A History of Rolex Watches
Hans Wilsdorf founded the company we now know as Rolex in 1905. Born in Kulmbach, Germany in 1881, the company, Wilsdorf & Davies, was based in London. By 1908 it had become one of the leading watch companies in the UK. It was in this year that he coined the name Rolex.
Official Chronometer Certification was awarded to Rolex in 1910 from the “Bureau Officiel” in Switzerland, the first time this had ever been given to a wristwatch. This was to be the first of many accolades awarded to the watch, including the Class A Precision from the Kew Observatory in 1914.
In 1926 the Rolex Oyster was released. It was the first wristwatch to be considered waterproof, proven a year later when the watch was worn by the swimmer Mercedes Gleitze in his successful bid to cross the English Channel. This was beneficial to Wilsdorf whom had sponsored the event and gained considerable exposure for his new Oyster Watch. Wilsdorf recognised the importance of advertising and marketing his creation in order to gain publicity and prestige.
1931 saw the creation of the Perpetual Rotor, a mechanism now seen as the basis for self-winding movements. In the following years Rolex released the first Oyster Perpetual Ladydate (1954) the GMT Master with dual time zone function (1955) and the first Day-Date (1956).
Andre Heiniger took over the company following the death of Hans Wildorf on 06 July 1960. Rolex continued to invent and innovate in terms of technical skill and style throughout the 2nd half of the century. The Sea-dweller (1967) was certified as reaching depths of up to 1,220 metres making it the choice for Professional Divers - a point that was quickly adopted in advertising the model. The Explorer II (1978) and Cosmograph Daytona (1988) were also released to international waiting lists securing Rolex as one of the worlds most prestigious watch brands.
A History of Tag Watches
Edouard Heuer founded his workshop in 1860. His aim was to take time measurement more precise. The company has always been known for as the “avant-garde of watchmaking”, in terms of technology, the choice of materials or design. Heuer’s watches have been patented for a chronograph mechanism first in 1882 onto the 1998 launch of the Kirium Ti5 in grade 5 titanium and carbon fiber; from the first chronograph measuring 100ths of a second (1916) to the first analog display quartz chronograph (1983), not forgetting the first automatic chronograph with a microrotor (1969).
Heuer’s continusing presence within the watchmaking world secured his place in history. This mastery is reflected in the impressive number of patents making TAG Heuer one of the key references in Swiss Made watch-making know-how. For 142 years, the company has confirmed its initial vocation: producing watches that constantly push back the frontiers of precision, reliability and aesthetics. That is why the TAG Heuer philosophy is symbolized by the slogan “Swiss Avant-Garde since 1860”.
A History of Audemars Piguet Watches
In 1875, Jules-Louis Audemars and Edward-Auguste Piguet joined forces to produce watches with complex mechanisms. Based in La Brassus in the heart of Vallée de Joux in the Swiss Jura region, Audemars Piguet has been creating and marketing under its own name a range of Haute Horlogerie watches.
In 1972 Audemars Piguet launched the worlds first high end sports watch in stainless steel – The Royal Oak. The watch launched at the Basel watch fair was a radical departure from the current watch trends. The unique octagonal bezel was a revolutionary shape in watchmaking.
Arguably among the finest luxury watch manufacturers in the world, Audemars Piguet boasts a history that is rich with tradition. One of only a handful of watch companies that produces and assembles its own movements and complete timepieces.
A History of Cartier Watches
Cartier was founded in 1847 by Louis-Francois Cartier and was the "Master jeweller" to Europe’s Crowned Heads of State. The first Cartier wristwatch, The Santos, was released in 1904 followed by Jewelled watches in 1906.
Although known for jewellery, Cartier created the Deployment Folding Clasp in 1910, which is now used by numerous watch houses across the Globe. In 1917 the Cartier Tank Francaise was introduced, a model which is today considered a classic example of style and design.
Most contemporary Cartier watches (and jewellery) are based upon the distinctive designs of founder Louis-Francois Cartier.
A History of Breitling Watches
1884 - In St. Imier, in the Jura mountains of Switzerland, Leon Breitling opens a workshop specialising in making chronographs and precision counters for scientific and industrial purposes. In 1914 Leon Breitling dies and the company is passed over to his son Gaston, a year later Gaston creates the first wristwatch chronograph and subsequently provides pilots with the first wrist instruments. By 1923 Breitling had developed the first ever independent chronograph pushpiece.
