazz music that inspired her career choice, KID BE KID brings forth and embraces the modern element with her freestyle beatboxing and striking vocals. Speaking about the origins of ‘Slide’, KID BE KID tells us "I am cooling like water, turn into an ice surface." The protective ice layer on which you can glide like the sound slides in the music down to the sub-bass. But you don't get inside. Distance and isolation. Aloofness. I am very happy that I could win two extraordinary guests for this song. The pianists Julia Kadel from Germany and Simon Denizart from Canada had both already played the song live with me. And both times I was overjoyed. So I asked them to record some piano parts. With these, I worked creatively, so that now 6 hands on the keys trigger different levels, run together or against each other, a collaborative solo.” Upcoming Tour Dates: 08 March 2020 - Urban Urtyp, Bochum, Germany 17 March 2020 - L'Aéronef in Lille, France 02 April 2020 - with Becca Stevens in Café de la Danse, Paris, France 25 April 2020 - Kito, Bremen, Germany 26 April 2020 - Mojo Jazz Café, Hamburg, Germany 30 April 2020 - Weimar, Germany 02 May 2020 - Bunker Ulmenwall, Bielefeld, Germany 08 May 2020 - with Ark Noir and Simon Denizart, Jazzclub Tonne in Kurländer Palais, Dresden, Germany 29 May 2020 - with Julia Kadel and Kid be Kid meets Julia Kadel in Schloss Horst, Gelsenkirchen, Germany Read the full article

[rathertoofondofbooks]

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. It’s open for anyone to join in and is a great way to share what you’ve been reading! All you have to do is answer three questions and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.

The three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

A similar meme is run by Lipsyy Lost and Found where bloggers share This Week in Books #TWiB.

What I’m reading now: 

A Dark Matter by Doug Johnstone

I started reading this last night and it very quickly had me engrossed. I really do love Doug Johnstone’s writing and I’m intrigued to see where this novel is going.

Turning the Tide on Plastic by Lucy Siegle

I’ve been meaning to read this book for a while and finally picked it up this week. I’m trying very hard to reduce the plastics that come into my home but have reached the point of needing some more ideas of things I can try. I’m hoping this will be the book I need.

Only Fools and Stories by David Jason

I’ve read a few more chapters of this book this week and am very much enjoying the stories behind the well-known characters he’s played.

  What I recently finished reading:

Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House by M. C. Beaton

I love the Agatha Raisin series and keep them to read when I just need some short escapism. This was the next one on my TBR and I enjoyed it. I’m keen to see where the series goes next so may read book 15 soon!

I Want You Gone by Miranda Rijks

I enjoyed this thriller but it did lose me in the last quarter of the book so I’m not sure how I feel about it. I will try and write a mini review of it soon.

Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith

I had the audio book of this and have been listening to it over the last ten days and really enjoyed it. I’m really looking forward to reading Lethal White and will probably pick that up later in the year as it’s already on my Kindle!

A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena

I listened to this book on audio as well and I’m glad I did. It’s not the best book by this author but being on audio kept the momentum going for me and I wanted to keep listening. I have loved all of her other books so I think this one was just a case of it’s not the book, it’s me.

The Dilemma by B. A. Paris

I enjoyed a couple of this author’s previous book but I couldn’t get on with her last novel. I couldn’t resist picking up this one though and I’m so glad I did! I read the whole book in one sitting and found it so gripping and engaging. I recommend it!

What She Saw Last night by Mason Cross

This was such a good thriller too, it ended up being more edge of seat reading than I was expecting and all the twists and turns were very good. I’ll definitely be looking out for more books by this author.

  What I plan on reading next:

Tilly and the Lost Fairytales: Pages & Co. #2 by Anna James

I adored the first book in this series so was delighted to get the second book for Christmas. I saved it to read tomorrow as I like to plan some escapism on the days that are full of sad memories.

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

I didn’t manage to pick this up when I planned to recently so I’m hoping to get to it this week as I’m so keen to read it.

Death Deserved by Thomas Enger & Jorn Lier Horst

I’m going to be on the blog tour for this one next month so it’s the next book I want to get to as I like to be ahead with my reading commitments. It’ll be my first book by these authors and I’m really looking forward to it!

