#american primitive gallery

[lukegauthier]

[manic-maniac-man]

MEET THE DESIGNER (pt. 5/Finale)

GREG LAUREN

PROFILE of THE NEPHEW

The coats and jackets worn at the ED fair are designed with a sepia-artistic approach. The patchwork Cubs Scouts shawl ($3.125) and vintage Hollywood jackets are distressed and reconstructed vests (5,800) and jackets (82,750) are from the summer 2012 collection. All are handmade and one-of-a-kind, and will be delivered to 40 stores in London, Australia, Milan, and elsewhere.

"It was the design for yourself, not to the other"

"Design for yourself, not how you want others to see you.

It all started when Greg stripped off his old canvas and impulsively made a jacket for himself. "I was so absorbed in making it that I didn't even think about a pattern or anything. I made many mistakes along the way and added strange things. The finished garment was extremely imperfect, but to me it was perfect," says Greg. "These clothes are not for heroes of the past, but for the creation of new heroes. I didn't design them with anyone in particular in mind. However, every era needs heroes, and these clothes made from military fabric are meant to make you your own hero."

It's not a design that is particularly conscious of how I want others to see me."

Since the randomly created canvas jacket for a song, Greg's clothing has been created through improvisation. Fashion is essentially a way of expressing how you want to appear to others and how you want to be seen. "My father's fashion was meant to transform people into someone different from their usual selves. You wear clothes because you want to be a certain way, or because you want others to think of you in a certain way. Sometimes it's a way to convey that you're successful, powerful, or handsome. But However, I am interested in the opposite approach. Rather than appearances or physical appearances, I like designs that reflect personality - who you are and where you are heading."

In "Alteration Baracks," Greg Lauren has taken fashion to the level of art through retail installations, proposing his own worldview through his creations, including the opening of the sky, rather than simply displaying clothes on a rack, as if displaying artworks in a gallery. "My starting point is not fashion. It's more primitive textures and colors. It's no different from when I'm painting," says Greg, and for him, it's more like creating artworks than making clothes. From now on, he will ponder on a new approach to creation, with the theme of clothes that can be worn. This may be the same as his father, Ralph Lauren's creation of turning dreams into products. However, Greg will destroy the image that his predecessors, including his father, have built up, and reconstruct it in his own way. No one can imagine what kind of creations he will make in the future. However, the sensibility he has cultivated as a Laurentian and his way of thinking as an artist may help him forge a new American standard that is different from that of his uncle, Ralph Lauren.

Greg Lauren was born in New York in 1970. He is a designer and studied art history at Princeton University.

He then moved to Tokyo, where he continued to work on his own projects while also appearing in a number of other productions under his own name. He gradually began to attract attention with his "Ero" series featuring DC Comics characters, which he exhibited at Arch Basel in Miami in 2004, and his installation "Anema tion" in 2009. In 2010, he launched his own signature brand (Greg Lauren).

[mybeingthere]

I found an outsider artist Robert Adale Davis on a friend Aarne Anton's online gallery page.

Robert Adale Davis creates clothes with string, yarn and applied patched. He obsessively stitches and layers them to “create symbols, faces and patterns on deconstructed clothing, head pieces, patches, tapestries and mandalas.”

Elegant and beautifully designed, they are true works of art.

Aarne Anton has been a passionate dealer, and collector of art and antiques for over 45 years. For most of that time heading American Primitive Gallery in NYC.

With the onset of Covid the gallery in the city closed and was reinvented online and continued exhibiting at shows such as the Outsider Art Fair under its new name - Nexus Singularity.

[ivyfox-illustration]

Gallery Wrapped canvas watercolor Ibizan Hound, painting, sighthound, primitive dog breeds, unique Ibizan hound gifts, Your favourite breed art print - head or body conformation - groomer gift - Other Breeds Available - dog breeder gift - regional specialty or national specialty prize gift idea Artwork by Ivy Fox Illustration Follow Ivy Fox Illustration on social media https://m.facebook.com/IvyFox.illustration/ https://www.instagram.com/ivyfox.illustration/ Find your dog breed: Personalized Pet Portraits: https://ivyfoxillustrates.etsy.com/ My website: https://ivyfoxillustration.com/ Art Prints Merch Original PaintingsUplift any room's decor with art that's printed on top-quality canvas gallery wraps. Each wrap is made with finely textured, artist-grade cotton substrate which helps reproduce your image in outstanding clarity and detail. Available in multiple sizes, these closed back canvases are built with a patented, solid support face and are excellent for indoor use. .: 100% cotton fabric (400gsm) .: Horizontal, vertical and square options available .: Closed cardboard backing .: Built with a patented solid support face .: High image quality and detail .: NB! For indoor use onlyContact Email: IvyFoxIllustration@ gmail(dot)com ———— Tags and other miscellaneous info: ———— Ivy Fox Illustration Ivy Fox dog art Museum of the Dog American Kennel Club Showsight - Where Champions Are Celebrated American Dog Fancier InfoDog Best In Show The Canine Chronicle AKC Gazette best pet portrait artist watercolor fine art unique art Akc meet the breeds Westminster kennel club dog show national dog show crufts grooming intergroom superzoo petquest groom expo dog sports well bred dogs purebred preservation breeders ethical breeders breeder of merit akc grand champion Ch – Champion of Record – earned by gaining 15 points in conformation wins. Points awarded is determined by the number of other entries the winning dog defeats. A dog must win at least two majors (by winning at two different shows under two different judges where there are enough entries defeated to equal 3-5 points by the AKC point system. OTCh – Obedience Trial Champion To earn an obedience title, the dog must have a passing score of 50% of possible points or better, and an overall passing score at three different competitions under three different judges. CD – Companion Dog (First Level Obedience Competition, basic obedience exercises) CDX – Companion Dog Excellent (Intermediate Level Obedience Competition, more advanced obedience work) UD – Utility Dog (Advanced Level Obedience Competition, difficult obedience work, including hand signals) UDX – The highest obedience degree AKC presently awards TRACKING TD – Tracking Dog TDX – Tracking Dog Excellent VST – Variable Surface Tracking HERDING HIC – Herding Instinct Certificate HT – Herding Tested PT – PreTrial Tested HS – Herding Started HI – Herding Intermediate HX – Herding Excellent HCh – Herding Champion AGILITY NA – Novice Agility OA – Open Agility AX – Agility Excellent MX – Master Agility Excellent NAJ – Novice Agility Jumper OAJ – Open Agility Jumper EAJ – Excellent Agility Jumper AKC Unofficial Titles CGC – Canine Good Citizen ROM – Register of Merit – A dog or bitch must earn a number of points specified by the DPCA rules, and also meet the numbers of champion and major pointed progeny required by DPCA. The requirements for bitches are less than the requirements for the dogs because males have the opportunity to produce a far larger number of offspring. ROMC – Canadian ROM ROM/C – designates that the dog has earned an American and a Canadian ROM. TT – Temperament Tested TC – Temperament Certified AOE – Award of Excellence-A dog must meet qualifications in conformation, obedience, and also be OFA´d to earn this award. New competitions are being added and rules for competitions change, for the most up to date rules and regulations, check with the AKC and the DPCA. Miscellaneous American titles often seen on pedigrees and in advertising. BIS – Best in Show at an All-Breed Show in conformation. BISS – Best in Show Specialty (where only dogs of the same breed are competing in conformation) BOB – Best of Breed BOS – Best Opposite Sex BOW – Best of Winners (best between Winners Dog and Winners Bitch in breed conformation class competition) WD – Winners Dog – the winning dog overall of the regular classes of his sex. WB – Winners Bitch – the winning bitch overall of the regular classes of her sex. RWD/RWB – Runner up to the winners dog and bitch, if the winner becomes ineligible for the award then the runner up will receive the points awarded from that show. Special – A dog that is already a Champion that is competing for Best of Breed only. A Champion cannot compete in the classes where points are earned (because a Champion has already earned them!) RTD – Registered Therapy Dog TD I- Dog has passed Therapy Dog International´s testing HEALTH CERTIFICATIONS OVC – Ontario Veterinary College OVC Hip Certification – A dog may be preliminary screened at a younger age, but will not receive a certification unless the dog is at least 18 months old. It was told to me by a tech in the radiology department of OVC that they consider hips to either be bad, in which case they are rated on a scale from 0 – 4, with 4 being the worse, or they are “good” in which case the animal will receive a certification number (if 18 months or older. Therefore they do not follow the U.S. rating system which includes “FAIR”, Good, Excellent”. Their exact words were “the hips are either GOOD or they are NOT. OFA – Orthopedic Foundation for Animals OFA Hip Certifications – dogs within a specified range of normal hip x-rays are certified OFA-Excellent, Good, or Fair OFA – Elbow Certification – Certified by OFA for normal elbows on x-ray, only one grade recognized as normal. Check with OFA for proper procedures and positioning for hip and elbow x-rays. A dog may be preliminary screened at a younger age, but will not receive a certification unless the dog is at least 24 months old. OFA is also now doing certifications for other canine health concerns such as normal thyroid levels, check with OFA for accurate data and rules concerning these. CERF – Canine Eye Registry Foundation-dog is certified to have normal eyes. Re-certification must be done annually. vWD – Von Willebrands Disease free-meaning the dog has been tested and found free of vWD, a bleeding disorder, vWD free ratings also are often given with a percentage listed. For the best information on Von Willebrand´s Disease, contact Dr Jean Dodds, who is the leading research specialist in blood disorders. Dog show prize idea

[dontbestingybaby]

“The two remaining galleries devoted to the physical anthropology exhibit consisted of a model anthropology laboratory and a hall containing displays relating human pathology and senility to racial variation. These exhibit halls gave added substance to the image of human beings as higher animals who had been tiered into identifiable races and subraces as a result of an ongoing and endless process of evolution. What made this presentation so striking in 1915 was not simply that [Aleš] Hrdlička linked the concept of race with biology and presented this equation to fairgoers as scientific truth, but that he did so four years after Franz Boas had leveled his ‘critique of racial formalism’ in The Mind of Primitive Man. Over the long run, Boas and his students would deeply influence the intellectual contours of the anthropology profession and make many of the evolutionary props for popular racial attitudes untenable. At the Panama-California Exposition, however, it was the anthropology of government science and the evolutionary racial doctrines espoused by Hrdlička that reached the public. His exhibits won praise from lay visitors and scientists alike. 

“Importantly, Hrdlička did not stop at classifying mankind into racial categories. He defined physical anthropology so as to include within its purview ‘man's evolution in the future, with its possible regulation or control.’ Hrdlička, in short, created the impression that physical anthropology could substantiate the existence of evolutionary racial change and that physical anthropologists might be able to ‘regulate’ the course of that change, thus becoming utopian agents in their own right.”

from All the World’s a Fair: Visions of Empire at American International Expositions, 1876-1916 by Robert W. Rydell, p. 223

[hauntedeaglepizza]

Discovering the appeals of Trinidad, Colorado: A Manual for Appreciating This Delightful Community

Discovering the appeals of Trinidad, Colorado: A Manual for Appreciating This Delightful Community

Located in the facility of the Rocky Hills, Trinidad, Colorado, provides a mix of deep-rooted history, spectacular all-natural landscapes, and vibrant social activities. Whether you delight in exterior activities, historical expedition, or just looking for a calm resort, Trinidad has a selection of experiences to suit your rate of interests. Discover how to fully appreciate your journey to this fascinating community.

