Afternoon of Art

For my last day in London, I spent it viewing the most amazing works of European art at both the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery.

On a gorgeously warm and sunny day (the weather truly has been magnificent and yes, everyone here really does talk about the weather all the time), I walked from Lincoln's Inn Fields to Trafalgar Square to first go to the National to see their collection of more than 2,300 paintings. The National is the perfect art museum for me because it covers my favorite periods of Western art - mid-1200s to 1900. The layout is chronological, though the galleries are not organized sequentially. Starting with the Renaissance greats, I saw works by Lippi, Leonardo's The Virgin on the Rocks, and one of my all-time favorite Dutch Renaissance paintings, Van Eyck's Arnolfini Portrait. Moving into the 16th century, the typical European Old Masters are represented by Titan, El Greco, and my favorite, Hans Holbein, which is represented by The Ambassadors. I spent more in the 18th and 19th centuries than in the 17th century with the Gainsborough's, Turner's, Constable's, Hogarth's, Renior's, and Manet's.

After two hours of art-viewing, I needed to rejuvenate. On a recommendation, I ventured across the street to St. Martin-in-the-Field's for lunch in it's cafe. Ironic that the church's name includes "in the Fields" considering it sits off of Trafalgar Square. However, St. Martin's used to truly be surrounded by fields when it was founded in the 13th century. The current 18th-century building was constructed by James Gibbs, a follower of Christopher Wren. The interior is adorned with Italian plasterwork and a huge mahogany and silver organ. The cafe is in the church's crypt with gravestones for Charles II's mistress, Nell Gwynne, among many others underfoot of the cafe's patrons. (By the way, the food truly was excellent.)

On to what is now my favorite museum in London, the National Portrait Gallery. The Portrait Gallery's collection is based on identity of the subject and not necessarily on who the artist is or the artist's talent. The works vary hugely in quality and have been organized by the subject and the time in which the subject lived rather than the time in which the piece was painted, like the National. Beginning chronologically with the Plantagenets and Tudors and ending with the current period, the portraits of royalty, artists, writers, politicians, scientists, musicians, and philosophers are presented. I spent two hours and still ran out of time (because they were closing and I spent too much time in the Tudor and Stuart rooms) so I wasn't able to see the modern portraits, such as this one of the Duchess of Cambridge. But I got to see my favorite portrait of Elizabeth I.

I love this museum not only because of the subject matter but because taken on a whole, the Portrait Gallery presents a visual map of the Britain's history. The historical actors depicted in these works of art have each influenced the creation of this unique nation.

Photos from the day can be found here.

Britishness

With the Olympic Opening Ceremony well under way in London (and soon to start on this side of the pond), why not a post on the British national identity?

This paragraph from an article in the the BBC News Magazine summarizes the complexity of the British national identity:

The English are British and lots of people think the British are English but that annoys the Scottish andWelsh because although some think they're British and some think they aren't and some think they are but don't want to be, they all agree that they definitely are not English. The Irish mostly think they are Irish, apart from the ones who are Northern Irish. Some say that makes them British and Irish. But others disagree and say they should just be Irish and then some say they aren't British either but part of the United Kingdom. People from England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland can all play cricket for England because they're British as can those from Ireland even though they aren't British. So can South Africans. The English play football for England unless they aren't that good when they might try to play for Ireland. Those from the Isle of Wight are English, from Anglesey are Welsh and the Orkneys are Scottish, but although that means they aren't from the island of Great Britain they're still British. The Channel Islanders depend on the crown which is what the Queen wears but they aren't in the UK and those from the Isle of Man are the same, apart from their cats.

Actually, the entire article shines on various aspects of Britishness: accents, class, pubs, newspapers (and their puns), queuing, and self-deprecation - "an inescapable part of British discourse."

'Tis quite brilliant, actually.

Winston Churchill‬ and His Words of Power

July 4th, the day on which in 1776 America declared Independence from Great Britain with the Declaration of Independence. It is a national holiday that Americans revel in having the day off from work and also contemplate American history, at least for a second.

Being the Anglophile that I am, I spent America's Independence Day with that great Briton, Winston Churchill.

The Morgan Library and Museum 's "Churchill: The Power of Words" exhibit examines Churchill's language throughout his life. From his childhood through his days as a war correspondant in the Boer War, as a politician, the Prime Minister, and in retirement, words were Churchill's weapon of choice that he welded deftly.

The highlight of the Morgan's exhibit is an auditory series of excerpts from Churchill's famous and most influential speeches. Listening to Churchill deliver his famous speeches conveys more power than simply reading his words every could.

"Their finest hour"

This speech was delivered to the House of Commons on June 18, 1940 a month after he became Prime Minister.

"Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat"

This speech was delivered on May 13, 1940 also to the House of Commons.

Fun facts that I learned about Churchill:

• Churchill's mother was born in Brooklyn in Cobble Hill.
• Churchill first visited the United States in 1895.
• Churchill was a one of the highest paid and best known war correspondents during the Boer War.
• Churchill not only developed a strong political alliance with the United States during the Second World War, but also a close friendship with President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 
• Churchill was granted an Honorary Citizen of the United States by President John F. Kennedy in 1963. 
• In addition to his love of writing, Churchill was also a painter, specializing in Impressionist landscape pieces.