  What have you been reading this week? I’d love to hear. And if you take part in WWW Wednesdays or This Week in Books please feel free to leave your link below and I’ll make sure to visit and comment on your post. 🙂

It’s WWW Wednesdays time! What are you reading at the moment? WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. It’s open for anyone to join in and is a great way to share what you’ve been reading!

[jessicakehoe]

Here’s All the Fashion News You Missed This Week

Karl For Ever: A Paris Memorial Honours the Legacy of Karl Lagerfeld

When 85-year-old designer Karl Lagerfeld passed away last February, the whole world mourned. Five months after his death, a crowd of 2,500 guests gathered at the Grand Palais in Paris to mourn the life and legacy of a man who shaped fashion from the late 20th century and beyond. The memorial, organized jointly by the houses of Chanel, Fendi and Karl Lagerfeld, included a number of performances from superstars, to honour the designer’s legacy. Cara Delevingne recited poetry by Colette (one of Lagerfeld’s favourite authors), Tilda Swinton opined on clothing’s ability to “change our view of the world, and the world’s view of us,” and Helen Mirren read excerpts from “The World According to Karl” accompanied by a violinist. The production was conceived by theatre and opera director Robert Carsen, who told WWD he wanted the “joyful celebration of all things Karl” to be “full of life and unexpected.” His memory will not be forgotten soon. Read FASHION’s obituary of Karl Lagerfeld here. (WWD)

Photography Courtesy of Chanel

Heiress Gloria Vanderbilt Dead at 87

Gloria Vanderbilt, a great-great-granddaughter of railroad and steamship magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, died this week at the age of 87. The New York Times described Gloria as a “magnetic society figure” whose compelling personality and delicate looks attracted the friendship of luminaries such as Charlie Chaplin and Diane Von Furstenburg and the romantic attention of suitors like Errol Flynn, Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly, Howard Hughes and Marlon Brando. Famous since birth, at the age of 10, Gloria was a pawn in one of the nastiest child-custody battles of the 20th century between her mother and her aunt. The battle was covered mercilessly by the media and caused Gloria a great deal of trauma, but she persevered to live a dazzling life on her own terms. She posed as a model for Richard Avedon and Gordon Parks, and created her own $100 million dollar denim empire, Gloria Vanderbilt Jeans. Later in life, Vanderbilt became known for her creative talents, including fine art and writing. Vanderbilt wrote a total of six memoirs about her unparalleled life. (The New York Times)

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Breaking News! Gloria Vanderbilt, one of the last Vanderbilts who lived in many of the Vanderbilt mansions has died at 95. She will be remembered for her many accomplishments in the arts and fashion. #gloriavanderbilt Photo: Horst

A post shared by Gary Lawrance (@thegildedagesociety) on Jun 17, 2019 at 8:22am PDT

Ralph Lauren Receives Honorary Knighthood for Services to Fashion

Ralph Lauren is the first American fashion designer to receive an honourary Knighthood of the British Empire, one of the UK’s highest accolades. Lauren is 79 years old and founded his eponymous company in 1967. He relinquished his role as CEO of the company in 2015. Lauren has dressed many members of the royal family over the course of his career, including Princess Diana, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. “I have always been inspired by the history, traditions and culture of Great Britain and the historic relationship our two countries have shared. This is one of the most meaningful honours bestowed at this very special moment in my 50th anniversary,” Lauren said in a statement to People magazine. He was awarded the honour by Prince Charles in a private ceremony earlier this week at Buckingham Palace. (The Guardian)

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Ralph and Ricky Lauren in London, where Mr. Lauren was presented with the knighthood insignia of Honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, the greatest honor the kingdom awards to non-Britons. . It’s a recognition of Ralph Lauren’s contribution to British life over his career, celebrating his impact on the worlds of fashion, business, and philanthropy. . #RalphLauren #RL50 @UKinUSA @UKinNewYork @ClarenceHouse