Places of historical and cultural relevance

Trinidad's historic downtown is a must-see, with its well-preserved Victorian style and a lively arts scene. Beginning your trip at the ** Trinidad History Museum **, where you can check out the Baca Home and the Flower Mansion, both using a look into 19th-century life in Trinidad. The gallery also features the best places to go in december in usa Santa Fe Route, a crucial industrial route in the 1800s, supplying insight right into the community's essential function in American background.

Next off, take a stroll along Key Street, where you'll find the ** A.R. Mitchell Gallery of Western Art **. This gallery houses a remarkable collection of Western art and artifacts, showcasing the jobs of Arthur Roy Mitchell, recognized for his cowboy-themed images.

Discover the Outdoors

Trinidad's natural environments are nothing except magnificent. For hiking fanatics, the ** Trinidad Lake State Park ** is a must-visit. The park offers over 10 miles of routes, excellent for treking, mountain biking, and bird watching. The lake itself is perfect for boating, fishing, and also paddleboarding, giving a tranquil retreat with impressive views of the Spanish Heights.

For those looking for a harder trek, ** Simpson's Relax ** provides a rewarding ascent with comprehensive views of Trinidad and its surroundings. The popular Trinidad sign at the summit is an optimal area for taking photos.

One-of-a-kind Destinations

For a distinct experience, head to the ** Dinosaur Tracks ** near Purgatoire River. This site features among the biggest collections of dinosaur footprints in North America, offering a remarkable glance right into the primitive past. The tracks are quickly obtainable via a short walking, making it an academic and pleasurable tour for visitors of all ages.

Purchasing and Dining

Trinidad's downtown location is also home to a variety of distinct stores and dining establishments. Browse through the ** Purgatoire River Trading Company **, where you can discover a range of Southwestern precious jewelry, ceramic, and art. For book fans, the ** Trinidad Books & Songs ** offers a comfy ambience with an excellent option of publications and vinyl records.

Trinidad provides a variety of dining choices that make certain to please. Delight in a tasty eating experience at ** Bella Luna Restaurant **, renowned for its wood-fired pizzas and inviting ambiance. For a sampling of authentic neighborhood tastes, ** Tequila's Family Mexican Dining establishment ** dishes out Mexican recipes with a contemporary touch.

Arts and Home entertainment

Trinidad's community is deeply enhanced by the vibrant visibility of the arts. The ** Trinidad Artspace ** functions as a growing hub for creatives, giving an one-of-a-kind live/work setting that frequently showcases imaginative skills with open studios and exhibits. At the same time, the ** Southern Colorado Repertory Theatre

[bogusfilth]

When Paul Getty gathers Rembrandts, Impressionists, and Greek statues together in a Pompeian villa on the Pacific coast, he is following American logic, the pure baroque logic of Disneyland. He is being original; it is a magnificent stroke of cynicism, naivety, kitsch, and unintended humour - something astonishing in its nonsensicality. Now the disappearance of aesthetics and higher values in kitsch and hyperreality is fascinating, as is the disappearance of history and the real in the televisual. It is in this unfettered pragmatics of values that we should find some pleasure.

[...] What is new in America is the clash of the first level (primitive and wild) and the ‘third kind’ (the absolute simulacrum). There is no second level. This is a situation we find hard to grasp, since this is the one we have always privileged: the self-reflexive, self-mirroring level, the level of unhappy consciousness. But no vision of America makes sense without this reversal of our values: it is Disneyland that is authentic here! The cinema and TV are America’s reality! The freeways, the Safeways, the skylines, speed, and deserts - these are America, not the galleries, churches, and culture. . . Let us grant this country the admiration it deserves and open our eyes to the absurdity of some of our own customs. This is one of the advantages, one of the pleasures of travel. To see and feel America, you have to have had for at least one moment in some downtown jungle, in the Painted Desert, or on some bend in a freeway, the feeling that Europe had disappeared. You have to have wondered, at least for a brief moment, ‘How can anyone be European?

Jean Baudrillard, America

Taking Jean Baudrillard to Outback Steakhouse, the Australian-themed restaurant which does not carry Australian food, was not founded in Australia, and was created with zero involvement by Australians

[jerryantiques]

Antiques & Collectibles Art Jewellery Dolls Fashion Pottery Glass: Tue, January Seventeenth

Looking to spend a leisurely day outdoors, whereas checking out outstanding antiques? The Utica Antiques Market offers it all- from primitives to quality furniture, jewellery to books, pottery to glassware, you need nj estate sales to have the power to discover your coronary heart's desire as you browse the market. Located on the Knights of Columbus Grounds, on 21 Mile Rd, 1 mile east of Van Dyke, the Utica Antiques Market is fast and simple to search out.

Others take to locations like Instagram and Twitter to seek out consumers for specialty items. Ruby Lane is arguably the most popular market dedicated to antiques. Though many sellers succeed on Ruby Lane, the location is extremely curated, and it’s more difficult to get accepted to sell right here than on Etsy. Selling antiques on eBay has been one of the go-to methods for dealers to place their collections in front of hundreds of people for over twenty years. However, you don’t need a enterprise to benefit from this site. On the opposite hand, upholstered items can somewhat more durable to shop online, and Schwartz says you want to ask yourself some necessary questions earlier than buying.

The key to a rewarding shopping experience is working with respected retailers who stand behind the gadgets they sell. Clear out older items that don’t have a lot value by setting up a storage sale. Use keywords like “antiques,” “vintage,” and “collectibles” in your on-line listings for sale, so you appeal to the right type of patrons. We encourage you to sell all items to the very best bidder.

According to Forbes, the average merchandise bought on the location is close to $3,000, but this is a good place to soundly buy priceless items due to the strict requirements and concentrate on authenticity. You can find every little thing from antique furnishings by noted designers to the most coveted jewellery and collectibles. This isn't the place to look for a great discount, but it is an excellent website for getting these treasured gadgets with confidence. Founded by Maggie Holladay in 2018, this online gallery sells collectible classic items and modern artwork from artists worldwide. In phrases of furnishings, Claude Home offers a dreamy choice of marble tables, wooden seating, and curved sofas.

Niedzwiecki identified that the Utica Antiques Market is well the largest exterior show in southeast Michigan. He also famous that constant advertising and vendor appreciation are the focus for profitable reveals as with out either one, there can be nothing to present to the general public. With the quantity of promoting the Niedzwieckis do, it's onerous to overlook the approaching dates of the exhibits. Many distributors and prospects have commented on signs and adverts that seem nicely upfront of the scheduled reveals and the huge variety of various promoting that's accomplished as nicely.

In addition, fine American paintings of the late nineteenth and early twentieth Century, in addition to different decorative arts are also available. Styling and antique prop rental can be found from Page’s collection of vintage furniture and decorator items. Be certain to go to our retailer in Montclair, NJ the place you can see furnishings, glass, china, art, silver, pottery, jewellery and more. And the craftsmanship of antique gadgets is one thing else.

There are about 2,000 totally different outlets, each specializing in specific collectibles like dolls, antique china, jewelry, and extra. Buying antiques on-line opens up all kinds of choices for antiques collectors, especially when it comes to hard-to-find objects you might not see in local shops. From discovering low cost antiques for sale antiques to seeing a local selection with out having to go away your personal home, antique consumers have never had extra selections. However, it's also straightforward to get scammed when you'll be able to't truly see and hold the merchandise you are shopping for.

The web site stands behind the authenticity of every merchandise provided for sale there. Mark your calendars and book your trip time and resort reservations. Antique dealers and collectors journey from all through the United States and overseas to attend the world well-known Brimfield Antique Flea Markets.

[imtryingmybeskar]

My first Marcus Pike fic. Its pure fluff and angst right now and I love him more with every passing second. One mild sexual reference. There will be more chapters. Slow burn time. 7.8k words.

The artworks mentioned are as follows - Babel by Cildo Meireles, Maman by Lousie Bourgeois and Pharmacy by Damien Hirst.

Also, getting free cheese and mead at Borough Market was one of the best days of my life, hence why it made it in.

This is the look I had in mind when I wrote this.

Chapter 1: Enough Said

The soft blue light of the room bounced off of the harsh chrome and white plastic of the tower in front of you. Glowing red and white lights shone from it in seemingly random places. It was made from a collection of radio technology, going from the primitive to more modern the higher the tower went, and each radio hissed and spoke softly, with the occasional swell of music also making itself known. You looked at the guidebook you had purchased and found the page pertaining to this particular artwork. Babel by Cildo Meireles. You had never considered yourself particularly attracted to modern art, much preferring the Pre-Raphaelite collection displayed in the Tate Britain, a few miles walk up the river from your current location. But you connected with this piece and you couldn't exactly work out why. It didn't matter really, you were just here to expand your horizons. The Tate Modern was never your first choice of art gallery but you had decided today was the day to step outside of your comfort zone a bit. This was a rare weekday off for you and you had decided to make the most of your city while there were fewer people around. Looking up at the height of the tower before you, you stepped back a little to appreciate it more and collided with a solid weight behind you.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry!" You were apologising even before you had turned around, as a good Londoner always should.

"Hey, no its my fault. This room is big enough that I shouldn't have walked by so close. I'm sorry." His voice was deep and warm with an American accent. He might have said something else after that, but it was as if the static noises coming from the exhibit behind you got louder as you turned and saw him. He was literally the most beautiful man you had ever laid eyes on. The deepest cocoa brown eyes, reflecting the blue light of the room and sparkling with humour and warmth, a prominent nose leading to pouty, full lips with a pronounced cupid's bow, the slightest hint of stubble on his upper lip and hugging his strong jawline. His hair was dark and a little messy. It looked like he was growing it out and it was in an in-between stage that he didn't quite know how to handle. He was wearing a plain grey t shirt which did everything to accentuate how broad his shoulders were. Realising you were in danger of making this awkward by gawking, you smiled instead.

"Call it an even draw?" you offered. He gave a half smile with his polite laugh and a dimple flashed briefly at you.

"That's fair," he nodded. "Uhh do you know anything about this work?" He gestured at the art behind you. "I'm more of a Baroque man myself."

"Honestly, no," you confessed. "I'm more of a Pre-Raphaelite fan. But because of that, I did buy this ridiculously expensive guide and its actually been very helpful." You offered the open book to him, so he could read about the piece as you had. As he pored over the page he held it close to his face in the dim light and a slight furrow between his eyes appeared as he concentrated on the words. You stepped into line beside him, not wanting to make him feel as if you were waiting for him to be finished and also still trying desperately not to let your eyes be drawn to him too much. An art lover and handsome. Your eyes slid across to his hands. No ring that you could see. All he needed now was a sense of humour, to want a partner and to be into women and he'd be perfect.

"Babel" he said quietly. "Well I guess that makes sense." Silence fell as he perused the page. You were looking at the tower without really seeing it. You weren't shy exactly, but directly asking someone if they wanted to go out wasn't your style, particularly when you had met them only a couple of minutes ago. But you did want to keep talking to him. The thought of him slipping back into the anonymous grey of London and never seeing him again made you bolder than you would ordinarily be.

