May 14
THOMAS GAINSBOROUGH (May 14, 1727)
May 14 is the birthday of English painter THOMAS GAINSBOROUGH (1727-1788).
"Fools talk of imitation and copying, all is imitation."
Gainsborough "is considered one of the most important British artists of the second half of the 18th century. He painted quickly, and the works of his maturity are characterised by a light palette and easy strokes. Despite being a prolific portrait painter, Gainsborough gained greater satisfaction from his landscapes. He is credited (with Richard Wilson) as the originator of the 18th-century British landscape school. Gainsborough was a founding member of the Royal Academy." (Wikipedia)
Girl with Pigs
blue boy
Pomeranian Bitch and a Puppy
SIDNEY BECHET (May 15, 1897)
May 14 is the birthday of jazz saxophonist and clarinetist SIDNEY BECHET (1897-1959).
"You gotta mean it and you gotta treat it gentle."
"In 1919, Ernest Ansermet, a Swiss conductor of classical music, wrote a tribute to Bechet, one of the earliest (if not the first) to a jazz musician from the field of classical music, linking Bechet's music with that of Bach.
On September 15, 1925, Bechet and other members of the Revue Nègre, including Josephine Baker, sailed to Europe, arriving at Cherbourg, France, on September 22. The revue opened at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris on October 2. He toured Europe with various bands, reaching as far as Russia in mid-1926. In 1928, he led his small band at Chez Bricktop in Montmartre, Paris.
He was imprisoned in Paris for eleven months. In his autobiography, he wrote that he accidentally shot a woman when he was trying to shoot a musician who had insulted him. He had challenged the man to duel and said, 'Sidney Bechet never plays the wrong chord.' After his release, he was deported to New York, arriving soon after the stock market crash of 1929." (Wikipedia)
MARCO ZANUSO (May 14, 1916)
May 14 is the birthday of Italian modernist architect and designer MARCO ZANUSO (1916-2001).
Zanuso "helped to establish the theories and ideals of the energetic Modern Design movement ... Zanuso and (Richard) Sapper were hired in 1959 as consultants to Brionvega, an Italian company trying to produce stylish electronics that would, at least outwardly, beat those being made in Japan and Germany. They designed a series of radios and televisions that became enduring icons of an aesthetic known as 'techno-functionalism.'" (Wikipedia)
Sewing machine mod. 1102 (Fratelli Borletti). 1956
Armchair Martingala (Arflex) 1975
Antique piped radio receiver for SIT Siemens, designed with Richard Sapper (1960s)
LOU HARRISON (May 14, 1917)
May 14 is the birthday of American composer LOU HARRISON (1917-2003).
"Three days in a city now and I'm quite flipped. There's too much noise. I just can't do with it."
Harrison "was an American composer, music critic, music theorist, painter, and creator of unique musical instruments. Harrison initially wrote in a dissonant, ultramodernist style similar to his former teacher and contemporary, Henry Cowell, but later moved toward incorporating elements of non-Western cultures into his work. Notable examples include a number of pieces written for Javanese style gamelan instruments, inspired after studying with noted gamelan musician Kanjeng Notoprojo in Indonesia. Harrison would create his own musical ensembles and instruments with his partner, William Colvig, who are now both considered founders of the American gamelan movement and world music; along with composers Harry Partch and Claude Vivier, and ethnomusicologist Colin McPhee."