Gastons son, Willy Breitling takes over control of the company in 1932 and in 1936 Breitling becomes the official supplier to the Royal Air Force. The Chronomat is introduced in 1942 - the first chronograph to be fitted with a circular slide rule. The company also widens its professional clientele to include the American armed forces. 1954 saw the creation of the Navitimer, a wrist instrument equipped with the famous navigation computer. This super chronograph becomes a firm favourite among the pilots across the globe. By this stage, Breitling is already supplying the major international airlines with cockpit clocks. In 1962, Astronaut Scott Carpenter wears the Cosmonaught chronograph during his orbital fligh aboard the Aurora 7 space capsule.
1969 saw Breitling introduce the first ever self winding chronograph. This technical feat represents a major breakthrough for the entire swiss watch industry. 1979 saw the takeover of Breitling from the founders grandson Willy. Ernest Schneider takes the helm. in 1984 The Chronomat is launched and marks the return of the chronograph. It becomes the best selling line in the Breitling collection, a position it has held ever since. Soon afterwards in 1985, the Breitling Aerospace is launched.
Today, Breitling is still established in La Chaux-de-Fonds, the town where Leon Breitling opened his first chronograph factory 110 years earlier.
A History of Omega Watches
Today, seven out of ten people throughout the world are familiar with the OMEGA watch brand - a truly amazing rate of awareness to which few other watch brands can lay claim. The reason behind this success is said to be the reliably fine quality of every OMEGA watch. From its modest beginnings in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1848 the assembly workshop created by 23-year-old Louis Brandt gradually gained renown. Louis Brandt assembled key-wound precision pocket watches from parts supplied by local craftsmen. After Louis Brandt's death in 1879, his two sons Louis-Paul and Cesar took over control of the business.
Louis-Paul and César Brandt both died in 1903, leaving one of Switzerland's largest watch companies - with 240,000 watches produced annually and employing 800 people - in the hands of four young people, the oldest of whom was Paul-Emile Brandt. The economic difficulties brought on by the First World War would lead him to work actively from 1925 toward the union of OMEGA and Tissot then to their merger in 1930 within the group SSIH. By the seventies, SSIH had become Switzerland's no 1 producer of finished watches and no 3 in the world. The severe monetary crisis and recession of 1975 to 1980, SSIH was bailed out by the banks in 1981. In 1985 the holding company was taken over by a group of private investors. Immediately renamed SMH, Societe suisse de microelectronique et d'horlogerie, the new group achieved rapid growth and success to become today's top watch producer in the world. Named Swatch Group in 1998, it now includes Blancpain and Breguet. Dynamic and flourishing, OMEGA remains one of its most prestigious flagship brands.
1st March 1965 - OMEGA's Speedmaster chronograph was "flight-qualified by NASA for all manned space missions" as the only wristwatch to have withstood all of the U.S. space agency's severe tests. On 21 July 1969 - 02:56 GMT, the Speedmaster records man's first steps on the Moon's surface. The Speedmaster became the first watch (and the only watch since) to be worn on the Moon. With this unique accomplishment came a unique nickname: the Moon Watch. April 1970 - the OMEGA Speedmaster rescued the Apollo 13 mission from a potential disaster, earning OMEGA the "Snoopy Award".
1948 saw the advent of the Seamaster, Seamaster 300 in 1957, In 1981, the newly launched Seamaster 120 set a new world free dive record at a depth of 101 metres. The Seamaster is also famous for being the choice watch for James Bond.
A History of Patek Philippe Watches
During the Polish uprising in 1830, Norbert de Patek, a Polish refugee settled in Geneva preferring exile rather than facing prison. Geneva at that time was the capital of watchmaking and fine jewellery. Nine years later together with his friend and fellow-countryman, the gifted watchmaker François Czapek, they set about using their combined talents and founded the watch manufactory of Patek, Czapek & C°, with their headquarters in Geneva.
As the fashion of wearing a watch around the wrist was catching on, watchmakers began challenging the integration of various complications into their new timepieces. Patek Philippe’s first perpetual calendar wristwatch was produced in 1925. In addition to indicating the day, date and month, taking into account the number of days of each month (29, 30, 31) as well as the 29th of February in leap years, it displays the ages and phases of the moon. Patek Philippe’s general production launched the first bracelet chronographs either with or without a split-second mechanism and wristwatches with minute repeating.
