Top Exhibitions: ‘Pollès – Monumental Sculptures’, Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay, France (Cinematic Video)

Dominique Pollès, called Pollès, is a French sculptor born in Paris in 1945. He is considered as the inventor of “organic cubism”.

Like Leonard de Vinci in an anatomical search of perfection, of representation of movement,with an almost scientifical or medical glance, Pollès holds the utmost passion of anatomy: he learns about the human body, the complicated hank of muscles, movements of members and all the bodily mechanics.

That’s why in 1964 he starts medicine school and along side goes to the Charpentier Academy where he follows art lessons. In 1966, he encountered sculpture in London where he was invited by his friend Enzo Plazota. This final step teaching him all the bases of sculpture. Pollès then decides to go to live in Italy, in Carrare, an important art place. He moved in 1970 and settled in Pietrasanta where he still lives. ​

His sculptures, by creating a vision of the moving being, polished and smoothed, break the pureness of aestheticism. He just knows one theme, one model: the female form. According to Pollès, this is the most beautiful one, the most harmonious one. “When we are looking at a feminine body, it is splendid, it is musical”.

His love of women, the sensuality, the complexity, the shapes and passions, brought him to explore the female form. Since the beginning he has created a singularly stylized cubist form; this becoming his signature form. ​ All are cast in bronze by Pollès himself and made in a series of four with one artist’s proof. His masterliness of the patina is considered unparalleled. The world’s recognition of his craft is evidenced by the many awards he has won, the unique places he has shown and the prestigious private collections he is in, including that of Princess Caroline of Monaco. ​

Pollès was recently honored in an exhibition outside Paris, sponsored by the French Government, called “Sculptors From Rodin to The Present”. He was one of the few living sculptors to be so honored; the others include Abakanowicz, Arman, Saint-Phalle & Wesselmann. Maurice Rheims, a respected Art Critic, and a member of The French Academy, has said “I consider Pollès to be one of the outstanding sculptors of our time.”

His show in the Bagatelle Gardens in Paris in 1998 was a major honor as he was one of only two artists who have ever been allowed to present their work in the Bagatelle. The other artist is Henry Moore. – Galerie Philia is an internationally recognized contemporary design and modern fine arts gallery representing worldwide known designers and artists.

The Galerie Philia attempts in this way to build bridges between different artistic continents in order to enlighten artworks endowed with a marked artistic depth.

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Diet Study: The Top 250 U.S. Movies Depict Unhealthy Foods & Drinks (Stanford)

Stanford researchers examined the 250 top-grossing American movies of recent decades and found the on-screen foods and beverages largely failed U.S. government nutrition recommendations and U.K. youth advertising standards.

Read more

Retail Shopping: ‘How 2020 Is Reshaping Black Friday’

For years, one of the biggest days of the holiday shopping season was Black Friday. But in 2020, that could change. The coronavirus pandemic is fast-tracking big changes in retail that were already underway, pushing consumers into a digital future.

Illustration: Jacob Reynolds/WSJ

Video Profile: ‘Elsie De Wolfe’ – America’s First Professional Interior Designer (1859 – 1950)

The year 2020 marks the one-hundredth anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which granted millions of women in the U.S. the right to vote.

The Frick is celebrating with a series of videos honoring the stories of women who made, appeared in, collected, and took care of art in this collection. In the second-to-last episode, meet Elsie de Wolfe, America’s first professional interior designer, who decorated the Frick’s Fifth Avenue home. #WhatsHerStory

Elsie de Wolfe, also known as Lady Mendl, (December 20, c. 1859 – July 12, 1950) was an American actress and interior decorator.

Born in New York City, de Wolfe was acutely sensitive to environment from her earliest years, and became one of the first women interior designers, replacing heavy Victorian styles with light, intimate effects and uncluttered room layouts. Her marriage to English diplomat Sir Charles Mendl was seen as one of convenience, though she was proud to be called Lady Mendl, and her lifelong companion was Elisabeth Marbury, with whom she lived in New York and Paris. De Wolfe was a prominent social figure, who entertained in the most distinguished circles.