Winston Churchill is not a historical figure that I have examined in depth on my own, but after this exhibit, I surely will give him the courtesy and time he so rightly deserves. 

The Queen's Speech

Today, May 9, 2012, Queen Elizabeth II opened Parliament.

The State Opening of Parliament is the ceremonial and official beginning of the parliamentary session, occurring on the first day of a new parliament session or shortly after a general election. The last State Opening took place on May 25, 2010, making the last session of parliament was the longest in 100 years. The State Opening is a symbolic reminder of the relationship between the monarchy and government.

In addition to formally opening Parliament, the Queen delivers a speech. Generally, this speech reviews the previous session and provide an outline for proposed legislation for the coming session. The Queen delivers her Speech from the Throne in the House of Lords with members of both Houses present. Following the Speech, both Houses began debating the speech, which culminates in a vote by the House of Commons. The House of Lords does not vote.

Queen's Speech 2012 at-a-glance: Bill-by-bill

 

The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremony loaded with historical ritual and symbolic significance for the governance. It is a rare occasion when all three branches of the government convene at the same time. 

Traditions surrounding the State Opening and delivery of a speech by the monarch can be traced back at least to the 16th century. To this day, an official search of the cellars occurs prior to the State Opening as a reminder (but also as a precaution!) of the Guy Fawkes Gunpowder Plot. For pictures of the extracted pages from the Lord Great Chamberlain’s Minute Book, Queen Victoria’s throne, and tickets to the State Opening for George IV see this page from Parliament's Archives.  

Rediscovering Britons: Demonstration of an Identity

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've had reason of late to revisit events of British History. At a friend's request, I compiled an overview of British history from the Norman Invasion of 1066 to present day. This meant uncovering many aspects of British History and to do so I turned to an easy and comprehensive internet source: the BBC British History website. In stumbling around the BBC British History site for information, I came across an article about the Syon Cope. As a very amateur scholar of art history, I was immediately intrigued. What was this beautiful work of art? What did it mean for those who created it and who it was created for?

See the full gallery on Posterous

The Syon Cope and detail

Copes, a semi-circular cape, are outer garments worn by priests for the celebration of Mass. The Syon Cope was kept by nuns in the sixteenth century in the Syon Abbey in Middlesex, which was founded by King Henry V around 1414, and thus giving this Cope its name. The Syon Cope has embroidered on it scenes from the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary, with figures of the apostles. It is worked in silk, silver-gilt and silver thread, which entirely covers the linen background material. The figures are framed in overlapping units, based on the quatrefoil (a form with four lobes), which was a popular design in English architecture in the reigns of Edward I and his son Edward II.

The Syon Cope was acquired by the V&A. For additional details on the imagery in the Syon Cope, visit their site where you can find a comrphensive description and history of the Syon Cope.

The Syon Cope is an elaborate and elegant example of English embroidery, called Opus Anglicanum ('English work'). The English became famous for this particular kind of needlework that was done for ecclesiastical or secular use on clothing, hangings or other textiles, often using gold and silver threads on rich velvet or linen grounds.

As with any work of art, Opus Anglicanum represents many aspects of English history, from Church pomp and pageantry to the status of artists and the importance of culture. It also came to represent the English in the form of an artistic rendering of Englishness.  

Such English embroidery was in great demand across Europe, particularly from the late twelfth to the mid-fourteenth centuries and was a luxury product often used for diplomatic gifts. Princes and potentates of Church and State wanted English embroidery. Diplomatic gifts of ecclesiastical embroidery by an English king emphasize its significance as a representation of high, and specifically English, achievement. 

Sources:

"The Nations of Britain: England - The Syon Cope",  Linda Wooley, BBC History website

"The Syon Cope", V&A website

Rediscovering the Britons: Henry II

I've had reason of late to revisit chronological events of British history. At a friend's request, I compiled an overview of British history from the Norman Invasion of 1066 to present day. This resulted in uncovering many aspects of British history that I haven't studied since my undergraduate coursework in college. It has been a fun project to rediscover people and events that I had either not known that much about or had forgotten.
So why not start at the beginning with what could be argued by some as the beginning of the English state under Henry II, who ruled 1154 to 1189.

From Anglo-Saxon England came a tradition of law-making which focused on the king as the protector of the realm. Henry ruled over a vassalage system with the king as an active and central figure of this political system. At that time that Henry ruled England (and Ireland and Scotland and Wales and Brittany and Normandy and Anjou), he viewed himself more than just by his title as King of England (and Duke of Normandy and Count of Anjou), but rather as Lord of His Domain. Understanding Henry’s approach to ruling his lands elucidates his actions that lead to the reforms that changed the relationship of the King to the Church, State, and society.
Henry’s reign was not necessarily greater than that of the his Anglo-Saxon or Norman predecessors. However, these reforms under his reign brought changes to land law and judiciary practices that were vital to the creation English Common Law and toward creating an English monarchy and unified state.
For more details on Henry II's reforms, I recommend starting with this website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/henryii_law_01.shtml