A post shared by Ralph Lauren (@ralphlauren) on Jun 19, 2019 at 4:06pm PDT

Virgil Abloh Delivers a Standout Collection for Louis Vuitton Men’s Spring 2020

Virgil Abloh is one of the most hyped designers currently working in the industry and today, this week he delivered a joyful, verdant collection that – at least in my opinion – finally lived up to expectations. Trim models including Ellery Harper (Laura Dern’s son!) and Blood Orange’s Dev Hynes walked down the runway in flowing pastel suits, neon waistcoats and quilted hoodies. But what really stood out was not the clothing, but the accessories. Triangular duffel bags, totes filled with nesting bouquets, crossbody bags attached to what appear to be kites, lent the collection an unprecedented level of whimsy. Some of the duffel bags were as large as carry-on suitcases, with only a top handle to carry them with. (Perhaps to demonstrate masculine feats of strength?) But then again, the best of fashion has never been practical; it exists to surprise and delight rather than dutifully serve. Abloh’s collection, with its men in skirts and filmy, transparent tops, does just that. (Vogue Runway)

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The post Here’s All the Fashion News You Missed This Week appeared first on FASHION Magazine.

Here’s All the Fashion News You Missed This Week published first on https://borboletabags.tumblr.com/

[steveleeuk]

On this day in 1944, a World War Two battle to capture the bridge over the River Rhine at Arnhem was reaching its climax. An enemy counterattack had overrun the British lines pushing a remnant of the 1st Airborne Division back to the town of Oosterbeek. 150 men ran for cover in the church among the candles and the pews. The commanding officer stood in the pulpit to address a most unlikely congregation with these words “We will stay here and hope, we will stick together and we will fight for our lives”.

Kate Ter Horst and her family lived in the vicarage next to the church. Her daughter, Sophie, still lives in the house today. On September 21st the church descended into full-scale carnage and inside the vicarage, the furniture was thrown into the garden. The children were taken down into the cellar for safety while the house was transformed into a military aid post.

For the next four days, Kate ter Horst comforted the wounded and prayed for the dying. She took water from the boiler and then the toilet to keep the men alive as she walked throughout the house reading the Bible to the soldiers. They called her the ‘Angel of Arnhem’.

[ancientbrit]

Natter #14  07/04/2016

Subject: MI MG Natter # 14 2016 Date: July 4, 2016 at 10:52:31 PM PDT  Kathryn Rogovy <kate@fiddlebait.com> Sunday I went straight to Rite Aid to get the bookcase mobilized and Beverly tried to find our specific space - again! That's four Markets on three different spots now. This time there wasn't even a space. Eventually Bev was able to reach Patty who organized us a canopy, table and chairs and we were off to the races. By this time Ira was there too, but we left the carousel behind as it was raining by now - fortunately it didn't last long and our clients were steady all day. Amongst these clients were old friends, including a retired ex-New York school teacher who had not shown up before and I been getting rather concerned about her. When she did arrive, I am afraid that I asked her where the heck she had been as I was getting worried. She thanked me and showed me a walking stick along with an explanation of a leg problem subjected to a CAT scan and assorted other treatments. I thought about Horst and his take on the Plant Sales - that they aren't so much important because of the money they raise, but more that they enable all MGs to get together and exchange good cheer and enjoy themselves together for at least one time in the year. I realised just how many good friends I have made since becoming a Master Gardener - and not just in the MG movement, but amongst those who come to the Markets too. This ex-school teacher is a case in point. We see her throughout the season and during June she brings her grandson with her to meet us and we have some good, and quite adult conversations together. So enjoyable. There is the exuberant and demonstrative Carole who runs up with arms spread wide apart for a big hug as she asks me how Jean is doing. Carole is also a cancer survivor and it is quite delightful to see how she loves life. Her husband looks on all this time, just glad I guess that Carole is still there and still her exuberant self. JoAnne, another older friend turned up again, whom I had not seen for years. We were next door neighbors 40 odd years ago when our daughter was first born and we lived in an old house, built by hand in 1906 by a German Mason who lived there. Jo lived in a much newer house and the ground around her house was typical of new construction everywhere - all compacted, probably sub-soil and covered in bark mulch. JoAnne was raising three girls, taught Spanish and guitar and obviously had all the spare time in the world. She had planted a row of lettuce seedlings into this unforgiving soil and over the three weeks they had been in, they had shown absolutely no change at all. My old property had never suffered insult to the ground from heavy equipment and had been extensively cultivated over the years. I had no problem clearing grass and getting in veggies, along with my beehives. My lettuce was doing very well and one Saturday I was thinning out excess growth for 'saladings' and saw that we had way more than we could eat. It suddenly occurred to me, that being of an extremely generous disposition, I could donate some of the excess to Jo. And so, as darkness descended, I gathered around a dozen of the better looking plants and my trusty trowel and sneaked over to Jo's place. Although it was dark, I could find my way easily as there was a mass of light streaming from her kitchen window, lighting her miserable row of lettuce. No sign of Jo. Out came the miseries and back in went my superior lettuce. A quick drink, shuffle the mulch back into place and home for a good night's sleep. Sunday morning early, here comes Jo, yelling at the top of her voice -"Gordon, Gordon, you have to come see my lettuce!" She paid me back later by giving me a Play Boy center-fold jig saw puzzle, but she had removed the picture from which you put the puzzle together! I had to work from something recognizable and work out from there. A terrible chore I have to say! Reminding her now of her gift, I was amazed to see her blush. A little later a familiar face appeared with a big grin and I had to laugh. This was the famous Kathryn. You might remember from last year, when I apparently had tripped the light fantastic, hand in hand with Kathryn on the tables at the Roanoke Inn, totally naked apart from a fig leaf I had picked on Island Crest, before throwing up on her exclusive silk jacket! I had learned of all this when I found a screwed up piece of paper in my pants pocket which had her name, address and email address on it. I looked at it and for the life of me I had no idea who she was,  and so, feeling a bit stupid, I wrote her a note to ask. She replied with the above story and I was delighted, totally delighted as I realized what a chance she had taken in writing this way to me. She didn't know me and she must have been a bit nervous after hitting send. I was so glad to get it and I replied in kind. I still grin every time I recall the story - it just makes my day - thank you again Kathryn. When she appears at the market with a wide grin on her face, I always introduce her to the other MG’s as my drinking and dancing partner. The day wound on with 26 clients posing questions that we were able to answer with only one sample needing to go to the lab. Bev, Ira and I discussed many of the outstanding questions needing resolution for the September 24th event, with Ira generously accepting the chair for one of the event classifications. We are getting closer! We had had some interesting discussions across the table and the earlier rain had gone away. The expected sun stayed away too, but overall it was a good day. Next time. Your fearless leader, Gordon