A History of Franck Muller Watches
Born in La Chaux-de-Fronds in July 1958 to a Swiss father and Italian mother, Muller’s acumen for things mechanical was soon evident. As a young boy he regularly took apart anything mechanical. At the age of 15 he enrolled in the famous Ecole d’Horlogerie de Geneve.
Three years later Franck Muller graduated first in his class. During the 1970’s when the mechanical watch marker was dead due to the popularity of the quartz watch, Franck Muller spent his time restoring mechanical timepieces for collectors, museums and auction houses. He soon gained a reputation as a master restorer of antique timepieces.
A History of IWC Watches
In 1868, the American engineer and watchmaker, Florentine Ariosto Jones was director of F.Howard & Cie. In Boston, the America leading watchmaking company. He travelled across the Atlantic to Switzerland, where his plan was to found the International Watch Company with the aim to manufacture movements and watch parts for the American market. However he had failed to take into account that the workers in the Geneva region and the remote valleys of the Jura mountains feared for their jobs and were against Jones’ intrusion.
It was probably around this point that Jones met watch manufacturer and industrialist Johann Heinrich Moser who manufactured pocket watches for the Russian tsars. Moser was an industrial pioneer and had recently finished building a hydrostation in Schaffhausen powered by water from the Rhine. Moser showed a great interest in Jones’ plans and so the foundations were set for the first and only watch manufacturers in north-eastern Switzerland: the IWC INTERNATIONAL WATCH CO. in Schaffhausen.
A History of Jaeger LeCoultre Watches
In 1833, Antoine LeCoultre founded the little workshop which was to become the Manufacture Jaeger LeCoultre. Antoine was a self taught watchmaker and a brilliant inventor. He devoted his whole life to achieve total precision and reliability. His work made a lasting impression on the history of watchmaking.
In 1844 Antoine LeCoultre was the first person to measure a micron. Such was the perfection of his watchmaking components no tool could determine their level of inaccuracy. To push the boundaries even further he created the worlds most precise measuring instrument. The Millionometer served as the standard for more than half a century. It measured components to the nearest thousandth of a millimetre.
A History of Bell & Ross Watches
In 1992 a team of designers and specialists of aircraft and space controls joined with a set project to create watches perfectly suiting a professional use, to be part of the great Swiss watchmaking tradition while meeting the demands of men facing extreme situations. Nowadays astronauts, pilots, divers or bomb disposal experts use Bell & Ross watches as tools on their missions.
Monday, January 15, 2007
Austin Stevens
South African-born Austin James Stevens is fascinated by snakes and reptiles. It’s been that way since he was 12.
His life story is both diverse and full of adventure. As a young man, he served in the South African army during the war in Angola. His fellow soldiers gave him the nickname “Snakeman” because of his uncanny ability to track, identify, and remove venomous snakes. It was a skill the soldiers depended on frequently and that nearly cost Stevens his life when he was called in to remove a puff adder, a highly venomous snake, from a machine-gun trench.
The snake struck Stevens on the hand and he was rushed to the nearest hospital. The journey entailed a rough, 300-mile drive by jeep through enemy territory and a 1,000-mile flight aboard an army spotter plane that made an emergency landing in front of the Windhoek Hospital in Namibia. Stevens lay in a coma for five days before doctors were certain he would survive. They then struggled for three months to save his hand from amputation.
After his stint in the army, Stevens received a call from the director of the Transvaal Snake Park. He had heard about Stevens’ extraordinary abilities with snakes and offered him the position of curator of reptiles for a three-month trial period. Three months turned into six years, during which time Stevens received intensive training and became a full-fledged herpetologist.
Stevens’ duties at the park included reptile demonstrations, which became so popular that he was approached by Compass, a South African television program, to appear with live reptiles for a studio show. The program was a hit and led to several more shows.
Established as an experienced herpetologist, Stevens left Transvaal Snake Park, and, in 1981, started working at the Hartebeespoort Dam Snake and Animal Park, the largest privately owned park in Southern Africa. Here he learned about the husbandry of mammals as well and was introduced to the world of filmmaking — many of the park’s animals were trained to perform in feature films.
During this time Stevens set a Guinness World Record in 1986. He spent 107 days and nights in a glass cage with 36 of Africa’s deadliest snakes as a publicity stunt to stimulate public awareness about the plight of the African gorilla and to raise funds for their protection. On Day 96, Stevens was bitten by a cobra but refused to leave the cage and was treated on the spot. Very sick and on his last reserves of stamina, Stevens completed the 107 days, still an unbeaten world record.
