Welcome to this month’s art appreciation post, where we embark on a journey through the captivating worlds of Vincent van Gogh’s mesmerizing brushstrokes, Johann Sebastian Bach’s soul-stirring compositions, John Keats’ evocative poetry, and the timeless allure of the classic film, “Casablanca.” I hope you’ll join me as we delve into the beauty and significance of these artistic treasures, exploring the profound impact they have had on our understanding and appreciation of art in its various forms.
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ART APPRECIATION
NOVEMBER 2023
POET
I’ve really been enjoying the Everyman’s Library Pocket Poets series and have chosen another for my readings this month. If you haven’t purchased any of these yet, let me just say I don’t think you would be disappointed. These are quality, hard cover editions with a nice dust jacket and sewn in ribbon bookmark. They are fairly small – 4.5 by 6.5 inches – and I find that to be a handy size for poetry. It’s a nice little collection I’m happy to see on the shelf.
John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. (Wikipedia) His poetry was “marked by vivid imagery, (and) great sensuous appeal”. (Brittanica) Sadly, he died at the age of 25 after publishing only 54 poems. And yet he is considered one of the greatest lyric poets of all time.
Keats: Poems
The only things more miraculous than Keats’s career–he began writing at the age of eighteen, and by the time he died, seven years later in 1821, he had produced a substantial number of the greatest poems in English–are those poems themselves. Nowhere has the pressure of human imagination been brought more powerfully to bear on our mortal condition than in his great narratives and narrative fragments, his sonnets of discovery, and his six magnificent odes, culminating in ‘To Autumn.’
Poetry Foundation – John Keats
A Poet’s Poet: The Astonishing Career of John Keats
ARTIST
My son was obsessed with “Starry Night” before he even turned two. Even a toddler can appreciate the genius of Van Gogh!
Van Gogh
Today, the works of Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890) are among the most well known and celebrated in the world. In Sunflowers, The Starry Night, Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear, and many paintings and drawings beyond, we recognize an artist uniquely dexterous in the portrayal of mood and place through paint, pencil, charcoal, or chalk.
Yet as he was deploying the lurid colors, emphatic brushwork, and contoured forms that would subsequently make his name, van Gogh battled not only the disinterest of his contemporary audience but also devastating bouts of mental illness. His episodes of depression and anxiety would eventually claim his life, when, in 1890, he committed suicide shortly
after his 37th birthday.
This richly illustrated introduction follows Vincent van Gogh’s story from his earliest pictures of peasants and rural workers, through his bright Parisian period, to his final, feverish burst of creative energy in the South of France during the last two and a half years of his life.
Vincent van Gogh was a tortured soul and not widely appreciated in his time. And yet today, he is one of the world’s most popular post-impressionist painters.
Van Gogh Exhibition: The Immersive Experience (Oh, how I’d love to see this!)
COMPOSER
“Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was music’s most sublime creative genius. Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist of the Baroque Era.” (Classic FM – Bach)
Here is a Spotify playlist I created for you:
CLASSIC FILM
I suspect that when asked to name 10 top classic films, most people would include Casablanca. This 1942 romantic drama stars Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Henreid. If you’ve never seen it or if it’s been awhile, I urge you to set aside an evening this month to watch this fine film.
Casablanca
The winner of three Academy Awards including Best Picture, this drama from director Michael Curtiz is one of the most-loved films ever made. In the early days of World War II, the lives of American club owner Rick (Humphrey Bogart), his old flame Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), and Czech resistance leader Victor (Paul Henreid) come together in the exotic Moroccan city as Rick takes possession of two letters that Victor desperately needs.
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If you have any favorites to recommend for future Art Appreciation posts feel free to share in the comments!
LINKS TO PREVIOUS ART APPRECIATION POSTS…
JANUARY:
LWD Classic Film of the Month ~ Breakfast at Tiffany’s
LWD Artist of the Month ~ Manet
LWD Composer of the Month ~ Vivaldi
FEBRUARY:
LWD Classic Film of the Month ~ A Raisin in the Sun
LWD Poet of the Month ~ Langston Hughes
LWD Artist of the Month ~ Degas
LWD Composer of the Month ~ Chopin
MARCH:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ March 2023
APRIL:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ April 2023
MAY:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ May 2023
JUNE:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ June 2023
JULY:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ July 2023
AUGUST:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ August 2023
SEPTEMBER:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ September 2023
OCTOBER:
LWD Art Appreciation ~ October 2023
A museum that is about a half-hour drive from us will be having the Van Gogh For All exhibit coming soon. I hope I can catch it!
I hope so, too! That would be great.