[fashiontrendin-blog]

The Complicated Ethics of Photoshop in 2018

http://fashion-trendin.com/the-complicated-ethics-of-photoshop-in-2018/

The Complicated Ethics of Photoshop in 2018

Not long ago, I sat at a dinner table surrounded by influencers of note and observed as they edited a group photo in the FaceTune app. With practiced fingers, they quickly erased the wrinkles in a dress, smoothed out a few tummies and erased a blemish. If you held the original photo and the edited photo next to each other, you might not even be able to spot the differences, not unless you were searching for them. The tweaks were subtle — artful even. Everything just looked slightly more perfect.

A photo editing application that makes photoshop-style retouching easy for non-professionals, FaceTune has been downloaded more than 50 million times since it first launched in 2013. Similarly to how Instagram put photography in the hands of the masses, FaceTune has effectively done so for retouching. Anyone from Kim Kardashian to the barista who makes your coffee can download the app for free (though it costs an additional $5.99 per month for access to all the features). I downloaded it myself as research for this story and tested it out on a recent selfie. Using a sliding tool, I plumped my lips, slimmed my jawline, blurred my pores and narrowed my nose in mere seconds. To say that FaceTune is user-friendly is an understatement. It’s easier than ordering dinner on Seamless.

In a world where the ability to alter your appearance is both accessible and effortless, I’ve started to wonder how the “ethics” of Photoshop are evolving. On principle, I support every individual’s right to do whatever they want to their own bodies cosmetically, but using Photoshop for the purpose of digitally squeezing oneself into the narrow confines of a societal beauty ideal feels like a uniquely slippery slope.

Curious to learn more about the professional side of Photoshop use, I reached out to photographer Aaron Richter. “I use Photoshop on pretty much every image, with very few exceptions,” he told me. “It’s a step in my process, so I’ll have images looking fairly close to how I want them to look, and Photoshop helps me massage them into the exact right colors and balance I’m looking for. I try not to over-retouch my work, but my aesthetic is fairly clean. I’ll get rid of blemishes, but skin should look like skin. Bodies should look like bodies. I use Photoshop a lot to clean up environments, sometimes tidy up some clothes that might be sitting odd.”