Stevens spent the next year creating, designing, and eventually running the Nordharzer Schalangen Paradies Snake Park in Germany and wrote his first book, Snakes in My Bed, a humorous look at the extraordinary life and times of a herpetologist.
Returning to Africa, Stevens settled in Namibia, a desert country with a small population and an abundance of untamed wilderness. In Namibia, he began to seriously concentrate on wildlife photography and writing. To date, he has published more than 150 articles in magazines around the world, many featuring his own photography, and has won numerous photographic awards.
When Stevens was asked to assist in the making of a documentary about hyenas and lions in Botswana, he found himself instantly drawn to filmmaking. He bought a secondhand 16mm camera, and, with only very rudimentary knowledge of the process, he set about making a film about snakes. The film was released by NDR Television in Germany and was later nominated for an award at the Grenoble Film Awards Festival in France. Since then Stevens has been involved with numerous film projects about reptiles, wild dogs, elephants, vultures and most recently, a unique documentary about the life of a Namib Desert chameleon.
When he’s not traveling the world, Stevens lives in Namibia
His life story is both diverse and full of adventure. As a young man, he served in the South African army during the war in Angola. His fellow soldiers gave him the nickname “Snakeman” because of his uncanny ability to track, identify, and remove venomous snakes. It was a skill the soldiers depended on frequently and that nearly cost Stevens his life when he was called in to remove a puff adder, a highly venomous snake, from a machine-gun trench.
The snake struck Stevens on the hand and he was rushed to the nearest hospital. The journey entailed a rough, 300-mile drive by jeep through enemy territory and a 1,000-mile flight aboard an army spotter plane that made an emergency landing in front of the Windhoek Hospital in Namibia. Stevens lay in a coma for five days before doctors were certain he would survive. They then struggled for three months to save his hand from amputation.
After his stint in the army, Stevens received a call from the director of the Transvaal Snake Park. He had heard about Stevens’ extraordinary abilities with snakes and offered him the position of curator of reptiles for a three-month trial period. Three months turned into six years, during which time Stevens received intensive training and became a full-fledged herpetologist.
Stevens’ duties at the park included reptile demonstrations, which became so popular that he was approached by Compass, a South African television program, to appear with live reptiles for a studio show. The program was a hit and led to several more shows.
Established as an experienced herpetologist, Stevens left Transvaal Snake Park, and, in 1981, started working at the Hartebeespoort Dam Snake and Animal Park, the largest privately owned park in Southern Africa. Here he learned about the husbandry of mammals as well and was introduced to the world of filmmaking — many of the park’s animals were trained to perform in feature films.
During this time Stevens set a Guinness World Record in 1986. He spent 107 days and nights in a glass cage with 36 of Africa’s deadliest snakes as a publicity stunt to stimulate public awareness about the plight of the African gorilla and to raise funds for their protection. On Day 96, Stevens was bitten by a cobra but refused to leave the cage and was treated on the spot. Very sick and on his last reserves of stamina, Stevens completed the 107 days, still an unbeaten world record.
Stevens spent the next year creating, designing, and eventually running the Nordharzer Schalangen Paradies Snake Park in Germany and wrote his first book, Snakes in My Bed, a humorous look at the extraordinary life and times of a herpetologist.
Returning to Africa, Stevens settled in Namibia, a desert country with a small population and an abundance of untamed wilderness. In Namibia, he began to seriously concentrate on wildlife photography and writing. To date, he has published more than 150 articles in magazines around the world, many featuring his own photography, and has won numerous photographic awards.
When Stevens was asked to assist in the making of a documentary about hyenas and lions in Botswana, he found himself instantly drawn to filmmaking. He bought a secondhand 16mm camera, and, with only very rudimentary knowledge of the process, he set about making a film about snakes. The film was released by NDR Television in Germany and was later nominated for an award at the Grenoble Film Awards Festival in France. Since then Stevens has been involved with numerous film projects about reptiles, wild dogs, elephants, vultures and most recently, a unique documentary about the life of a Namib Desert chameleon.