"If you don't mind me asking, why come to see modern Art if you like Baroque? I can recommend some good galleries to check out if you're here on holiday and that's your thing." He glanced up from the page at you, a small smile playing about his lips.

"I'm here for work, actually. In London I mean, not here at the Tate. And I've checked out a lot of the main galleries in London already, so I thought it was about time to pay a visit here. You know, complete the set." His smile grew a little wider as he asked, "And you? If this isn't really your thing either why are you here?"

"Sort of the same reason. I have my favourites that I visit as often as I can. Today I felt like expanding my horizons. Being a little more daring...And I've just realised how pathetic my life sounds if the most daring thing I do with it is to go and see modern art." He gave a proper chuckle at that, a rumble deep in the broad expanse of his chest.

"Some modern art does seem to require nerves of steel from what I can see. Didn't they have a giant spider in the main hall here a few years back? It was like 30 feet tall or something?"

"They did. I gave that one a miss. Not that daring," you smiled at him. Silence fell between you again as he resumed reading. He turned a page and let out a little hum of surprise.

"They have a Damien Hirst installation here?"

"Yeah, its back through here and downstairs," you gestured over your shoulder with your thumb through the door behind you. "It's pretty cool. He's mocked up an entire pharmacy in a room."

"Ah you've already seen it?" Did your hopeful ears detect a faint note of disappointment in the question?

"I wandered through briefly, but it might be worth a second look," you proffered. You were lying. You had quite enjoyed the installation and had spent some time in there, but if it meant more time with Mr Grey T-Shirt you were very happy to go back. He kept hold of your guidebook as you made your way to the other exhibit, one or other of you occasionally stopping along the way to look at another piece that caught your eyes. Your conversation topics strictly revolved around the art and your interpretations of it, with him supplying the knowledge from the guide as and when it was required, but you found him to be an easy conversationalist and you shared a lot of laughs as you moved around the galleries. You had just about made it to the Hirst exhibit when the announcement came over the tannoy that the gallery would be closing in half an hour. He turned to you with wide eyes.

"Well, that flew," he exclaimed. "Maybe I do have a thing for modern art!"

"Yeah, how long was that, about two hours? It didn't feel like it at all," you agreed. A slightly uncomfortable pause fell between you, neither one of you really knowing how to end your brief interaction without awkwardness. A thought seemed to suddenly strike him.

"Oh, uh, here's your guidebook back," he said, handing it to you. "Sorry I hogged it the whole way round. It was really interesting though. And thank you for your company."

"Thank you for yours," you replied. "And don't worry about hogging the guidebook. It was nice to have someone telling me about all the pieces to be honest." He smiled that disarming smile once more at you and raised his hand in a half wave.

"Bye," he said, a little stiffly. You mirrored his half wave.

"Bye." As he walked away, you had a sudden thought. Fumbling in your bag for a pen, you scribbled your name and number on the inside cover of the book. This was not something you would ordinarily do either, but you had promised yourself to try new things today. You made your way through the hall and caught up with him as he was about to make his way outside.

"Hi again, sorry. I just wanted to give you this. As a souvenir of a good day. And um...my number is in there. So if you want to do it again sometime, drop me a message?" He had smiled broadly when you had handed him the guidebook, but it faltered a little when you mentioned that you had given him your number and your stomach clenched a little in embarrassment. He wasn't into you, for whatever reason. Okay, that was fine. He was good company. You could pull this back. "I just realised how that sounded," you continued breezily. "I meant if you ever want to do it again as friends then let me know. No pressure. I won't be offended if you don't get in touch." His smile strengthened a little, but you could see that a sadness had crept into his eyes.

"Uh, thank you," he said haltingly. "I'm afraid I may not have any more free time before I go back to the States. My work can be pretty intense."

"I understand," you said hastily, wanting nothing more than to be away from here and drown your embarrassment in a glass of wine. "It was good to meet you anyway. Have a safe trip home." You smiled at him and turned to walk away.

"Thank you," he said again, a little flatly and you turned briefly to wave at him as you walked away. So much for being daring. You did indeed drown your embarrassment and mild sorrow in a couple of glasses of wine and one of your favourite films that evening. By the time you were pouring the second you had calmed down a little. You weren't really looking for anyone anyway and were pretty content with your life how it was. It had just been so long since anyone had caught your eye that you felt a little ruffled by the rejection. Still, you were fairly proud of yourself that you had given it a go at all and strangely, your confidence was slightly bolstered by the whole thing. Or perhaps that was just the wine talking. You sighed and took yourself to bed, trying not to think about the broad shoulders and deep brown eyes of the man who had kept you company that afternoon.

The next few days passed in the mild tedium of day to day life. You rose, worked, ate, read, chatted, cooked, shopped, slept. Your work took up most of your time and you were glad to get lost in it a little. Much as you tried not to pay attention to it, occasionally your mind would wander back to the gallery and his smile and laughter. And the final flash of sadness in his eyes before you had gone. You wondered why he was sad - if someone had hurt him, or if he thought he had hurt you, or if he had something else going on in his personal life. When your thoughts got to this point you would invariably give yourself a shake and get back to your tasks, telling yourself it was pointless to dwell on the life of someone you had met for a couple of hours once. Still, he would not be dislodged so easily and it was beginning to irritate you somewhat that you were dwelling on this person with zero hope of a return, or even a second meeting. Or so you thought.

A week after you had visited the Tate, you were having a Bad Day. The alarm hadn't gone off, you had woken late and had arrived to work stressed, sleepy and non-caffeinated. The bakery that you co-owned by its nature needed to be operational at silly o'clock in the morning, so by the time you arrived you were already behind schedule for the day. You worked like a demon that morning to make up the time and had just about succeeded when Catherine, your business partner and friend, arrived for the start of her shift. She took one look at you and started to prepare you a coffee. You could have cried with gratitude. By the time your one employee arrived, you were exhausted but back on track and you hoped that the rest of the day would go better for you. No such luck. It seemed that every customer was either rude or entitled or an idiot. Some were even a winning combination of all three and you found yourself longing for a long bath and bedtime. Once the lunch rush had died down and you were cleaning in the back, Catherine came to find you.

"Bad morning, huh?"

"Let's just not talk about it. I'm sure it'll be better tomorrow!"

"Well, I'm not trying to get on to you or make your day worse, but I just wanted to check on how you were doing with Jas's cake?" You groaned out loud. Catherine's daughter. She would be six in a few days and you had promised to help with the party, including making the birthday cake and decorating it. "You forgot about the cake?" Catherine asked incredulously. "That's not like you. Are you ok? Do you need to talk about anything?"

"No, no, its fine. I didn't forget about the cake, I just lost track of the days. Didn't realise how close her birthday is. I'll get it done and I'll be there to help still." Catherine was still looking at you dubiously. "Honestly, I'm okay. I think I just need a holiday or something!" You were telling the truth. You had just lost track of time in the past week. The days seemed to be melding one into the other with nothing to define them. Ever since you had met him. You gave yourself a mental shake. You really needed to get over this crush or whatever it was. Now it had started to impact what was important in your life, it was time to get your head out of the daydreams and back to reality. Your resolution was pretty successful for the rest of the day and lasted well after you arrived home. Instead of diving straight in the bath like you wanted to, you began to make preparations for the decorations that would go on Jasmine's cake. The work was more fun than your day to day stuff and you hummed along to your playlist as you lost yourself in the colourful fondant shapes. A text flicked on to the screen and caught your eye.

"Hi, its Marcus. I'm the guy you met the other day at the Tate. My stay in London has been extended for a while, so I was wondering if I could take you up on that offer of another art day? Or something else if you want? You can get me on this number. Let me know!"

Your heart jumped a little as you read the words but you tried to talk yourself out of getting too excited, remembering that look in his eyes when you had asked him out initially. Just treat this as a friendship thing, you told yourself. No pressure for anyone, just hanging out with someone who makes you laugh and making a new friend. Sounds like fun. And "Sounds like fun" was exactly what you sent him, along with your availability over the next week. Whatever his job was, it seemed like the hours were punishing. Between your early starts and his late finishes there were very few days that coincided for you both, but eventually you settled on Sunday at midday, electing to meet outside Tate Britain this time, as it was relatively easy for you both to get to. You got back to work on your cake decorations, your heart a little lighter and a smile on your face.

Marcus stood out from the crowd even at a distance. At 11.55 you were on the approach to the Tate along the pavement that hugged the water. You could see him lounging easily against the railings bordering the Thames, looking out over the boats as they meandered up and down the lazy river. His hair was ruffling softly in the breeze and he absentmindedly ran his hand through it to push it back. You had the same urge yourself but you stamped on it and approached him. He had shaved since the last time you saw him and his skin looked smooth and soft.

"Hey," you greeted him as you arrived, a wide smile on your face.

"Hi," he said eagerly as he saw you, an answering grin on his lips. "Shall we?" He made a pretence of ushering you forward in a "ladies first" kind of move. At least you thought it was a pretence. But when you reached the doors of the Tate he leapt up the last few stairs ahead of you in order to hold the door open for you and gestured for you to go ahead of him again. You thanked him with a smile but felt a little awkward as you weren't really used to this kind of treatment.

"Guide book? Or nah?" you asked him.

"I trust in your knowledge. If you say you know Pre-Raphaelites, you know Pre-Raphaelites."

"There's your first mistake. Trusting in my knowledge is unwise at best," you smiled at him.

"Yeah, but this way I save ten pounds, so just make it sound convincing okay?" he joked, his dimple flashing at you.

The afternoon was wonderful. You took in the beautiful art of course, but you felt that you were taking each other in too. He was funny and really intelligent and you found yourself warming to him more and more as the day wore on. After a couple of hours strolling around the galleries, you sat on one of the benches provided to rest your feet. As you sipped the water you had brought with you, your stomach let out an embarrassingly loud gurgle. You looked across at him with wide eyes and an exaggerated shamed expression on your face.

"Sorry. I did eat today but I think I'm hungry again."

"I could eat. Do you know anywhere around here that does good food?"

"What's your definition of good? Are you a true American? Bacon and syrup with all meals?" you joked.

"Hey, now I'm offended," he pouted. "Its bacon and syrup AND pancakes, thank you!" His lips really were gorgeous. You tore your mind away from that train of thought and stood up.

"Come on," you said. "I have the perfect place."

The White Hart was a pub not far from the gallery. It was very traditionally Victorian, with panelled carved wood, a separate saloon bar, and beautiful etched glass dividers everywhere. The dark wooden floor creaked enormously underfoot as you seated yourselves opposite each other in a booth with red velvet upholstery. You had come here a few times over the years and the Sunday roasts were to die for.

"Do you want a drink?" you asked him.

"Uhhh I haven't managed to do too much drinking in England yet. I like beer. What would you recommend?" After discussing the various options with him, he settled on a pint of the same beer that you yourself had chosen, reasoning to you that at least it wouldn't go to waste if he didn't like it.

"Trying to get me drunk already," you tutted teasingly at him as you went to go to the bar. He went to stand at the same time.

"Hey, I'll get this."