Notably, The New York Times has a strict no-photoshop policy. “You can’t alter them in any way,” Aaron told me. “If I’m shooting a celebrity, they’ll often say something like, ‘Oh well you can just fix that in Photoshop.’ But for The Times, I can’t, so I need to pay closer attention to every little bit of the photo. […] For example, like say you’re shooting a woman and she’s wearing a pair of pants that poof unflatteringly at the crotch. For most clients you’ll just shoot through it because it’s easier just to liquify the offending area in post rather than breakup the flow of the photoshoot to wrangle the pant-poof. For The Times, you actually have to fix it or you’re stuck with it.”

When I asked if he’s noticed the ethics of retouching change over the course of his career, he said, “Every now and then I’ll get a request for a Frankenstein where you take one part of the body from one image and combine it with another image, but honestly that request is happening less and less lately. Where before it was kind of expected that we’d be able to do something like that in post, now I think clients recognize the stigma behind creating this kind of fake image, even if all you’re doing is something like changing a raised armed to a lowered arm.”

Ironic though it may seem, it makes sense that outlets are becoming more conservative with Photoshop as the general public becomes savvier with it. Beyond the internet outrage machine’s fascination with retouching scandals (remember when Jezebel controversially offered $10,000 for the unretouched photos of Lena Dunham in Vogue?), people are also simply getting better at detecting traces of Photoshop the more they engage with this kind of technology themselves. But there’s a big difference between, say, color correcting a photo and “Frankenstein” body part swaps — both in terms of a layperson’s ability to detect the changes that have taken place and in terms of how “acceptable” we might deem the changes to be.

“Almost every image you view has had some post-production work done on it, be it just color and grain, or removing tape from the floor and scuffs, dust, fingerprints or clothing clips, or much more,” professional retoucher Kate Coats told me. “There’s a whole world of retouching that happens aside from any alterations to the model. I see retouching as part of the process of taking a photograph, just as with lighting and hair and makeup. They all go together to make the final image.”

  Those eyelashes in that mascara ad may have been drawn in, the hair in that shampoo commercial is probably a compilation of five different shots and that reality star’s body probably doesn’t look that perfect in actual reality.

She told me she will happily remove so-called “imperfections” that wouldn’t necessarily be there if a photo had been taken another day  — like a visible pimple — but acknowledges that even with personal ground rules it’s easy to go overboard. “Customers generally prefer perfection,” she said. “This drives clients to push for flaws to be removed and so on and so forth. It’s a nasty cycle. We need to rewire our [thinking].”

The solution, from her standpoint, is more transparency: “Our tweens and teens need to be informed that the images they are viewing are edited, that they are not always attainable goals,” she said. “Those eyelashes in that mascara ad may have been drawn in, the hair in that shampoo commercial is probably a compilation of five different shots and that reality star’s body probably doesn’t look that perfect in actual reality.”

I spoke with jewelry designer Pamela Love about the topic, and she echoed Kate’s concerns about how easy it is to take things too far when something as nebulous as perfection is the goal. “I went through a period where I started posting fewer impromptu photos on my Instagram,” she told me. “Instead of just snapping a fun photo and putting it up, I would retouch it and play with the light and the sharpness. That version of perfection had started to look ‘normal’ to me because there are so many Instagram accounts out there that are essentially Pinterest boards — they all just look so perfect and you’re like, is that how mine’s supposed to be?”

Their comments underscored my initial suspicion that the ethics of Photoshop are growing increasingly murky as its usage grows increasingly ubiquitous. The more achievable on-screen “perfection” becomes, the more normal it will start to look, which in turn means anything less than perfection will start to appear abnormal. (A precedent for the normalization of beauty standards is observable in the politics of wearing makeup: People are so used to women wearing makeup that when they choose to forgo it, women often report people asking if they’re tired, or even sick.) This reality felt particularly acute most recently when I saw photos from Outdoor Voices’ Exercise Dress campaign and didn’t realize the model Lil Miquela was actually a CGI robot — literally computer-generated to fulfill a preconceived ideal of aesthetic flawlessness — until someone pointed it out to me.

