Tag Archives: History

Buildings, Cities, History, Videos

Buildings: ‘Battle To Build Transamerica Pyramid’ – San Francisco, 1969 (Video)

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Unwelcome when it was first proposed, San Francisco’s Transamerica Pyramid has overcome public opinion, economics and the extreme challenges of its location to become one of the world’s most famous buildings.

Full story here – https://www.theb1m.com/video/the-batt…

The Transamerica Pyramid at 600 Montgomery Street between Clay and Washington Streets in the Financial District of San Francisco, California, United States, is a 48-story futurist building and the second-tallest skyscraper in the San Francisco skyline. 

Culture, History, Videos

History: ‘Constantine’s Death Splits The Roman Empire’ (Smithsonian)

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Constantine’s death would drive a crack through the Roman Empire, splitting it into West and East. Over the next several hundred years, parts of it would even fall to foreign invaders. But a new capital would rise to take its place: Constantinople.

Art, Arts & Literature, History, Videos

Cocktails With A Curator: ‘Fragonard’s Progress Of Love, Part II’ (Frick Video)

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In this week’s episode of “Cocktails with a Curator,” Deputy Director and Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator Xavier F. Salomon maps the century-long journey of Jean Honoré Fragonard’s Progress of Love series from Paris to Provence to London to New York. Fragonard’s career faltered because of his association with the ancien régime, and the Progress of Love was in many respects his last great accomplishment before he died in penury in 1806. In 2021, visitors will be able to experience three of the canvases for the first time in decades when the series is displayed in its entirety at Frick Madison. For today’s episode, Xavier has paired this fourteen-canvas parable of love with a mixed drink suitable for the occasion, a brandy-spiked Champagne Cocktail.

To view these objects in detail, please visit our website: https://www.frick.org/progressloveSHOW LESS

Exploration, History, Videos

World History: ‘Mapping The Adventures Of The First Explorers’ (Video)

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The quest to discover the unchartered globe began in earnest In the 1500s. In this episode of Sotheby’s Stories, discover how European explorers took to the seas founding new lands and new species, revealing the true shape of the world. Curated by global explorer Jean-Paul Morin, this unique collection of century-old treasures takes us back to when the world and its inhabitants were being revealed for the first time. Offered in Sotheby’s upcoming auction Jamais Perdu en Mer (Paris | 14 October 2020).

Books, Design, Transportation

New Design Books: ‘The Motorcycle – Design, Art, Desire’ (Phaidon / Dec 2020)

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An essential and compelling exploration of the design, history, and culture of the motorcycle – an icon of the machine age…

Motorcycles are ubiquitous in the world’s streets and cities, evolving over decades in engineering and design to meet individual transportation needs. With the coming demise of the internal combustion engine and the rise of electric powered vehicles, motorcycle design is being revolutionized by new technologies, the demands of climate change, and global social transformation. The Motorcycle: Desire, Art, Design traces the exciting evolution of this automotive icon – and the culture of desire, freedom, and rebellion that surrounds it.

Motorcycle showcases 100 superb examples of motorcycle design from the late 19th century to the present day and beyond to the technological innovations of the future.

Beautifully illustrated with newly commissioned photography and archival ephemera, this visually arresting survey will prove compulsive reading to design lovers and motorcycle fans alike.

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Business, History, Videos

Film Business: ‘The Rise And Fall Of Kodak’ (WSJ Video)

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At its peak, Kodak was the early 20th century equivalent of Google or Apple, possessing a near monopoly in the film business. But those days are long gone. Here’s why the company’s glossy image failed to withstand the test of time.

Photo Illustration: Carter McCall/WSJ

History, Videos

History: “Mass Extinctions Paved Way For Human Evolution” (NatGeo Video)

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Everybody thinks mass extinctions are a bad thing. As much as they eliminate life, they also helped trigger the creation of new species. By studying fossils from the Big Five mass extinctions, we can learn how life was able to bounce back and see what this could mean for humans in future mass extinctions.

Art, Arts & Literature, Books

Top New Art Books: “The Art Book” – Over 600 Artists Profiled (Phaidon)

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A brand-new revised and updated edition of Phaidon’s accessible, acclaimed A-Z guide to the most important artists of all time

Updated for only the third time in its 16-year history, this new edition of the award-winning landmark publication has been refreshed with more than 40 important new artists, including many previously overlooked and marginal practitioners. The new edition spotlights more than 600 great artists from medieval to modern times. Breaking with traditional classifications, it throws together brilliant examples from all periods, schools, visions, and techniques, presenting an unparalleled visual sourcebook and a celebration of our rich, multifaceted culture.

Artists featured for the first time in this edition include: Berenice Abbott, Hilma af Klint, El Anatsui, Romare Bearden, Mark Bradford, Cao Fei, Cecily Brown, Judy Chicago, John Currin, Guerrilla Girls, Lee Krasner, Jacob Lawrence, Kerry James Marshall, Joan Mitchell, Zanele Muholi, Takashi Murakami, Louise Nevelson, Clara Peeters, Jenny Saville, Wolfgang Tillmans, and more.

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Books, Interviews, Wildlife

New Interviews: Wendy Benchley On Legacy Of Peter Benchley’s “Jaws”

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Wendy Benchley is a marine and environmental conservation advocate, and former councilwoman from New Jersey. Her husband Peter Benchley was the famed author of JAWS, the classic suspense novel of shark versus man, which was made into the blockbuster Steven Spielberg movie. The Jaws phenomenon changed popular culture and continues to inspire a growing interest in sharks and the oceans today. Today Wendy Benchley joins our producer Pat Stango to discuss the legacy of JAWS, how its story still resonates in the events of today, and why ocean conservation is something she still fights for.

Jaws is a 1974 novel by American writer Peter Benchley. It tells the story of a great white shark that preys upon a small resort town and the voyage of three men trying to kill it. The novel grew out of Benchley’s interest in shark attacks after he learned about the exploits of shark fisherman Frank Mundus in 1964.