"You can get the next round. It's okay," you reassured him and he sat back in his seat, a vaguely discomfited look on his face. You weren't sure if he wanted to pay for you because he was trying to be "gentlemanly" or because he thought it was a date and he should. The latter thought distracted you so much that you almost messed up the simple order of the same pint twice as you gave it to the barman. He tried to pay for your meals too, but you insisted that you split it. You had never felt comfortable with people paying for you if you didn't know them well, though you didn't tell him that. He smiled and agreed, but you could see that he wasn't entirely happy. He ate every bit of his food and made a deep hum of contentment as he finished.

"Maybe British food isn't that bad after all. Could have used more syrup though," he commented with a grin, making you giggle. After your meal and another pint, you decided to walk it off by taking a stroll up the Thames. You had talked about everything and nothing in the pub, still mostly focused on the artworks that you had seen that day and in times past interspersed with silly jokes that the both of you seemed to find entertaining. Now as you walked, you found yourself curious about him.

"If you don't mind me asking, what do you do work-wise?" He looked at you appraisingly and there was a brief moment where you felt he was sizing you up to see if he could trust you or not.

"I work for the FBI," he eventually confessed. You made a noise of disbelief.

"No, seriously what do you do?"

"I work for the FBI," he repeated more slowly, nodding his head as he enunciated every word. "I work for the Art Squad. Investigating stolen art."

"There's an Art Squad?!" you exclaimed in delight. "Like Police Squad, but with Art?"

"Sadly, I cannot claim to be Leslie Nielsen," he sighed dramatically. "And we're not that competent," he added with a smile and a twinkle in his eye. "But yes, that is genuinely what I do. I'm here working with Scotland Yard on a case. I can't tell you much more for obvious reasons but you can probably understand the long hours now."

"I can. Wow. That's so cool! I've never met anyone who worked that kind of a job before. Is it really different here, in how we do things?"

"The main difference is I don't have to spend time and effort on paperwork to check my gun in and out everyday, so that's something. Oh and after work drinks. You people are insane on a Friday night. You drink like you don't want to live. I only went once, made my excuses ever since." You grimaced at him.

"Yeah, that's probably for the best."

"How about you, what do you do?"

"I co-own a bakery. I do most of the actual baking. Hence my stupidly early starts." Marcus stopped still and caught your forearms in his hands. The warmth of him seeped through your cardigan to your bare skin beneath, making your breath catch in your throat a little. The tips of his hair were ruffling gently in the soft breeze and the sun was hitting him on one side of his face, making that eye glow amber in contrast to the other one in the shadow, which looked like dark chocolate. His brow wrinkled as his eyebrows almost disappeared into his hairline. You thought you could smell his cologne - a woody and slightly spicy scent. He was so pretty and so close to you, it was a little intoxicating.

"Are you telling me we've been hanging out all day and I'm only learning now that you can bake? You've been holding out on me!" He grinned at you and released your arms to begin walking again. A large part of you wished he hadn't, and you felt a little wrong footed by the exchange. As you turned to walk with him again he was asking you questions. "Where is this bakery? And do you give discounts to extremely good friends that you've known for-" he glanced at his watch "-all of six hours?" You laughed out loud at that, and told him where your workplace was.

"And I'll give you a freebee in exchange for some information...Agent," you said in a mock sinister voice.

"Oh yeah, what's that?" he replied, giving you an overly suspicious sideways glance, one eyebrow raised. You smiled at him as you replied in your normal tones.

"I want to mix up my repertoire a little. Do you have any good recipes from home you could share?" His look of puppy-like eagerness was almost too much for your heart to take.

"Oh I absolutely do! I love to bake and I gotta say, you guys are sleeping on some amazing stuff. You don't have Cinnabon here. What's with that?!" He caught himself and looked slightly awkward. "Uhhh I mean, I'm sure the stuff you bake is way better than that sugary and over processed mass produced nonsense!"

"You miss it, don't you?"

"So much," he sighed sadly, nodding. "Its become a slight obsession at this point!" By now you had crossed over the river and were approaching Westminster Bridge, the imposing view of the neo-gothic structure of the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben to your left. You stopped briefly to take in the sight and snap a picture. "Wait, which one of us is the tourist?" he joked.

"I know, its silly. I have a thousand pictures of this view, but I still love it. I was born here and I've lived here all my life but I still don't get tired of certain things. Being smushed into a stranger's armpit on the tube gets old quickly, but not this kind of stuff."

"Here," he said, gesturing for you to give your phone to him. "Let's make this view a little different this time. Get in." As you gave your phone over to him, he turned so his back was to the landmark, making a ridiculous duck face as he did so. Your shoulder rested lightly against his upper arm and you copied his expression as he snapped the picture. You turned your head to grin at him.

"I'll send it to you. You've got to let your friends back home know that you're seeing all the sights, right?" There it was again, that momentary flash of deep sadness. Your heart squeezed in your chest when you saw it. Someone as sweet as him didn't deserve to be unhappy. He looked away from you briefly as he passed your phone back to you and by the time his eyes met your face again, the sorrow had vanished.

"My friends are all FBI agents. They wouldn't know fun if it hit them in the face," he joked as you resumed walking beside the river. "So...you've always lived here?"

"Various places within London, but yes-always here."

"So you know all the less touristy places to go, right? Where would you recommend?"

"There's a few places I can think of off the top of my head, but I can show you one of my favourite walks now if you have another couple of hours free. It could be like a little personal tour of some of my favourite bits of the city. I'll tell you right now that if you don't like them, there are no refunds." He smiled widely at that.

"Sounds like fun. Lead the way." You ended up walking for another couple of hours, hugging the Thames and passing the National Theatre, the Globe and swinging by Borough Market as the traders were starting to pack up, managing to finagle some tasters of cheese and a little mead as you went. Then crossing over London Bridge before approaching the magnificence of St Paul's Cathedral. As you went, you talked about your lives. You learnt where he was from, how he had come to join the FBI and why he chose to specialise in the field he had ended up in. Interspersed with your chatter about each other, you divulged what history you knew of the places you passed and he seemed genuinely interested in what you told him. At the front steps of St. Paul's you joined the ranks of the other groups that were dotted around and sat to rest for a bit. The sun was beginning to set and you pulled your cardigan a little closer around you as the air began to chill. Of course, Marcus noticed immediately. "Are you cold? Do you want my jacket?" He was already moving to pull it from his shoulders as he spoke. God, he really was perfect.

"I'm fine, but thank you for the offer," you said gratefully. The day spent with him had been incredible and you really did not want it to end, but by the time you got home now, you would have to go straight to bed in order to get a decent sleep before work tomorrow. As if he could read your mind, Marcus spoke again, with a soft smile on his face.

"I've had such an awesome day today, thank you. And I promise I'm not trying to get rid of you, but I'm just concerned about how much sleep you're going to get before your early start tomorrow. Should we maybe think about calling it a night?" Sighing a little, you reluctantly agreed with him and set off toward Blackfriars Station, where you would go your separate ways. You were a little nervous about saying goodbye. If he was being truthful and not just polite, then he had seemed to have a good a time as you. He hadn't made any sort of move on you, nor had he even flirted unless you counted the good-natured teasing that had flown back and forth between you. So you still had no idea if a "proper" date was something he would be interested in and after how he had reacted before, you weren't sure if you were brave enough to try again. You decided to wait and see, let him dictate how you would say goodbye and if he wanted to see you again as a friend, or possibly as more. After you went through the barriers at the station, you turned to face him and thanked him for his company and the fun time you had had.

"Pleasure was all mine," he replied. "If work ever let me have time off, we should do it again sometime?"

"I'd like that a lot," you agreed with a grin. "Let's arrange something soon."

He smiled back at you before saying, "Uh, I never know how to end stuff like this so why don't you just bring it in here?" He opened his arms wide for a hug and you gladly went to him. Time seemed to slow for you. The top of your head only came up to the bottom of his cheek, so you had to tilt your head and put your chin on his shoulder to avoid your face being squashed into him. Not that you would have minded. You could definitely smell his cologne now, fainter than it had been earlier in the day but mixed with the detergent smell of his clothes, and a slight musk of his own that was far more appealing to you. His arms were strong as they circled your upper back and gave you a quick squeeze. Ensuring your own hands weren't too far down his body, you squeezed him back. Even through the leather of his jacket, you could tell he was pretty solid under that t-shirt (as you had suspected), and you resisted your sudden urge to run your hands over his stomach with great difficulty. He gave amazing hugs. Another positive to add to the growing list. Aside from the glaring "I don't know if he's attracted to me", there was nothing negative about him that you could see yet. You released each other and waved goodbye a little awkwardly again, after an exchange of promises that you would let the other know you got home safely.

The phrase "stuff like this" haunted you for the next few days as you dissected it in every conceivable way, trying to work out what was going on between you and Marcus. The one glaring topic that hadn't been discussed between you was relationships. You had no idea of his status, past or present. Nor did you have any idea of his orientation. You were messaging back and forth pretty frequently now, but sadly had yet to come to an agreement about when the next time you could meet was. You assumed he must be working his case pretty hard because he seemed to be telling you he was home later and later. The third day after you had seen him for the second time, Catherine spoke up.

"Alright, what's going on?" You gave her a puzzled look.

"I don't know what you mean."

"I mean who is it? This person you keep messaging? Are you seeing someone? What are they like?"

"I...No...I'm not...its not like that." You could feel a blush start to heat your cheeks as you tripped over your explanations. Catherine merely raised an eyebrow at you, remaining silent and letting you dig yourself into a little hole of embarrassment. "Okay, fine. I met someone. Kind of. I've only met him twice but he's sweet and funny and amazingly good looking. I just don't know if he likes me in that way."

"So ask him?"

"It's a little tricky. I kind of did ask him out the first time I met him and he went a little weird. So I don't know if there's an ex in the picture or something, or if he just doesn't find me attractive and is too polite to tell me, but I don't want to push it again. And besides, he's an American here for work, so even if we did go out it wouldn't be long term." Catherine snorted with amusement.

"If he's as good looking as you say, who cares if its long term?" You rolled your eyes at her and smiled as you got up the picture Marcus had taken of you both in front of the Houses of Parliament and showed it to her. She stepped forward and took your phone, her eyes wide and a cartoon-like lecherous expression on her face. "I stand by what I said - you need to get on this! If he's not here for a long time, who cares if you make a fool of yourself? The worst he can say is no." She made a lot of sense and you were still trying to think of the best way to tell Marcus how attracted you were to him without sounding either perverse or desperate when you were at home that evening. You would have preferred to actually go out with him properly but if he wasn't going to be here forever, you couldn't afford to get too emotionally attached. The fact that your stomach squirmed every time you saw that he had messaged you, coupled with the fact that you were thinking about him almost non-stop in between his messages was something you were trying very hard to ignore for this exact reason. Just as you sat down with dinner, a message flashed on your screen.

"Got a break in the case! Finally! Are you free over the weekend at all?"

"I'm off Sunday again, if that's any good? Any preference about where to go?"

"Sunday's great! And I don't really have a preference as such, but I think after working on this for so long I'm not about to look at more art just now."