The murkiness of Photoshop ethics may be daunting, but it isn’t unfamiliar. Technology is the 21st century’s Wild West — an unmapped frontier we can only discover and regulate as we go along. When it comes to Photoshop, though, I think it’s important we tread cautiously and think carefully about its long-term impact on how we see the world. Just because “perfection” is now attainable doesn’t mean it is preferable; more often than not, the wrinkles are the best part.

Feature image by Horst P. Horst/Conde Nast via Getty Images.

[ameliarennison3-blog]

Task 6 - Influential Artists In Detail

Horst. P. Horst – Lighting

When I first saw Horst’s work it was featured in a book about him called ‘Sixty years of photography’ I liked his style but it wasn’t what I was looking for at the time. When I properly looked into Horst P. Horst’s work I’d already done one shoot and the lighting was entirely wrong and made my models look washed out and over exposed. 

I liked the way that Horst lit his images, the darker shadows that were deliberately cast made the model look more dramatic and really drew me in. The shadows tended to fall behind the models perfectly and the lighting was placed so that the high points of their faces were lit without over-exposing the whole photo. I was inspired to get my lighting to that standard and so when I based a shoot on his work, I tried to get it as similar as possible. The images he created were very professional and clean cut even though he used a lot of techniques that would usually oppose that sort of style such as having a soft focus. The majority of his fashion images are black and white, though when looking at his portraiture he had quite a few works in colour.

With his fashion images having a softer focus it prevents them from feeling too detached and cold, instead there is an intrigue to the model, it’s more of an intimate shot between the model and the viewer. This is also shown in how all the models aren’t showing off a brand name or directly advertising a brand even though the image may be for a campaign.

- Tina Leser by Horst P. Horst for Vogue April 1950

When setting up for my shoot I wanted to replicate the lighting as close as possible so I had one soft box at the lowest point it could go to lighting the models from in front and below and then another soft box at eye-level but directed to hit just behind the models. This cast a shadow behind them and lit the backdrop a bit so they had a slight brightness from the back. Using soft boxes meant that the shadows were not stark and obvious, it also meant that the model’s face was not washed out.

- Image from my second shoot

I believe my shoot ended up quite successful and the quality of the images produced was a big improvement on my previous shoot. The only obvious difference is that my photos are less grainy and textured than Horst’s, and although I could have added some of that to the images in Photoshop I didn’t think that would fit with my overall idea of perfect studio shots.

Peter Lindbergh - Composition

I came across Peter Lindbergh’s work when looking for fashion photographers rather than just portrait photographers. He is credited to have been one of the main photographers who ‘created the supermodel’. He doesn’t retouch any of his images – take objects out or edit the model’s face, which is usually free from makeup or likewise. This is a very interesting way of shooting fashion photography as usually the model has to represent the brand and the image that they put across, either through makeup or location rather than just clothing. It could be interpreted that Lindbergh puts across a naturalistic style, making the models more relatable and raw to the audience, that sort of style really suits Vogue, who he is currently working and doing the majority of his shoots for.

- Kate Moss for Harper’s Bazaar, 1994. - Peter Lindbergh/Paris/Gagosian Gallery

His style is one of my favourites I’ve come across so far, he follows very strong, obvious themes (lack of makeup, natural hair, in the moment). I like the fact that he keeps the model/s the main subject of the image but he doesn’t have to place them front and centre for it to be successful, in fact some of his most successful pieces have bizarre compositions that somehow work.

- Image from my ‘Out of the studio shoot’

With my following shoots I really considered leaving the fine details of the model/s in the images, such as freckles, beauty marks, skin discolouration’s, fine lines. After all these fine details are what make up the model as a person. By editing them out in the second shoot I did, I was taking away the character from the images, and after seeing Lindbergh’s work I now know that character is one of the most important parts of making an image successful. The photos that I was looking through of his really inspired me to look at changing up the composition of my next shoot and look for another photographer whose composition is unusual. I came across Lorna Simpson who was also very important in my project. In my following shoots I did I made sure whilst editing the images into black and white or brightening them ever so slightly, that I kept the contrast of the images relatively high and didn’t smooth out any of the detailing in them. Even the shoot I did outside the studio were kept as naturalistic as possible and didn’t centralise the models in the images.