Art: ‘Apollo Magazine – December 2020 Issue’

INSIDE THE ISSUE
 
FEATURES | Kirsten Tambling on Shakespearean relics; Susan Moore visits a museum-worthy collection of Old Masters; Alisa LaGamma on African art and attribution; Alice Gorman asks who is responsible for protecting space heritage
 
REVIEWS | Robert Barry on Bruce Nauman in London; Mark Evans on Prince Albert’s Raphael Collection in Woking; Imelda Barnard on Haegue Yang in St Ives; Caroline McCaffrey-Howarth on the history of European porcelain; Andrew Hussey on Isidore Isou; Thomas Marks on a collection of recipes by video artists
 
MARKET | Susan Moore previews December sales in New York and looks back at the autumn season; Emma Crichton-Miller on the enduring appeal of German limewood sculpture
 
PLUS | The Apollo Awards 2020Caroline Campbell and Michael Prodger consider the consolations offered by historic paintingsMadeleine Schwartz on fakery and the Russian avant-garde; Christopher Turner in search of Bologna’s historical waxworks; Charles Holland on architectural copies and cover versions; Robert O’Byrne on the brilliantly named painter Hercules Brabazon Brabazon

Opera: Soprano Renée Fleming Sings The “Ave Maria”, Verdi’s “Otello”

Soprano Renée Fleming sings the “Ave Maria” from Verdi’s “Otello” in the Met’s live At-Home Gala on April 25, 2020.

Otello is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare’s play Othello. It was Verdi’s penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on 5 February 1887. 

New Periodical: “Liberties” A Journal Of Culture And Politics (Autumn 2020)

Each issue of Liberties, the Foundation’s decidedly analog quarterly publication, will feature a combination of essays from prominent writers and introduce new talent. Contributors already signed include leading voices from this country and abroad in the worlds of culture, business, entertainment, government, politics, and technology. Each edition of Liberties will also publish new poetry from both highly awarded and up-and-coming poets.   

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH PUBLISHER BILL REICHBLUM:

FROM “THE STACK” (MONOCLE 24 PODCAST)

To advance independent thinking and propel new ideas, well-known figures from the worlds of arts, business, government, higher education and philanthropy today announced the formation of the Liberties Journal Foundation. Based in Washington, D.C., the Foundation is a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization that seeks to inform today’s cultural and political leaders, deepen the understanding of citizens, and inspire the next generation to participate in the democratic process and public service. The Foundation’s first initiative is a new quarterly journal, Liberties – A Journal of Culture and Politics, slated for October 2020 debut.

Founding members of the Foundation include the well-known Washington attorney, philanthropist, and former diplomat, Alfred H. Moses; chairman and CEO of cross-border trade company Quberu, Peter Bass; and, respected arts, education, and business leader, Bill Reichblum. 

A book for the coat pocket, Liberties’ diverse voices celebrate one commonality: freedom of inquiry and thought.

Liberties’ editorial team reflects the mission of the Journal pairing acclaimed literary critic Leon Wieseltier as editor with Celeste Marcus, a new talent, as managing editor. Bill Reichblum is the publisher. The book will be available as a soft-cover edition, by subscription or single copy, in bookstores and online.

“The Foundation exists to meet the thirst in our country for ideas and serious thinking at a time when the daily news dominates the media and overwhelms our lives,” says Moses. “The Foundation will provide an outlet for world-renowned writers on culture and politics to reach a readership that is looking for stimulation and inspiration at a time when our lives are increasingly assailed by ephemeral trivia.” 

“We believe there is a genuine need to take time to listen, to actively absorb in-depth thinking of both those with accomplished experience and the inventive new generation at the beginning of their careers,” says Reichblum. “Their creativity, insights, and perceptions can individually and collectively inspire culture and impact politics.”

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Video Trailer: ‘A Perfect Planet – BBC Earth’ With David Attenborough

A Perfect Planet is an awe-inspiring exploration of Earth’s power and fragility.

PERFECT PLANET

Planet Earth is perfect. It orbits at the perfect distance from the sun; it tilts at just the right angle and has a decent sized moon to hold it in place. On top of that, the day-to-day workings of the planet naturally serve to nurture animals and plants.

This five part series will show how the forces of nature – weather, ocean currents, solar energy and volcanoes – drive, shape and support Earth’s great diversity of life. In doing so, it will reveal how animals are perfectly adapted to whatever the environment throws at them.

Extreme Locations: ‘How Living At The South Pole, Antarctica Works’ (Video)

The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where Earth’s axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of Earth and lies on the opposite side of Earth from the North Pole.

Antarctica, the southernmost continent and site of the South Pole, is a virtually uninhabited, ice-covered landmass. Most cruises to the continent visit the Antarctic Peninsula, which stretches toward South America. It’s known for the Lemaire Channel and Paradise Harbor, striking, iceberg-flanked passageways, and Port Lockroy, a former British research station turned museum. The peninsula’s isolated terrain also shelters rich wildlife, including many penguins.

Morning News Podcast: Thanksgiving Travel & College Covid Concerns

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a warning against holiday travel. The day after 1 million Americans got on a plane, it’s the highest volume of travelers airports have seen since the pandemic.

  • Plus, how the country’s largest public university system is handling Thanksgiving.
  • And, the life and death implications of delaying the presidential transition.

Guests: Axios’ Joann Muller, and Russell Contreras and State University of New York Chancellor Jim Malatras.

News, Views and Reviews For The Intellectually Curious