The days seemed interminable. Even though messages were still flying back and forth between Marcus and yourself, it wasn't the same as seeing him and actually being around him. And he was still being nothing more than friendly toward you, though to be fair you had restrained yourself from saying anything flirtatious either. It was beginning to drive you a little bit nuts that you still had no idea if he had any feelings toward you, but you imagined that after this meeting you would have a better idea. You had decided to bring him to Hampstead Heath. It was about as far away from a gallery as you could get - hundreds of acres of nature with woodlands and lakes and some of your favourite views over London. You had also decided to make him a little surprise. After his comments about Cinnabon, you had begun to work on a recipe for cinnamon rolls. Catherine had loved your first attempts and insisted you make some for the shop, just to see if they would prove popular with customers. Thursday's batch flew off the shelves and so you found yourself preparing and baking more on Friday. You were in a good mood. The sun was shining, the pastries smelled delicious, you had one of your favourite playlists blaring and you would see Marcus again in a couple of days. You sang as you worked and didn't hear Catherine calling you until she was right inside the kitchen and practically yelling.

"Hey! You have a visitor!" She smirked at you and waggled her eyebrows and your heart leapt as you guessed whom it might be. Taking a moment to wash your hands and take your hair net off, you hoped you didn't look too red and flustered from the heat of the kitchen. It was indeed Marcus, with a grin on his face and twinkles in his eyes. He was clearly dressed for work today and you noted with approval how good he looked in his suit. You noticed that he looked a little more tired than the last time you had seen him, and you hoped he was taking care of himself properly with regards to food and sleep.

"Hey," he greeted you. "I haven't really had time to drop by before, but I wanted to see this famous place I've heard so much about!" You grinned back and Catherine moved herself around you, ensuring she was in your line of vision, her meaning clear. You took the hint and introduced them.

"Why don't you take a coffee break?" Catherine suggested. "We aren't that busy." She took Marcus's order and busied herself behind the counter, clearly wanting to eavesdrop on your conversation.

"So...a break in your case?" you asked.

"Yeah, its...well I cant talk too much about it, but for now its kind of out of my hands and with another department. So I finally have a little more time to myself."

"That's good. I felt like they were working you too hard to be honest."

"Ah well, liaising with different offices, different time zones. You know how it is."

You nodded as you said "I really don't," and he chuckled again, his dimple flashing invitingly. Catherine put your coffees in front of you and turned to you with a pointed expression on her face.

"Didn't you have something you uh...wanted to give Marcus?" You looked up at her with your eyes wide and a horrified expression emerging on your face until you realised she meant the pastries in the oven. They would be done about now. You hoped your initial misunderstanding at what exactly you would like to give Marcus hadn't shown too clearly on your face. You gave him a brief sideways glance, not daring to meet his gaze properly.

"Back in a mo," you said. As you cut up and plated the fresh cinnamon buns and put a few in a box for him to take away, you were really, really hoping that Catherine wouldn't say anything suggestive to Marcus. She was bold and brash and said what was on her mind without a care what people thought of her. But she was also your friend and she wouldn't divulge your secrets without your permission. She might, however, try to get some information from him about his relationship status or something similar and you didn't really want that either. Curious as you were, he hadn't brought it up yet for a reason and you were inclined to trust that he would one day, if he ever felt comfortable with you. As you re-entered the room, Catherine and Marcus were both looking at pictures on Catherine's phone. She looked up at you as you came in.

"I'm just showing him the cake you made for Jas's birthday."

"This is amazing!" he exclaimed, not taking his eyes from the phone. "Do I get a Star Wars cake too?"

"No," you said. "But you do get a taste of home if I've done this right." You set the plate down in front of him next to his coffee and his mouth fell open. "Its not quite Cinnabon," you admitted. "But hopefully it will tide you over." He looked up at you and his eyes were so soft you almost melted right there and then.

"This is...Thank you. Thank you so much," you could hear his voice was a little strangled, as though he were trying to keep a tight lid on his emotions.

"Don't thank me till you've tried it," you joked. "They might be terrible!" He smiled then, his eyes still slightly misty and took a small piece. His eyes closed and his head tipped back in pleasure and your mind went into overdrive imagining all the other things you could do to elicit that kind of response from him.

"Oh my gooood," he groaned, a reaction which did not help your situation. "That. Is. Incredible." He took another piece and pushed it into his mouth, sucking his thumb of the icing that had come away as he did so. Your mind and body were reacting far beyond what they should have been at these simple gestures, even if they were made overtly sexual purely by how attractive you found him. You reached for your coffee cup and took a healthy swig - anything to put some distance between you and the lustful thoughts that were currently careening through your brain. You risked a look at Catherine who looked like she was trying not to die laughing at your facial expressions. She brought herself under control with a little difficulty.

"She made some for you to take away too. If there's too many feel free to bring them to work and share them. Could be good publicity for us."

"Well I don't want to deprive you of your publicity but honestly, there is no way in hell I am sharing these." He turned his eyes back to you. "Way better than Cinnabon," he confirmed, making you smile again. After he had finished his coffee and departed with his box of cakes in hand (with a promise to message you later), you turned to Catherine.

"So?" you asked.

"One - gorgeous. Two - incredibly sweet. Three - funny. Four - gorgeous." She enumerated on her fingers as she spoke. "If you don't go for it, I will. Husband be damned!" Sunday still seemed like light years away, but you had made up your mind to go for it and ask Marcus out properly and you found that your nervousness made time seem to move in bizarre skips, so that it felt like it was moving both quickly and slowly somehow. Still, before you knew it the two of you were sitting on your favourite bench on Hampstead Heath, looking down over London's skyline.

"I can understand why you don't get tired of this," he murmured softly. "This is beautiful." His words torched a spark of pride in you, filling your heart and making you brave. You were going to do it.

"Marcus." He turned the beam of his beautiful eyes on you and you faltered slightly in their glow. "I...um. This is going to sound weird."

"Its ok. Weird can be good. Just say it," he reassured you as he turned his body to face you, his elbow resting lightly on the back of the bench.

"Well I was just going to say...we've talked about a lot of things over the past couple of weeks and I think we've gotten to know each other fairly well."

"We have," he agreed, his voice deep and rich.

"Well, I was just wondering-" This was it. You had to do it. "-if maybe-" Come on. So nearly there. "-we could-" You couldn't. You swerved. "-talk about relationships." Goddammit. His forehead wrinkled in surprise.

"Uhhh, what, um, what do you mean?"

"I mean that we've talked about jobs and education and families and upbringing and hobbies and stuff. But we've never talked about relationships. That is...do you have relationships or do you prefer your own company?" You could feel the heat in your cheeks. This was excruciating and you wished you'd never brought it up. But as ever, Marcus was kind and he answered your questions without rancour and without mentioning your embarrassment.

"No, I've had relationships. I've been married and divorced once already. No kids. Just...we stopped being able to work together. There was no real blame on either side. I met her very young and...well we were probably too young." The revelation that he had an ex-wife was enormous to you and you hoped you didn't look as shocked and gormless as you felt. His face closed suddenly and it was as if a blind had been drawn behind his eyes when he said, "I was engaged more recently but that didn't work out either. She um...well she-" Whatever he had been about to reveal to you was lost in the sound of his phone pinging. "Excuse me a sec," he said as he pulled it out of his pocket, and you thought you detected a note of relief in his voice. So...now you knew. He was still clearly getting over whatever idiot had decided to let him go. She must have hurt him badly and your gut gave a twist of anger on his behalf. You looked across at him and a small smile was playing around his lips as he answered the message he had got. He put his phone back in his pocket and apologised to you. "Sorry. I don't mean to be rude. Its just there's this woman in another department that I met when I started working over here and she seemed pretty keen to go out with me and a few days ago I just thought what the hell, right? You only live once." The smile that had stretched across your face felt gossamer thin and ready to crack at any moment as your insides seemed to plummet and coalesce somewhere in the region of your feet.

"Yeah, what the hell," you echoed faintly. You were too late. Too slow. And somehow he had broken your heart without you ever realising you had given it to him in the first place.

Next Chapter

[americaistheoldworld]

Teotihuacan is the Home of Thoth

#foogallery-gallery-2973 .fg-image { width: 150px; } #foogallery-gallery-2973 .fg-image { width: 150px; }

Knowledge of the Birds

Look at the similarities between the Peregrine Falcon and the B2 Stealth Bomber. It looks like the B-2 stealth bomber is based off the Peregrine Falcon since the falcon was here first.

The Study of the Bees

Advanced knowledge comes from the study of the Birds (Falcons) and the Bees/Beetles, since our current advanced technology is based off the knowledge learned from the bees/Beetles.

Mother nature (Medu Neter) is the source of advanced knowledge

The Scrab Beetle or Sacred Beetle (Bee-tle) was heavily revered in Ancient Egypt and here is why. If you look at the post image of the Green Scrab Beetle you will see that it does not fly, it levitates by creating a spiral vortex, portal, and/or wormhole that raises it up. Well..., now we know why the Scarab beetle was so heavily revered in Ancient Egypt, because the Egyptians were very advance due to their knowledge of the birds (Falcons) and the Bees (Beetles).

Horus is the Aplomado Falcon

The Ancient Egyptian god Horus is the Aplomado Falcon, which is native to the Americas. This evidence suggests that Horus/Heru was patterned after the American Aplomado Falcon. Yes, Horus was from the Americas, because the Americas is the Old World.

Knowledge of the Birds

Now, let’s please discuss the painting of the Peregrine Falcon that is on the Aztec (Aztlan/Atlantis) King's shield from Teotihuacan, since Falcons are indigenous to the Americas and since Falcons dive-bomb their prey from a high altitude, and they knock out their prey with a single blowing from its leg using speed, stealth, and power. The B2 Stealth bomber is based off the Peregrine Falcon (Technology: Tahuti or Thoth). The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest animal and the ultimate predator while dive-bombing, so I see why this Warrior King has a falcon as symbol on his shield.

Vatican City is based off Teotihuacan

Here is a comparison of the Vatican City in Rome compared to Teotihuacan, near Mexico City. As you can see, the Vatican City in Rome was based off of Teotihuacan, since it looks more primitive compared to the Vatican City in Rome, which suggests that the Vatican City in Teotihuacan is much older. We can also compare this comparison image to the Washington Moment in Rome, Maryland, aka, Washington DC, since ancient Greece and ancient Rome was in the Americas.

Ancient Egyptian God Thoth - Thought

Relief of ancient Egyptian God Thoth Holding the staff of Imhotep (the Caduceus) and offering the mighty Pharaoh life through healing medicine. Medicine was a gift from Thoth (the thought process or technique) to Imhotep. Medicine and Thoth (thought) go hand and hand, because the medicine is useless without a thought process or technique to know how to prepare and apply it. Likewise, family, Thoth (thought) and Ma’at (math) go hand and hand, because there is no math without a thought process of a technique to know how to recognize the problem and to solve the problem through mathematics.

Statue of Thoth from Teotihuacan, sitting on an emerald tablet.

Teotihuacan is the home of Thoth. Thoth's Statue was found in Mexico, near Teotihuacan. Thoth is sitting Indian-Style on an Emerald Tablet. This statue has been whitewashed since we know that the Thoth from the academic Egypt is copper colored.

Thoth's animal zoo-type is from the Americas

The Plumbeous Ibis, aka, the Blue Ibis, which is Tahuti’s symbol, is from the Americas since the Americas is Atlantis (see post image of Blue Ibis). In fact, all of the gods of ancient Egypt come from the Americas. Egypt was a colony of Atlantis according to the Emerald tablets of Thoth. The blog link above supports this fact since the gods of ancient Egypt are all animal zoo-types that are indigenous to the Americas.