When he’s not traveling the world, Stevens lives in Namibia
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Sunflower
Sunflowers (paintings)
Sunflowers or Vase with Twelve Sunflowers (August 1888) is one of two sunflower paintings with twelve sunflowers, the others having fifteen. (Neue Pinakothek, Munich, Germany)
Sunflowers is a series of still life oil paintings that the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh painted. Among the Sunflowers paintings are three similar paintings with fifteen sunflowers in a vase, and two similar paintings with twelve sunflowers in a vase. Van Gogh painted the first Vase with Twelve Sunflowers, which is now in the Neue Pinakothek Museum in Munich, Germany, and the first Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers, which is now in National Gallery, London, UK, in August 1888 when he was living in Arles southern France. The later similar paintings were painted in January the following year. The paintings are all painted on about 93 × 72 cm (37" × 28") canvases. An earlier series of four still life using sunflowers were painted in Paris in 1887.
Van Gogh began painting the works in late summer 1888 and continued into the following year. One went to decorate his friend Paul Gauguin's bedroom. The paintings show sunflowers in all stages of life, from fully in bloom to withering. The paintings were innovative for their use of the yellow spectrum, partly because newly invented pigments made new colours possible. In a letter to his brother Theo, van Gogh wrote: the sunflower is mine in a way.
In March 1987, even those without interest in art were made aware of van Gogh's Sunflowers series when Japanese insurance magnate Yasuo Goto paid the equivalent of USD $39,921,750 for Van Gogh's Still Life: Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers at auction at Christie's London, at the time a record-setting amount for a van Gogh. Whether he bought the painting himself or on behalf of his company, the Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance Company of Japan, the painting currently resides at Seiji Togo Yasuda Memorial Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo. After the purchase a controversy arose whether this is a genuine van Gogh or an Emile Schuffenecker forgery.
Sunflowers or Vase with Twelve Sunflowers (August 1888) is one of two sunflower paintings with twelve sunflowers, the others having fifteen. (Neue Pinakothek, Munich, Germany)
Sunflowers is a series of still life oil paintings that the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh painted. Among the Sunflowers paintings are three similar paintings with fifteen sunflowers in a vase, and two similar paintings with twelve sunflowers in a vase. Van Gogh painted the first Vase with Twelve Sunflowers, which is now in the Neue Pinakothek Museum in Munich, Germany, and the first Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers, which is now in National Gallery, London, UK, in August 1888 when he was living in Arles southern France. The later similar paintings were painted in January the following year. The paintings are all painted on about 93 × 72 cm (37" × 28") canvases. An earlier series of four still life using sunflowers were painted in Paris in 1887.
Van Gogh began painting the works in late summer 1888 and continued into the following year. One went to decorate his friend Paul Gauguin's bedroom. The paintings show sunflowers in all stages of life, from fully in bloom to withering. The paintings were innovative for their use of the yellow spectrum, partly because newly invented pigments made new colours possible. In a letter to his brother Theo, van Gogh wrote: the sunflower is mine in a way.
In March 1987, even those without interest in art were made aware of van Gogh's Sunflowers series when Japanese insurance magnate Yasuo Goto paid the equivalent of USD $39,921,750 for Van Gogh's Still Life: Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers at auction at Christie's London, at the time a record-setting amount for a van Gogh. Whether he bought the painting himself or on behalf of his company, the Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance Company of Japan, the painting currently resides at Seiji Togo Yasuda Memorial Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo. After the purchase a controversy arose whether this is a genuine van Gogh or an Emile Schuffenecker forgery.
Portrait of Dr. Gachet
Portrait of Dr. Gachet
The first version of Portrait of Dr. Gachet, that was sold in 1990 for $82.5 million. The current location of the painting is not known. The second version of Portrait of Dr. Gachet.
Portrait of Dr. Gachet is one of the most revered paintings by Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. He painted two versions in June 1890 during the last months of his life. Both paintings are 67 x 56 cm (26" x 22") in size and are oil paintings on canvas.
The portraits were painted in Auvers-sur-Oise close to Paris, and depict Doctor Gachet with a foxglove plant. Gachet took care of van Gogh during his last months. Gachet was also a hobby painter and became good friends with van Gogh, and he requested that van Gogh paint a second version of the portrait. The foxglove in the painting is a plant from which digitalis is extracted for the treatment of certain heart complaints; the foxglove is thereby an attribute of Gachet.
Of the painting van Gogh wrote to his brother in 1890, "I've done the portrait of M. Gachet with a melancholy expression, which might well seem like a grimace to those who see it. . . . Sad but gentle, yet clear and intelligent, that is how many portraits ought to be done. . . . There are modern heads that may be looked at for a long time, and that may perhaps be looked back on with longing a hundred years later."