Lorna Simpson - Image Narrative

After looking at Peter Lindbergh’s different compositional style and strong themes of keeping his shoots raw and naturalistic I came across Lorna Simpson who bases the majority of her photography on questioning stereotypes and conventions on race, gender and sexuality. She focuses mainly around black women and how they are treated in every day American society in comparison to others. Her work that I particularly liked was the pieces where she used words alongside them and her most recent work where she started to draw adding in mixed media. She’s mostly known for her work where she adds in words with her photographs, and I was particularly drawn to this series of photographs because none of them had the model’s face in it. Simpson’s images aren’t for a brand or a specific shoot, she uses them as a way to add in to identity politics, bringing up marginalised groups in society, so there is no real reason for her to put a face to a set of photographs when it’s not necessary. In fact I think that if she had shot the model’s face it would have drawn away from the subject of the image and made it more about that one person than a whole group of people.

- Lorna Simpson / 5 Day Forecast 1991 / Tate

One of my favourites of Simpson’s work, Five day forecast can be interpreted in many different ways. I think that the fact that the models face isn’t shown, makes the viewer rely on reading her body language, which is defensive or possibly unnerved with her arms folded in each one. The photographs are all in black and white which is quite stark and distant. Each image has a weekday above it, Monday-Friday, giving the indication that each day of her week is repetitive, with no change in sight. The fact that underneath all the images are synonyms of a lack of communication ties together the idea that Simpson could be trying to show the lack of ability to advance or change in the workplace for women, especially black women. I think I particularly like Lorna Simpson’s work because it has more meaning behind it than a fashion shoot would. She doesn’t even have to include a full photo of a model to convey a whole story or idea about something/someone, she puts that all across in the composition, edit and graphic text. 

- From my shoot based on Lorna Simpson’s composition style

I did a shoot focusing on Simpson’s different composition and I really liked the way that it turned out, however I wasn’t sure how to add a greater meaning to it or how I would add possible political views to a different shoot I would do in the future as there wasn’t anything I felt particularly strongly about.

[jeremystrele]

8 of the Best Productive Gardens

8 of the Best Productive Gardens

Roundup

by Lucy Feagins, Editor

Grape vines on the Narre Warren property of Horst Shoeps. He’s has been making his own wine up until recently. Of course. Is there anything this man can’t do? Photo – Kate Ballis for The Design Files.

Landscape designer Natasha Morgan’s sprawling property, Oak & Monkey Puzzle. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Ripe for the picking! Photo – Kate Ballis for The Design Files.

An avenue of Eucalyptus trees at Matt and Lentil Purbrick’s Tabilk property provides a beautiful backdrop to the neatly ordered plantings on the farm. Photo – Eve Wilson for The Design Files.

‘People love the vegetable and flower garden,’ Criss Canning of Lambley Nursery says. ‘I think they’re just really thrilled to see food growing.’ Photo – Annette O’Brien for The Design Files.

Pepper the dog, amongst the mulch on Matt and Lentil Purbrick’s Tabilk property. Photo – Eve Wilson for The Design Files.

Echinacea ‘Rich Red’ in the nursery, ‘Antique Perennials’, of Matt Reed and Michael Morant. This plant was bred by Matt and Michael. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Ann Sherry and Michael Hogan’s vegetable patch in Sydney, with raised beds built from recycled timber sleepers, framed by an exuberant Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea ‘Magnifica Tralii’). Photo – Daniel Shipp for The Design Files.

Judy Sederof’s overachieving garden in Brunswick! Photo – Annette O’Brien for The Design Files.

The fruit of labour on Horst Schoeps’ Narre Warren property! Photo – Kate Ballis for The Design Files.

Harvest time in the vegetable garden with Horst Schoeps’ grandchildren, Frankie and Wilco. Photo – Kate Ballis for The Design Files.

Horst Shoeps’ granddaughter Frankie picking zucchinis in Horst’s abundant vegetable garden. Photo – Kate Ballis for The Design Files.

Artist Clare James works from a studio she and her husband made at the back of their garden. Photo – Daniel Shipp.

The garden of landscape architect and flower lover Natasha Morgan. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Believe it or not, there’s no great mystery when it comes to productive gardens. As long as your soil is rich, you water effectively and keep your eye out for bugs, any productive garden, no matter how small, can be a success story!