Atlantis in Mexico by Dr. Clyde Winters

Atlantis in Mexico, by Dr. Clyde Winters.

Egypt/Atlantis was global

This is different images from Google Earth. As you can see, there also is a three-pyramid alignment in Teotihuacan, which is now near Mexico City in Central America

Eye of Atlantis in Mexico

The Eye of Atlantis was in Mexico, near Teotihuacan. This map shows the eye of Atlantis in Mexico. All credits due to Gene Matlock and to Mapquest.com. I claim Transformative Use because the Americas was Atlantis and not just Mexico.

Teotihuacan is the Home of Thoth (Atlantis), according to Horace Butler in his book, “When Rocks Cry Out.” Teotihuacan was Atlantis, Heliopolis, and Memphis, Egypt, according to Mr. Butler. Teotihuacan translates as “Tahuti the Priest-King.” Yes, Teotihuacan is the City of Tahuti the Can/Khan (Priest-King). Tahuti is the ancient Egyptian god Thoth, whose attributes included:

“Thoth’s roles in Egyptian mythology were many. He served as scribe of the gods,[20] credited with the invention of writing and Egyptian hieroglyphs.[21] In the underworld, Duat, he appeared as an ape, Aani, the god of equilibrium, who reported when the scales weighing the deceased’s heart against the feather, representing the principle of Maat, was exactly even.[22]

The ancient Egyptians regarded Thoth as One, self-begotten, and self-produced.[17] He was the master of both physical and moral (i.e. divine) law,[17] making proper use of Ma’at.[23] He is credited with making the calculations for the establishment of the heavens, stars, Earth,[24] and everything in them.[23]

The Egyptians credited him as the author of all works of science, religion, philosophy, and magic.[25] The Greeks further declared him [Hermes/Thoth] the inventor of astronomy, astrology, the science of numbers, mathematics, geometry, surveying, medicine, botany, theology, civilized government, the alphabet, reading, writing, and oratory. They further claimed he was the true author of every work of every branch of knowledge, human and divine.[21]”. [End quote from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoth.].

Thoth was also the husband to the Egyptian Goddess of Truth, Balance, and Justice, Maat. The word Math comes from Maat. The word Jew comes from the Egyptian god Thoth/Djehuty/Hermes/Tahuti. Djehuty (Thoth/Hermes) and is sometimes alternatively rendered as Jehuti, Jehuty, Tahuti, Tehuti, Zehuti, Techu, Tech, or Tetu; therefore, the word Jew is derived from Djewity. Also, the word Deity (God) is also derived from the Egyptian God Djehuty/Tahuti. All knowledge comes from Egypt, including religions like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Read a master text written by renowned Egyptologist, Gerald Massey, “Ancient Egypt: the light of the world: https://www.facebook.com/Americaisthetrueoldworld/posts/1925553184175639.

The word thought is derived from Thoth, so this means that Thoth is the thinking process (the mind or the Architect of the Universe) and the different techniques or methods acquired from thorough thoughts or thinking things out clearly. We call this branch of knowledge “Practical Science,” since this knowledge is applied to different Arts and Crafts. Thoughts are also energy/spirits since we experience our feelings through our thoughts. We can experience either the spirit of love or the spirit of hate depending on our thoughts.

THOTH THE CREATOR OF ALL KNOWLEDGE IS ALSO THE GOD OF THE BIBLE:

I can believe that Thoth created all the Arts, Crafts, Sciences (ALL knowledge), etc., since all good things come from our Lord Thoth, who is also the real God of the Bible: “I am the Lord: that (THOTH) is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” ~ Isaiah 42:8 KJV. Credits for this discovery is given to Neophyte Dag from his 3-part video series entitled, “Black Messiah Prince Lewis and the Black 144,000 Saints Elect”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jS-gF2lwSSk.

TEOTIHUACAN THE CAPITOL OF ATLANTIS AND UPPER MEMPHIS, EGYPT:

I can believe that Teotihuacan was Heliopolis and upper Memphis, Egypt, since Thoth the Atlantean Priest-King founded Egypt and built the Great pyramid after his home of Atlantis had sunk, according to the Emerald Tablets of Thoth. Teotihuacan fits the description of Plato’s sunken Atlantis perfectly. This island—called Enoch, T(enoch)titlan and Memphis—is the first city named in the Old Testament of the Bible: https://rb.gy/85vfy9.

In addition, the Eye of Atlantis was also in Mexico, near Teotihuacan, which gives credence to the fact that Thoth/Tahuti (Enoch) was from the Americas and that Teotihuacan is the Capitol of Atlantis: https://www.americaistheoldworld.com/the-americas-was-atlantis-and-the-origin-of-the-ancient-egyptian-civilization/.

The Giza pyramids, which are aligned to Orion’s belt (Osiris belt) are not the only three pyramid alignment like it one the earth. You have the same three pyramids in Teotihuacan. Teotihuacan was part of Memphis (Atlantis), which was partially covered up when they built Mexico City according to Horace Butler in his book, “When Rocks Cry out.”

The three-pyramid alignment symbolizes the pineal gland, the pituitary gland, and the hypothalamus gland that are in the human body. These are the master glands of the body; you have seven glands all together that must be purified through detox and spiritual practices to resurrect the sleeping (dead) Mummy/Christ/Osiris that is in your king’s chamber (tomb/brain). The pineal gland is the king of all of the glands because it is the seat of the soul, according to various mystics and philosophers. Let’s see what the Bible says about the pineal gland to confirm what the mystics and philosophers said was true:

Matthew 6:22-23 King James Version (KJV):

22 “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” [referring to the third eye, aka, the pineal gland being open] 23” But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” [referring to a calcified pineal gland].

Genesis 32:30, “And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel [Pineal gland]: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” [referring to your pineal gland as being your own light or spark of God].

Additionally, the Plumbeous Ibis, aka, the Blue Ibis, which is Tahuti’s symbol, is from the Americas since the Americas is Atlantis (see post image of Blue Ibis). In fact, all of the gods of ancient Egypt come from the Americas: https://www.americaistheoldworld.com/10-reasons-why-ancient-egypt-was-in-the-americas/. Egypt was a colony of Atlantis according to the Emerald tablets of Thoth. The blog link above supports this fact since the gods of ancient Egypt are all animal zoo-types that are indigenous to the Americas.

In this post is a whitewashed image of Tahuti from Mexico. Tahuti is shown with his Ibis bird head and he is sitting Indian style on an emerald tablet or an Emerald Level. How do I know that this image has been whitewashed? Well, we can see little dark spots on the body of the statute, which indicates that this statute was once a darker color. Also, we have images of Tahuti/Thoth from Egypt that depict a copper-colored man with an Ibis head. In this post is an image of the copper colored Tahuti from the Academic Egypt.

In the post image you see the copper-colored ancient Egyptian God Thoth holding the staff of Imhotep (the Caduceus) and offering the mighty Pharaoh life through healing medicine. Medicine was a gift from Thoth (the thought process or technique) to Imhotep. Medicine and Thoth (thought) go hand and hand because medicine is useless without a thought process or technique to know how to prepare and apply it. Likewise, family, Thoth (thought) and Ma’at (math) go hand and hand, because there is no math without a thought process of a technique to know how to recognize the problem and to solve the problem through mathematics.

Now, back to the subject of medicine, in Greek literature Imhotep is known as Asclepius, the Greek God of Medicine. According to Greek Mythology, which is just stolen Egyptian mythology, Hermes (Thoth), gave the staff of Hermes (the Caduceus) to Hippocrates, who became the Father of Medicine. Family, likewise, Thoth gave the Staff of Imhotep to Imhotep, which is the philosophy or the science of medicine, aka, the thought of medicine.

You can clearly see that the Greeks copied the Egyptian mythology of Thoth and Imhotep and created the Staff of Hermes mythology for the western world. A good book to read is a book called, “Stolen Legacy,” by George James. Stolen Legacy shows and proves how the Greeks stole Philosophy and mythology from Egypt and created their own systems. The Caduceus is also a symbol of Chakra activation. Activating the 7 Chakras is the secret of secrets and the 33 degrees of free masonry: https://rb.gy/z9mmnt.

TEOTIHUACAN WAS ALSO UPPER ROME SINCE IT IS ALSO THE VATICAN CITY:

In this post is image comparison of the Vatican City in Rome compared to Teotihuacan near Mexico City. As you can see, the Vatican City in Rome was based off Teotihuacan, since it looks more primitive compared to the Vatican City in Rome, which suggests that the Vatican City in Teotihuacan is much older. We can also compare this comparison image to the Washington Moment in Rome, Maryland, aka, Washington DC, since ancient Greece and ancient Rome was in the Americas: https://www.americaistheoldworld.com/ancient-greece-and-ancient-rome-was-in-old-world-america/.

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY WAS INTENDED TO FREE HUMANITY AND NOT ENSLAVE HUMANITY:

Now, let’s please discuss the painting of the Peregrine Falcon that is on the Aztec (Aztlan/Atlantis) King’s shield from Teotihuacan, since Falcons are indigenous to the Americas and since Falcons dive-bomb their prey from a high altitude, and they knock out their prey with a single blow from its leg using speed, stealth, and power.

The B2 Stealth bomber is based off the Peregrine Falcon, which is advance technology acquired from Tahuti, Thoth, or Tech, i.e., you’re thinking process. The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest animal and the ultimate predator while dive-bombing, so I see why this Aztec Warrior King has a falcon as a symbol on his shield. For evidence to support these facts please watch, “Nothing can out-flay a Peregrine Falcon,”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFPgEddK1Y8.

I also love the red cloak (red flag) that the Aztec Warrior King his wearing, which is a symbol of the Maurs and Israel: https://rb.gy/h02th0.

Horus of Ancient Egypt is also based off the Aplomado Falcon, since Horus is sometimes depicted as a Aplomado Falcon that is wearing the Beehive Crown, which is the Red Crown of Lower Egypt. The Aplomado Falcon (Horus/Heru) is also indigenous to the Americas. Horus in this form symbolizes the advanced technology acquired from studying the birds and the Bees/Beetles, which is mother nature (“Medu Neter” in Egyptian): https://rb.gy/rix6bj.

The Scrab Beetle or Sacred Beetle (Bee-tle) was heavily revered in Ancient Egypt and here is why. If you look at the post image of the Green Scrab Beetle you will see that it does not fly, it levitates by creating a spiral vortex, portal, and/or wormhole that raises it up.  Well…, now we know why the Scarab beetle was so heavily revered in Ancient Egypt, because the Egyptians were very advance due to their knowledge of the birds (Falcons) and the Bees (Beetles).

Learn more about the bees right here, please: https://rb.gy/h02th0.

The controllers and authorities will teach us about these ancient civilizations, but they will never tell us how advanced these ancient people were, because they can’t since they will lose power over the masses. If everyone knew how to generate their own power with free energy who would get up in the morning and work, especially, if you had your own garden/farm?

In the good ole days we did not have all off these grocery stores and supermarkets, because everyone had their farms or gardens, or either bought food from their local farmers, hunters, and fishermen, via, barter, which is where the concept of “trade” comes from. The American Indians and the Cowboys did not go to stores to buy food, and we can get back to those ways again if we want to be free from the system.