Ownership history
The painting was sold by van Gogh's sister-in-law for 300 francs in 1897. In 1911 the painting was acquired by the Stadel Museum (Städtische Galerie) in Frankfurt, Germany where it hung at the museum until 1933 when the painting was removed and put in a hidden room. In 1937 it was confiscated by the Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, an arm of the Nazi government that sought to rid pre-war Germany of so-called degenerate art. After being confiscated it came into the possession of Hermann Goring who quickly sold it to a dealer in Amsterdam who in turn sold it to a collector, Siegfried Kramarsky. He brought it with him when he fled to New York and the work was often lent to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Kramarsky's family put the painting up for auction in 1990.
The painting became famous on May 15, 1990, when Japanese businessman Ryoei Saito paid $82.5 million for it at auction in Christie's, New York; this made it the most expensive painting at the time (it has since been surpassed by Picasso's Garçon à la pipe in 2004). Ryoei Saito, who died in 1996, had caused a scandal when he threatened to have the van Gogh painting cremated with him after his death. Saito, 75 years old at the time, the honorary chairman of Daishowa Paper Manufacturing Co., later stated: "What I really wanted to [express] was my wish to preserve the paintings forever." Saito, his aides explained, was using a figure of speech: threatening to torch the oils was just an expression of intense affection for the masterpieces. Later Saito said he would consider giving the paintings to his government or a museum. The whereabouts of the first version are currently unknown. The second version of the portrait is currently in Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France.
The story is the subject of a book, Portrait of Dr. Gachet: The Story of a van Gogh Masterpiece, Money, Politics, Collectors, Greed, and Loss, by Cynthia Saltzman.
The first version of Portrait of Dr. Gachet, that was sold in 1990 for $82.5 million. The current location of the painting is not known. The second version of Portrait of Dr. Gachet.
Portrait of Dr. Gachet is one of the most revered paintings by Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. He painted two versions in June 1890 during the last months of his life. Both paintings are 67 x 56 cm (26" x 22") in size and are oil paintings on canvas.
The portraits were painted in Auvers-sur-Oise close to Paris, and depict Doctor Gachet with a foxglove plant. Gachet took care of van Gogh during his last months. Gachet was also a hobby painter and became good friends with van Gogh, and he requested that van Gogh paint a second version of the portrait. The foxglove in the painting is a plant from which digitalis is extracted for the treatment of certain heart complaints; the foxglove is thereby an attribute of Gachet.
Of the painting van Gogh wrote to his brother in 1890, "I've done the portrait of M. Gachet with a melancholy expression, which might well seem like a grimace to those who see it. . . . Sad but gentle, yet clear and intelligent, that is how many portraits ought to be done. . . . There are modern heads that may be looked at for a long time, and that may perhaps be looked back on with longing a hundred years later."
Ownership history
The painting was sold by van Gogh's sister-in-law for 300 francs in 1897. In 1911 the painting was acquired by the Stadel Museum (Städtische Galerie) in Frankfurt, Germany where it hung at the museum until 1933 when the painting was removed and put in a hidden room. In 1937 it was confiscated by the Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, an arm of the Nazi government that sought to rid pre-war Germany of so-called degenerate art. After being confiscated it came into the possession of Hermann Goring who quickly sold it to a dealer in Amsterdam who in turn sold it to a collector, Siegfried Kramarsky. He brought it with him when he fled to New York and the work was often lent to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Kramarsky's family put the painting up for auction in 1990.
The painting became famous on May 15, 1990, when Japanese businessman Ryoei Saito paid $82.5 million for it at auction in Christie's, New York; this made it the most expensive painting at the time (it has since been surpassed by Picasso's Garçon à la pipe in 2004). Ryoei Saito, who died in 1996, had caused a scandal when he threatened to have the van Gogh painting cremated with him after his death. Saito, 75 years old at the time, the honorary chairman of Daishowa Paper Manufacturing Co., later stated: "What I really wanted to [express] was my wish to preserve the paintings forever." Saito, his aides explained, was using a figure of speech: threatening to torch the oils was just an expression of intense affection for the masterpieces. Later Saito said he would consider giving the paintings to his government or a museum. The whereabouts of the first version are currently unknown. The second version of the portrait is currently in Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France.
The story is the subject of a book, Portrait of Dr. Gachet: The Story of a van Gogh Masterpiece, Money, Politics, Collectors, Greed, and Loss, by Cynthia Saltzman.
