by Lindsay Shapka in Art, Travel, Art History
The Victoria and Albert Museum (known as the V&A to locals and visitors alike) in South Kensington, London, has an awe-inspiring collection of decorative arts that spans 5,000 years of human creativity.
The museum opened in 1852 with the aim of making art available to everyone, and then moved to its current location in 1857.
Read Moreby Lindsay Shapka in Art History, Artists, Art, Travel
When my sister recently came home from a trip to Paris she seemed impressed with everything that she had seen — except for the Mona Lisa.
One of the most recognized works of art in the world, reproductions of it usually come in poster sized prints while the original, hung behind thick, bullet proof glass and guarded by a velvet rope is miniature in comparison.
Read Moreby Lindsay Shapka in Art, Art History, Travel
On my last trip to LA (also my last pre-COVID trip), I was very excited that I would have a chance to finally cross The Getty off of my “museums to visit” list. I have wanted to get there for years — ever since reading Loot and learning about the more controversial side of the museum.
Read Moreby Lindsay Shapka in Art, Art History, Artists, Travel
The Berlin Wall cut through the center of Berlin from August of 1961 to November of 1989, separating the Soviet Union from Western powers. More than just a wall though, it was a complex military system that rose more than 12 feet high and had 302 towers, 12,000 guards and countless kilometers of barbed wire.
Read Moreby Lindsay Shapka in Artists, Art, Art History, Travel
In 1501, Michelangelo (yes, the same guy who painted the famous Sistine Chapel located in the Vatican in Rome) accepted a commission to carve a marble sculpture of the biblical David to be placed high atop a buttress on the Florentine Cathedral.
Read Moreby Lindsay Shapka in Art, Art History, Travel
National Geographic Magazine recently ran an article highlighting how rampant tomb raiding and trade in stolen antiquities still is. I know what you're thinking. Tomb raiding is nothing new — the looting of ancient art has been going on for hundreds of years. So, why is it being written about and highlighted now? What's changed?
Read Moreby Lindsay Shapka in Art, Art History, Artists
I recently wrote an article on contemporary Aboriginal art and artists for Canadian Cowboy Country Magazine, and the depth and variety of work that is available in this genre of art is incredible.
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