The Supermarkets are part of our dependence on the system because we all work for food and power (Electricity), and if people had all of the above in abundance, who would go to work for this system? This is why they can never teach people this knowledge. Peace and thanks for reading. Please donate below since your donations help with research.

The post Teotihuacan is the Home of Thoth appeared first on America is the Old World.

source https://www.americaistheoldworld.com/teotihuacan-is-the-home-of-thoth/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=teotihuacan-is-the-home-of-thoth

[art-now-italy]

Impressions, deborah savoie

Born in Windsor, Canada in 1956 Deborah sensed the potential of the camera to communicate beyond words, even in fun, in 1972 with a 35mm Yashica, when she began developing a visual language based on movement, color, form and gesture, using the imaging power to record the emotional energy of people and places. Ten years later by 1982, based in Vancouver, Canada, she was an architectural photographer with full knowledge of the earliest computer techniques. In 1998 she collaborated with the New York Times and Vogue Australia, then subsequently worked in fashion, portraiture, sponsored cultural events as well as an important fine art photography projects. Her first show was in 1995 in the Candace Perich Gallery in Connecticut and New York where she showed alongside American great Robert Mapplethorpe. Xian, her first abstract show, was held in 1998 in the Aldo Coppola Gallery in Milan and soon afterward in the Manz Modern Art Gallery, Prague. Notable attention for portraits shown in the IN BRERA gallery in Milan in 2000, and her nude photography show three months later “The Secret Garden" in the same gallery. Deborah extended her artistic mind to abstract painting where colors and fantasy work in synergy in what she addresses as decorative interior art. “Deborah’s eye, revealing the language of color, sees the realia, harmonies which overshoot the boundaries of sensory perception to shatter the opaline crystals of common sense. Thus our soul rediscovers its strongest ability: the intermediation between perceptions derived from the sensitive world and spiritual world. With her images, Deborah depicts color relationships found in nature that effortlessly provide the viewer with an instinctive sensory conversation and comprehension of nature itself. Colors are not just a seduction in life and poetry, but foremost a fascinating philosophical problem related to their meaning, inter-play and existence or non existence, from Aristotelians, Kant, Husserl to Wittgenstein. What color is a leaf: the green seen at noon or the black we see at night? When we say “red” or “green” are we indicating something real and concrete or using the word merely metaphorically, a translation by our brain to define wavelengths when light hits our cerebral cortex or as translated by the photo camera? Is it true that blue retains the idea of infinity, stimulating purity of nostalgia and supernatural? What do we get from colors reflecting where light permits? Thinkers and wise men, as Goethe, Rousseau, Herder, Steiner and many more, say primitive Man had the ability to see directly the colored and animistic essence of things, where civilized Man lost it completely. Could it be that Deborah reinstates in her own way the power of seeing the true essence of things through a digital camera or her paintings? For her understanding is seeing, the iris is her tool, the camera is her range, the stop motion the punctum the instant she captures her realia. This is Zone 11’s philosophy: images reflect the change of time, the dynamics towards the future and the culture of pixels and visual prosthesis. Does the human specie’s evolution and progress recover and expand the lost sensorial perceptions? Does the homo faber regain his ludens (artistic) and sapiens (physical and metaphysical power) sides through technology? Deborah Savoie tries to “see” her own way. It is her “creative writing”. Cosimo Mero Art Curator

https://www.saatchiart.com/art/Painting-Impressions/916015/3295804/view

[maverixcollective]

DUAL PURPOSE

David Adjaye and A-Cold-Wall’s Samuel Ross on architecture, fashion, Covid-19, anti-racism, and the future of the creative industries

‘Architecture and fashion move away from each other, and then come really close, and then move away again,’ says Sir David Adjaye, on a video call from Accra. He is in conversation with Samuel Ross, stationed in London. It’s mid-summer and the world is in the grips of the Covid-19 pandemic and anti-racism protests. This is a transformative moment for both industries.

The architect behind the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Adjaye was recently commissioned to create Brixton’s Cherry Groce Memorial and Abu Dhabi’s Abrahamic Family House. He continues to work on the landmark Ghana National Cathedral, and champion new African architecture and architects.

Ross, who founded A-Cold-Wall* in 2015, is a rising star of the fashion industry. A natural master of cross-disciplinary collaboration, he has partnered with brands as wide-ranging as Nike (to create emergency blankets upcycled from plastic bottles, with aspirations to make them freely available in parks), Apple, Converse, Diesel, Oakley and Dr Martens, as well as recently establishing a grant fund for Black creatives.

Their discussion covered the impact of technology, localised production, the politicisation of architecture and fashion, anti-racism, the effects of pandemic, and the future of creative industries. Right after, they were photographed – Ross in person and Adjaye via video call – by Liz Johnson Artur, who has dedicated her three-decade career to documenting people of African descent.

Adjaye Associates’ design for the Abrahamic Family House on Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island, comprising a mosque, a synagogue and a church.

Collaboration has long been key to Adjaye’s work. Artist Chris Ofili’s Within Reach, the British Pavilion at the 2003 Venice Biennale, designed with Adjaye and engineered by Charles Walker, Arup, featuring a glass sculpture titled Afro Kaleidoscope above the main gallery space.

Wallpaper*: How does the responsibility of creating lasting works – as opposed to ephemeral ideas –influence your designs and process?

DA: There’s a bit of a myth with this idea of permanence, because nothing is really permanent, not even architecture. It all ends up disappearing. Architecture [just] has a larger duration.

SR: It all comes down to having the ability to quantify if a product should exist, which goes back to functionality and use.

W*: As a discipline, architecture can be really slow, whereas fashion feels faster – but that’s not always the case as the after-effects can last a long time.

DA: Fashion seems to be absolutely immediate, but [its] impact might be in the way we look at the bodies of males and females. [Take] for example the work of Yves Saint Laurent: it’s profound, it changes and resonates through generations.

SR: Totally. I kind of look at fashion like a moving slipstream. This idea of [how garments can serve] changes from generation to generation, as times move forwards and as social movements move forwards.

‘I kind of look at fashion like a moving slipstream. This idea of [how garments can serve] changes from generation to generation, as times move forwards and as social movements move forwards.’  — Samuel Ross

W*: How do the materials you use embody the ideas that you want to portray in your work? Does sustainability play into your material choices?

SR: I’ve dabbled with technical and synthetic materials, although I’m moving into more sustainable materials. There is a movement happening within big tech that needs to be integrated into fabrication, which can then define fashion as a whole for the 21st century. Fashion should mean smart materials and patented weaves that are antibacterial, that cling and mould to the body, versus just being about a point of expression.

DA: In the built environment, we spent the 20th century industrialising, making very efficient materials that will get things done fast. With speed came excess and pollution and degradation and destruction. Now we are asking, how do we build responsibly? In architecture, we are talking about microbial issues and creating healthy environments. That’s become much more heightened with Covid-19. We have to look at the things that destroy the planet – pandemics and ecological collapses – and really be responsive. I’m working with communities here [in Accra] and discovering that compressed mud has incredible properties that we totally underestimated. We just assumed that it was primitive, but actually it’s one of the best performing and most abundant materials on the planet.

W*: How much of your work is about educating people in your respective professions, to push your industries forwards?

DA: With all design there is a kind of public role, especially if you’re interested in pushing the limits of your industry. You deliver things to the public, so the public needs to be able to hold you accountable. I taught for about a decade and then I stopped, because I was teaching in elite schools to kids who are already very privileged. Instead, now I mentor and I’m interested in finding emerging voices that are not getting attention, trying to support them or to help them think about their businesses in the early stages.

‘I chose architecture because it was part of a language that I felt was very much under-represented from the position of a person of colour within the global discourse. I felt that I had a lot to say and I wanted to be part of that conversation about how we make the contemporary world.’ — David Adjaye

A look from A-Cold-Wall’s pre-S/S21 collection.

Ross’ Beacon 1, presented at Serpentine Galleries as part of the 2019 Hublot Design Prize exhibition.

W*: How important has the role of mentor or mentee been in your career? When you started out, could you identify Black creatives you related to?

DA: A real hero for me when I started was Joe Casely-Hayford. He was simply a man of colour doing really excellent work. And I thought, ‘Why don’t we have that in other places?’ It actually drove me to want to do it. I have a stubborn disposition. To be faced with ‘You can’t do this because…’, well, the ‘because’ better be damn good! It made me angry when I was younger. I’m much more chilled out these days.

SR: Mentors have been seminal to my journey. I shifted my direction [from product and graphic design] towards fashion to be a little more expressive. At that time, Virgil [Abloh] and Kanye West happened to come across my work, and I started working underneath the two of them. They were great mentors, able to articulate between Western European and North American ideologies, whilst having an intrinsically Black imprint on the work they were producing. They took these references to an industry, cross-referenced them through channels of mass communication, and built a new language and discourse that a lot of designers of my generation now operate within. From these two mentors, I learned how to communicate ideas and to have this ‘scatter diagram’ approach to zig-zagging across industries.

‘For me, the act, the statement, the building, is always political, it’s always making a statement about the world that we are in, it’s always positioning an ideal of some sort. The building isn’t mute, it speaks volumes about a certain world value and morality.’ — David Adjaye

W*: In terms of communication, is fashion more inherently attuned to marketing, whereas architecture is built on letting the work speak for itself?

DA: Absolutely. There’s a desire to depoliticise architecture continually, and I fight against that all the time. For me, the act, the statement, the building, is always political, it’s always making a statement about the world that we are in, it’s always positioning an ideal of some sort. The building isn’t mute, it speaks volumes about a certain world value and morality.

SR: The work I showed at Serpentine Galleries [Ross won the 2019 Hublot Design Prize], and the work I’m soon to do with Marc Benda from Friedman Benda gallery, is about that. I’m pivoting towards the long form conversation, and how we stabilise and re-chisel the playing field for the next generation.

W*: How does collaboration enrich your work?

DA: When I left the Royal College of Art I missed not being in a campus environment. I would collaborate across disciplines, with a scientist or a musician. When I did the Venice Biennale with Chris Ofili in 2003, we flipped roles – I said, ‘you design and I’ll do the visuals’. It was amazing to see my now dear friend talking about architecture, to learn what was interesting to him. It teaches you different ways of seeing the world.

SR: I’m a moderately sized brand, so collaboration offers access to tooling and technology. It’s also about having an opportunity to push forwards a social consciousness. I’m thinking how I can carry as much information through a macro partner, let’s say Nike, without being too cumbersome: can I hijack a community to a certain degree and fix the attention?

Moving forward, the idea of showing collections needs to be completely rearticulated.’ — Samuel Ross

W*: Practically, has Covid-19 affected your business?

DA: I moved to Accra as I’m doing a lot of work in West Africa right now. This decade feels like the decade of Africa to me. This pandemic has unleashed this new connectivity that I’m very grateful for. I have three offices on different continents, and most of my time was spent moving between those. And now it’s become very technologically based. What’s kind of amazing is that it all works! Apart from the amazing aromas that you miss, I love the aroma of construction sites!