Healesville based artist Clare James has a backyard full of veggies, as well as an orchard, a duck house, chook house, tree house, trampoline and more! The garden work is a family affair. The kids are keen assistant vegetable gardeners, and Mark is the chief preserver. ‘I grow the food’ says Clare, and Mark preserves it. ‘He’s good at finishing jobs whereas I’m better at multitasking, which gardening allows me to do.’

Developing her sprawling country garden has been a ‘true adventure’ for artist Criss Canning. ‘It’s been very experimental for us’ she says of Lambley Nursery – a 40-acre property which comprises her husband’s nursery business, as well as the couple’s own impressive country garden and veggie patch.

Matt and Lentil Purbrick are perhaps Melbourne’s ultimate ‘pin-up couple’ for living off the land, having established their own abundantly productive farm in Tabilk, an hour-and-a-half north of Melbourne. The pair is almost entirely self-sufficient, farming 6 acres of vegetables, fruits, flowers, meat, eggs and dairy.

Matt Reed and Michael Morant from Antique Perennials are passionate growers who grow and sell an incredibly diverse range of plants from their nursery in Kinglake, 45 kilometres North East of central Melbourne. ‘The botanical world is vast, and way, way, WAY bigger than we’re led to believe at large hardware store nurseries’ they say. ‘There’s so much more to discover, grow and understand.’

The Northcote home and garden of The Sederof Family is living proof that productivity in the garden need not be limited by square meterage! While their sixty-square-metre garden is relatively small, it grows big things. For instance, 150 eggplants in one season!

One of the most impressive productive gardens we’ve seen in recent years is that of landscape designer Natasha Morgan. At the foothills of the Great Dividing Range, just south of Daylesford, Natasha has nurtured a rundown, rural property into a hub of growth, abundant creativity and community collaboration. Natasha’s garden is a series of long raised beds, overflowing with edibles and flowers, as well as an orchard and berry patch. It overflows with enough vegetables and fruit to feed her family, workshop participants and lucky neighbours.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, is the truly magical home and garden of Ann Sherry and Michael Hogan in Sydney’s inner West. The garden here celebrates and softens the bold grandeur of the historic ‘Abbey’ house. ‘The garden is my thing, more so than the house’ says Ann. ‘I love the separate spaces within it, the flowers, and the beautiful smells. It makes me feel good. I love the fact that I can muck around in it, and that we can eat out of it. It feels as though it wraps the house up somehow. The house is a great building but the garden has finished it.’

And finally, an example that might perhaps ignite nostalgic memories for many of us – the Narre Warren garden of 78-year-old Horst Schoeps – 4000 square metres of lovingly nurtured vegetable gardens, grape vines, landscaped lawns, with swimming pool and pond system complete with rainbow trout (!), an orchard, and chickens! The absolute beauty of this garden is the way it connects the different generations of the Schoeps family. As his daughter Michelle says – ‘what I love most about Dad’s garden is that my kids get to come here and be free and wild, just as kids should be, in a garden created by their Papa. There are always new places to explore and create in. It’s a magic garden!’

[steveleeuk]

“In attack most daring, in defence most cunning, in endurance most steadfast, they performed a feat of arms which will be remembered and recounted as long as the virtues of courage and resolution have power to move the hearts of men.” (Winston Churchill, in honour of the men of the British 1st Airborne Division at Arnhem.)

Operation Market Garden was a huge Allied operation to capture the key bridges in the Netherlands in September 1944. The one over the River Rhine at Arnhem was the final one on the list. The Allies would then be rattling the gates of Germany and WW2 would be over by Christmas 1944. All very simple in theory. History records what happened at Arnhem as a catastrophe. An enemy counterattack overran the British lines pushing a remnant of the British 1st Airborne Division to the town of Oosterbeek. 150 men ran for cover in the church among the candles and the pews. The commanding officer stood in the pulpit to address a most unlikely congregation with these words “We will stay here and hope, we will stick together and we will fight for our lives”. Kate ter Horst and her family lived in the Vicarage next to the church. Her daughter Sophie still lives in there today. On September 21st the church descended into full scale carnage and inside the vicarage, the furniture was thrown out into the garden. The children were then taken down into the cellar for safety while the house was transformed into an aid post. For the next four days, Kate comforted the wounded and prayed for the dying. She took water from the boiler and then the toilet to keep the men alive as she walked throughout the house reading the Bible to the soldiers. They called her the ‘Angel of Arnhem’.