It’s June and that means it’s time for the monthly LWD Art Appreciation selections. This year we are reading classics, exploring a variety of types of art, architecture and design, listening to opera and watching some the all-time best films.
This post may contain affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read more here.
This post contains Bookshop.org affiliate links.
ART APPRECIATION
June 2025
Classic Literature
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” ― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
Set on Long Island during the Roaring Twenties, The Great Gatsby is F. Scott Fitzgerald’s enduring exploration of wealth, desire, and the disillusionment of the American Dream. Narrated by Nick Carraway, the novel unveils the tragic pursuit of lost love by the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby, set against the backdrop of Jazz Age excess and East Coast elite society.
Recognized as a cornerstone of American literature and regional commentary, this classic novel captures the social divides, moral decay, and cultural shifts of post–World War I America. With its richly drawn characters and lyrical prose, The Great Gatsby remains a powerful critique of class, identity, and ambition in 1920s America — making it essential reading for fans of literary fiction, American classics, and modern literary criticism.
Art/Architecture/Design
Alvar Aalto: Paradise for the Man in the Street
Alvar Aalto (1898–1976) made a unique modernist mark. Influenced by both the landscape and the political independence of his native Finland, he designed warm, curving, compassionate buildings, wholly set apart from the slick, mechanistic, geometric designs that characterized much contemporary European practice.
Whether a church, a villa, a sauna, or a public library, Aalto’s organic structures tended to replace plaster and steel with brick and wood, often incorporating undulating, wave-like forms, which would also appear in his chair, glassware, and lamp designs. An adherent to detail, Aalto insisted upon the humanity of his work stating: “Modern architecture does not mean using immature new materials; the main thing is to work with materials towards a more human line.”
Many of Aalto’s public buildings such as Säynätsalo Town Hall, the lecture theatre at Otaniemi Technical University, the Helsinki National Pensions Institute and the Helsinki House of Culture may be seen as psychological as well as physical landmarks in the rebuilding of Finland after the ravages of war.
Opera
Spotify Playlist:
Classic Film
Unlock the door to The Apartment and welcome legendary director Billy Wilder (Some Like It Hot) and screenwriter I.A.L. Diamond (One, Two, Three) at their scathing, satirical best. C.C. “Bud” Baxter (Jack Lemmon, The Fortune Cookie) knows the way to success in business…it’s through the door of his apartment! By providing a perfect hideaway for philandering bosses, the ambitious young employee reaps a series of undeserved promotions. But when Bud lends the key to big boss J.D. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray, Double Indemnity), he not only advances his career, but his own love life as well. For Sheldrake’s mistress is the lovely Fran Kubilek (Shirley MacLaine, Irma La Douce), elevator girl and angel of Bud’s dreams. Convinced that he is the only man for Fran, Bud must make the most important executive decision of his career: lose the girl…or his job. By turns heartwarming and heartbreaking, The Apartment won five Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Movie-wise, there has never been anything like it…love-wise, laugh-wise or otherwise-wise!
If you have any favorites to recommend for future posts feel free to share in the comments!
LINK TO PREVIOUS ART APPRECIATION POSTS…
Leave a Reply