SR: We’ve decided not to do two shows a year any more. This idea of a continuous critique to an open market every six months when you’re building and growing didn’t necessarily sit right with me in the first place, but I was willing to participate and spar and win in that arena to show a more intellectual Black approach within fashion design. But moving forward, the idea of showing collections needs to be completely rearticulated. We are looking at more personable presentations, which almost feeds back into the early days, when counter-cultural movements actually began to swirl and churn around fashion brands. I’m becoming a bit more hands on with discourse with consumers. We’ve been able to compress and condense down the modelling of the company. And be more emotive and sensitive to market needs. And take a lot more risk. I’m hoping that it will kick start a few other contemporaries in a similar situation to ourselves. 

[weemsbotts]

“Like the Gaudy Butterfly…”: A Discussion on Lace Tatting

By: Lisa Timmerman, Executive Director

The Weems-Botts Museum will be opening their doors soon to safely welcome visitors as we enter Phase 3. One of our treasures, our framed and donated lace tatting, is ready to take the spotlight again! But what is tatting? Why do we sell a Lace Tatting Kit in our Gift Shop? And why are doilies so ubiquitous?

Like crochet and knitting, tatting is a type of needlework that uses thread and tools (shuttle, needle, crochet hook) to create intricate and decorative knotwork. While this type of work could have evolved from netting and ropework, we find tatting popular throughout Europe and Great Britain in the 19th century with different names: frivolite in France, knotting in England,  Schiffchenarbeit in Germany, and tatting in America. People used tatting to either accent an item (such as our 19th century petticoat with lace tatting on bottom – not on display!) or create delicate pieces, such as doilies.

 Many reading this article may already know or could easily recognize tatting thanks to the surge of popularity it experienced in the 1930s-1950s and then again in the 1970s. It was popular throughout the Victorian era with Eleonore Riego de la Branchardiere publishing numerous needlework manuals/guides, such as Golden Stars in Tatting and Crochet, 1861, currently available via Project Gutenberg. Mlle Riego de la Branchardiere started with some reassurances, “The following Designs are formed by a very simple combination of Tatting and Crochet, the more elaborate style of both Works being avoided, so that any Lady with a knowledge of the first rules of each Art will be able to accomplish the patterns without the least difficulty, the Stars and Diamonds being made in Tatting and afterwards worked round with loops of chain Crochet.” Thank goodness! Let us check in with an anonymous author who included a chapter on tatting in the 1844 publication, The Ladies’ Work-Table Book; Containing Clear and Practical Instructions in Plain and Fancy Needlework, Embroidery, Knitting, Netting, and Crocheting. This author boldly declared the purpose and high importance of needlework specifically aimed at the female population, “If it be true that “home scenes are rendered happy or miserable in proportion to the good or evil influence exercised over them by woman—as sister, wife, or mother”—it will be admitted as a fact of the utmost importance, that every thing should be done to improve the taste, cultivate the understanding, and elevate the character of those “high priestesses” of our domestic sanctuaries. The page of history informs us, that the progress of any nation in morals, civilization, and refinement, is in proportion to the elevated or degraded position in which woman is placed in society; and the same instructive volume will enable us to perceive, that the fanciful creations of the needle, have [iv]exerted a marked influence over the pursuits and destinies of man.” The instructions for tatting included open stitches, stars (a popular theme), and common tatting edges. This author concluded by reinforcing their opinion that needlework contained a Christian imperative and service, a way for women to “endeavor” and develop their “moral goodness”, “We were not sent into this world to flutter through life, like the gaudy butterfly, only to be seen and admired.”

(Source:  Project Gutenberg Ebook of Golden Stars in Tatting and Crochet by Eleonore Riego de la Branchardiere)

However, needlework and crafted items, such as doilies, should not be viewed as crafted (and useful!) curiosities only. While women’s magazines published many ideas, guides, patterns, etc. in the early 20th century, artists also used these same objects in more meaningful expressions. Horace Pippin survived but sustained an injury during WWI that limited the mobility of his arm. Using small canvasses and drawing upon his experiences, knowledge, and imagination, his work gained national attention and the Museum of Modern Art in New York exhibited his items in their “Masters of Popular Painting: Exhibitions of Modern Primitives of Europe and America”. Supporters such as Robert Carlen and Albert Barnes helped boost his popularity through solo exhibitions and purchases. According to scholar Lynda Roscoe Hartigan, “Equally crucial is valuing these diverse subjects for their autobiographical, regional, and cultural under- pinnings—underpinnings that link them irrevocably to Pippin’s more celebrated paintings of war, spiritual harmony and African-American life”. Notably, Pippin painted numerous doilies in his artwork, whether draped across seating furniture or tables. His paintings featured an impressive depth and scope – whether a reflection/recollection on the war, social injustices, slavery, or famous events such as the execution of John Brown. He remarked, “The pictures . . . come to me in my mind and if to me it is a worthwhile picture I paint it . . . I do over the picture several times in my mind and when I am ready to paint it I have all the details I need." Just studying the doilies alone show his attention and mastery to still life and detail.

So why are doilies ubiquitous? We could discuss reasons ranging from potential cost to efficiency and décor, but doilies are definitely still a “thing”. While we could joke about its function as a glorified coaster, it is hard not to be excited when opening a family chest and discovering these delightful items crafted by our families and friends.

(Sources: Project Gutenberg Ebook of Golden Stars in Tatting and Crochet by Eleonore Riego de la Branchardiere; Project Gutenberg Ebook of The Ladies Work-Table Book, by Anonymous; The Spruce Crafts: What is Tatting?; Jonathan Boos: Specializing in 20th Century American Art: The Floral Still Lifes of Horace Pippin”; National Gallery of Art: Pippin’s Story)

[danielmartindiaz]

‘Darkness Into Light’ will be on display at this years @outsiderartfair in NY. Please visit at @aarneanton at the American Primitive Gallery booth for any questions. https://www.instagram.com/p/B7HvykMHcLn/?igshid=op8awj6wnnae

[earthstory]

Cathedral rock, 1861

While we often share stunning pictures of Yosemite, some of the oldest photos in existence reveal the beauty and majesty of the place just as clearly as any modern example. These historical photos were the direct inspiration for the political pressure by early environmentalists that influenced President Lincoln's bill designed to preserve the Yosemite Valley's pristine beauty, and remains the legal foundation stones of the National Park system.

Taken by one of the first landscape photographers on primitive equipment, they seem to me very detailed and high quality compared to most photos of this era that I have seen. The images are currently on display at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In those days taking pictures was a hobby that required a certain boy scoutish dedication. The kit was heavy, there were no developing stores so you had to have a darkroom and deal with complex processes using nasty chemicals. They needed a special large camera so big it took 50x50cm glass plates coated in silver based chemicals and 12 mules to lug everything he needed, back in the day when Yosemite was a little known and remote place, hard of access.

The photographer cut his teeth in California's mining industry, snapping precise photos of land for claim lawsuits, though his subsequent fame as a landscape photographer came from this series of pictures. Despite his success, he ended up impoverished, and was just negotiating with Stamford University to sell them his entire collection of photos when his life's work was destroyed in the San Francisco earthquake in 1906.

Loz

Image credit: Carleton E Watkins/Department of Special Collections, Stanford University Libraries

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/photography-blog/2014/nov/04/carleton-watkins-yosemite-photography-america

A photo gallery: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2014/nov/04/carleton-watkins-yosemite-magnificent-american-west#img-2

[longlistshort]

Blum & Poe in Los Angeles is currently showing two very different exhibitions. In the main gallery is a selected survey of work by Harvey Quaytman spanning three decades.

From the press release-

Harvey Quaytman (b. 1937, Rockaway, NY; d. 2002, New York, NY) came of age in the downtown art scene of 1960s New York, living and working in SoHo studios first on Grand Street and later at 231 Bowery, where he would remain through the late ’90s. Long considered an artist’s artist, the painter enjoyed a close-knit and vibrant artistic and social milieu, over the years sharing studio addresses with Brice Marden, Ron Gorchov, and James Rosenquist, among others. Quaytman’s emerging career as a young painter began in the heyday of Ab Ex with a marked allegiance to Gorky and de Kooning. This approach was slowly shed as the decade unfolded, as his work began to lean towards sculpture—compositions with curvilinear shaped canvases and rectilinear U-shaped bases that inhabited a newfound objecthood. This was followed by a forty-year engagement with geometric abstraction, his approach to painting in contradistinction to the prevailing trends of the era—first with Pop Art and later Neo Expressionism. Despite painting being declared “dead” by Minimalist and Conceptual artists of the time, Quaytman maintained a commitment to the medium and to his vision throughout, helping to shape an alternate trajectory for American painting.

The artist’s work in the ‘70s developed into shield-like forms that balance on curved platforms, conjuring a motion that would result in a critic calling them “rocking rectangles”—the body of work later known simply as “rocker” paintings. These eccentrically shaped works were hand-crafted (he would steam and bend the wooden stretchers himself), and inherently related to movement—inspired by Islamic calligraphy, rocking chairs, and the flight patterns of airplanes and birds. His experiments with shape continued in the late ‘70s, and through the manipulation of geometric intersections and overlapping forms that all the while imply motion, a unique group of paintings resembling anchors or pendulums emerged. In the 1980s, Quaytman began his cruciform paintings, investigations of the cross shape not as emblem but as two meeting vectors; Constructivist, perpendicular geometric compositions that focused on the reduced palette of black, white, red, rusted iron, and metallic gold. While these paintings represented a stark departure from his previous work, Quaytman continued to pursue visual movement as he conjured an interplay of symmetry and asymmetry.

Many of the works become even more intriguing up close.  His use of different materials to achieve varying tones and textures makes them come alive.

The press release discusses a bit about his process in creating them-

As his paintings evolved in form and shape, variously touching upon Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism, Process Art, and Constructivism, Quaytman simultaneously developed a rigorous practice of experimentation with pigment. He was interested in the history, alchemy, and chromatic effects of color, seeking out unique tonalities at specialty stores at home and abroad, becoming a master of color and texture. He skillfully poured paint, spreading Rhoplex over canvas with broad wallpaper brushes after dusting it with pure pigment that settled in thick, unpredictable strata. He later flecked canvas with glass or iron filings and used additives such as marble dust in paint he always mixed himself. On this subject, he said: “It is very important to me to be reminded that I am not an alchemist but a man engaged in coded, layered conversation with my fellow man on what I hope to be (on another) level than words or music.”

On the second floor are Matt Johnson’s delightful sculptures whose familiar materials seem to defy gravity as they balance on each other in the compositions.

From the press release–

In an ever-expanding practice in search of the peculiar and the sublime, Johnson elevates the mundane to the exceptional. With a new body of work in carved and polychromed wood sculpture, Johnson depicts configurations of raw industrial materials from cinder block, brick, rebar, to traffic cones—permutations of information composed according to gravity, balance, and primitive instinct. A crude horse, a procession of block figures, cantilevered props, and fragile towers make reference to the concept of knowledge with small gestures—a lighter, a match book, a lightbulb, an atlas, and a monograph on Matisse. The doweled joints of glue and/or epoxy between bricks, blocks, and bars exist here not to defy gravity but to freeze balance and preserve delicate moments of experimental groupings. Like a still life, these works are organized information, like subatomic particles, atoms and elements, molecules and compounds, glued by gravity, and magnetic polarity, surfing in a sea of electrical conductivity.

Both of these exhibitions close 1/11/20.