Starry Night Over the Rhone
Starry Night Over the Rhone Vincent van Gogh, 1888 Starry Night over the Rhone (September 1888) is one of Vincent van Gogh's paintings of Arles at night. Van Gogh's fascination with the heavens and stars were the inspiration for some of his most famous paintings, including Cafe Terrace at Night and The Starry Night. This period in Arles was one of the most productive in his short career. His painting of Cafe Terrace at Night preceded Starry Night over the Rhone by less than a month. The Starry Night was painted in June 1889.
The challenge of painting at night intrigued van Gogh. The perspective he chose for Starry Night over the Rhone allowed him to capture the reflections of the gas lighting in Arles across the glimmering blue water of the Rhône River. The sky above is illuminated by the constellation known as Ursa Major or the Great Bear. In the foreground, two lovers enjoy the soft night light as they stroll by the banks of the river.
Depicting color was of great importance to van Gogh. In letters to his brother, Theo van Gogh, he often described objects in his paintings in terms of color. His night paintings, including Starry Night over the Rhone, emphasize the importance he placed in capturing the sparkling colors of the night sky and the artificial lighting that was new to this period.
The challenge of painting at night intrigued van Gogh. The perspective he chose for Starry Night over the Rhone allowed him to capture the reflections of the gas lighting in Arles across the glimmering blue water of the Rhône River. The sky above is illuminated by the constellation known as Ursa Major or the Great Bear. In the foreground, two lovers enjoy the soft night light as they stroll by the banks of the river.
Depicting color was of great importance to van Gogh. In letters to his brother, Theo van Gogh, he often described objects in his paintings in terms of color. His night paintings, including Starry Night over the Rhone, emphasize the importance he placed in capturing the sparkling colors of the night sky and the artificial lighting that was new to this period.
The Drawins Theory
The Darwin Theory
Some people tend to see (perhaps deliberately) only a small part of Darwin's Theory and then ignore the rest. That portion is "man descended from the ape", which of course he didn't say at all in the first place. That phrase when spoken alone tends to upset people and make them defensive. That's why some people tend to keep repeating it over and over, often in a strident voice. Darwin did surmise that man and ape came from a common ancestor. This is an entirely different concept - since he could have used an earthworm instead and been as truthful. In fact the human and a grain of wheat share about 27% of the same DNA structure - the earthworm far more. To make things worse the modern human is characterized by its belief that the sum total of life can be summarized into a bumper sticker making all other knowledge irrelevant.
But then one does not need the Darwin Theory or all of the scientific work done on genetics since Darwin or even an understanding of DNA to understand evolution. Ignore the fossil record! It can never give more than a fragmented record. One need look at only a few facts that are easily verifiable: All of the elements of the earth may be divided into two classes: inanimate things and living things. The dividing line between those two classes are that living things can reproduce themselves and inanimate things can not. Reproduction itself is the engine of evolution. When living things reproduce, they usually do not reproduce perfectly. There will be differences between them and their siblings and parents. Look at two oak trees or two pups from the same litter as compared to each other and to their parents. This is called divergence. If the difference from the parent is so great that it causes the new living thing to die before it reproduces then its lifeline will cease to exist. Its divergence was excessive and the result to that lifeline was fatal. If the difference between parent and child is so small that the child may survive as its parent did, then the lifeline carried between its parent through itself and to its offspring has lived through another test between its lifeline and the trials and tribulations of living. The physical characteristics of the lifeline are changing with each reproduction but the lifeline is remaining equipped as well as or better than is required to survive. Repeat steps 3 , 4 and 5 many billions of times across the earth each year for more than four billion years. Those three steps are called 'evolution'. Imagine the countless directions in form and behavior that would result. Look around you for the results. Verify this process through your own observation. Is this all there is to evolution? Of course not. Is this the end of the problem between religion and science? Of course not. In fact the real problem is only starting. What will the rift be, if this battle is allowed to continue, when biological computers are built, ones that can grow, heal themselves, reproduce and think? And how about nanotechnology with its use of biological material embedded in the human body? And what will the reaction be when biological functions specified in the human DNA are added to, subtracted from and modified to enhance health, demeanor, beauty and ability? And when entirely new life forms are created for specific purposes? Or extinct life forms are resurrected for study or display? And medicine is completely changed from disease diagnosis and medicine to one of modifying the DNA to avoid the disease in the first place. Will the result be human? Or will it be a completely new species?
Where did that first living fragment come from, some 4 billion or more years ago? Scientists will call its chance occurrence a singularity, an event with a near zero probability. Religious people could call that a miracle if they wish to do so, an event with zero probability. The difference between these two concepts is itself near zero. To argue over this difference is foolish.
Some people tend to see (perhaps deliberately) only a small part of Darwin's Theory and then ignore the rest. That portion is "man descended from the ape", which of course he didn't say at all in the first place. That phrase when spoken alone tends to upset people and make them defensive. That's why some people tend to keep repeating it over and over, often in a strident voice. Darwin did surmise that man and ape came from a common ancestor. This is an entirely different concept - since he could have used an earthworm instead and been as truthful. In fact the human and a grain of wheat share about 27% of the same DNA structure - the earthworm far more. To make things worse the modern human is characterized by its belief that the sum total of life can be summarized into a bumper sticker making all other knowledge irrelevant.
But then one does not need the Darwin Theory or all of the scientific work done on genetics since Darwin or even an understanding of DNA to understand evolution. Ignore the fossil record! It can never give more than a fragmented record. One need look at only a few facts that are easily verifiable: All of the elements of the earth may be divided into two classes: inanimate things and living things. The dividing line between those two classes are that living things can reproduce themselves and inanimate things can not. Reproduction itself is the engine of evolution. When living things reproduce, they usually do not reproduce perfectly. There will be differences between them and their siblings and parents. Look at two oak trees or two pups from the same litter as compared to each other and to their parents. This is called divergence. If the difference from the parent is so great that it causes the new living thing to die before it reproduces then its lifeline will cease to exist. Its divergence was excessive and the result to that lifeline was fatal. If the difference between parent and child is so small that the child may survive as its parent did, then the lifeline carried between its parent through itself and to its offspring has lived through another test between its lifeline and the trials and tribulations of living. The physical characteristics of the lifeline are changing with each reproduction but the lifeline is remaining equipped as well as or better than is required to survive. Repeat steps 3 , 4 and 5 many billions of times across the earth each year for more than four billion years. Those three steps are called 'evolution'. Imagine the countless directions in form and behavior that would result. Look around you for the results. Verify this process through your own observation. Is this all there is to evolution? Of course not. Is this the end of the problem between religion and science? Of course not. In fact the real problem is only starting. What will the rift be, if this battle is allowed to continue, when biological computers are built, ones that can grow, heal themselves, reproduce and think? And how about nanotechnology with its use of biological material embedded in the human body? And what will the reaction be when biological functions specified in the human DNA are added to, subtracted from and modified to enhance health, demeanor, beauty and ability? And when entirely new life forms are created for specific purposes? Or extinct life forms are resurrected for study or display? And medicine is completely changed from disease diagnosis and medicine to one of modifying the DNA to avoid the disease in the first place. Will the result be human? Or will it be a completely new species?
Where did that first living fragment come from, some 4 billion or more years ago? Scientists will call its chance occurrence a singularity, an event with a near zero probability. Religious people could call that a miracle if they wish to do so, an event with zero probability. The difference between these two concepts is itself near zero. To argue over this difference is foolish.
The Potato Eaters
The Potato Eaters (De Aardappeleters in Dutch) is a painting by the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh that he painted in April 1885 while in Nuenen, Netherlands. It is housed in the Van Gogh Museum of Amsterdam.
With The Potato Eaters, van Gogh tried to make a great work. During March and the beginning of April 1885 he sketched studies for the painting, and corresponded with his brother, who was not impressed with his current work or the sketches van Gogh sent him. He worked on the painting from April 13 until the beginning of May, when it was mostly done except for minor changes which he made with a small brush later the same year.
Van Gogh said he wanted to depict peasants as they really were."I wanted to convey the idea that the people eating potatoes by the light of an oil lamp used the same hands with which they take food from the plate to work the land, that they have toiled with their hands—that they have earned their food by honest means".
He deliberately chose coarse and ugly study models, thinking that they would be natural and unspoiled in his finished work.
With The Potato Eaters, van Gogh tried to make a great work. During March and the beginning of April 1885 he sketched studies for the painting, and corresponded with his brother, who was not impressed with his current work or the sketches van Gogh sent him. He worked on the painting from April 13 until the beginning of May, when it was mostly done except for minor changes which he made with a small brush later the same year.
Van Gogh said he wanted to depict peasants as they really were."I wanted to convey the idea that the people eating potatoes by the light of an oil lamp used the same hands with which they take food from the plate to work the land, that they have toiled with their hands—that they have earned their food by honest means".
He deliberately chose coarse and ugly study models, thinking that they would be natural and unspoiled in his finished work.
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