Paul Borel

André Marie Paul Borel (12 February 1828, Lyon - 26 January 1913, Lyon) was a French painter and engraver; specializing in historical and religious scenes.
Biography.
He was born to a family of merchants. His father died when he was ten, so he and his older brother, Léon, were adopted by his grandmother. Shortly after, he began attending the in Oullins. When Léon became ill, and was sent to the Riviera to recuperate, he began travelling; visiting Saint-Chamond, Ardèche and the Massif du Vercors, where he began making some amateur sketches. Léon died in 1848, prompting him to decide if he wanted to be a priest or an artist.
That same year, he formed a lifelong friendship with the painter, Louis Janmot. The following year, he went to Paris where, with Janmot's assistance, he studied and made copies of the Old Masters at the Louvre. He had his first showing at the Salon de Lyon in 1851, with scenes from the lives of several saints. In 1852, he and Janmot made a grand tour of Italy, seeking inspiration.
In 1855, he spent a year in Paris, studying with and Irénée Richard (1821-1906) at the Académie Suisse. He returned to Rome in 1856, where he conducted a lengthy study of the Catacomb of callixtus. That same year, he married Adèle Mouton, the sister of one of his friends at the École Saint-Thomas. In 1857, he had his first showing at the Salon, and took some additional lessons from Hippolyte Flandrin.
After only two years of marriage, Adèle died. To help assuage his grief, he accepted a large commission from the architect, Pierre Bossan, to create murals for the new chapel at the École Saint-Thomas. In 1860, a family inheritance gave him the freedom to work at his own pace. His murals at the École would take him twenty years to complete. After 1863, he focused entirely on religious works and refused to accept any payment. During this time, he made the acquaintance of François-Auguste Ravier, who introduced him to landscape painting techniques.
Between 1880 and 1885, he took a break from his work to travel with his friends, the painter , and the photographer Félix Thiollier; visiting the Massif Central, Belgium, and the Netherlands. His next large projects came in 1898, when he began decorating the chapel of the Augustinians in Versailles, the Église Saint-Paul, and the in Brotteaux.
He also taught occasionally; giving drawing lessons to the glass artist, , and the engraver, . In 1899, he was named a Knight in the Order of St. Gregory the Great. A street in Lyon has been named after him.


The Bakery Girl of Monceau

The Bakery Girl of Monceau () is a 1962 short film written and directed by Éric Rohmer. The film was the first of Rohmer's Six Moral Tales (Contes moraux), which consisted of two shorts and four feature films.
Plot.
A man who sees and falls in love with a woman he passes in the street, but he does not know how to talk to her. When he finally speaks to her, she disappears and he conducts a daily search for her in the same area. During his search, he acquires a habit of visiting a bakery for a snack. Over time, the "girl" in the bakery becomes interested in him and he starts flirting with her and eventually convinces her to go on a date with him. Before the date begins, he runs into the woman that he was searching for and is forced to choose between them.
Narrative structure.
The narrative structure of "The Girl at the Monceau Bakery" and the other five "Moral Tales" begins with the main character (a man), who is committed to a woman, meeting and being tempted by a second woman, but renouncing her for the first woman.
Meaning of "Moral".
According to Rohmer:
My intention was not to film raw events, but the "narrative" that someone makes of them. The story, the choice of facts, their organization... not the treatment that I could have made them submit to. One of the reasons that these Tales are called "Moral" is that physical actions are almost completely absent: everything happens in the head of the narrator.
Most of the film is told through the narrator. The main character is played by Barbet Schroeder, but was dubbed by Bertrand Tavernier, whose voice Rohmer judged more appropriate for the very literary voice-over.
Using the word "moral" does not mean that there is a moral in the story. According to Rohmer:
So "Contes Moraux" doesn't really mean that there's a moral contained in them, even though there might be one and all the characters in these films act according to certain moral ideas that are fairly clearly worked out.
Also, Rohmer said:
They are films which a particular feeling is analyzed and where even the characters themselves analyze their feelings and are very introspective. That's what "Conte Moral" means.
Setting.
In each of the Six Moral Tales, Rohmer only filmed during the time and in the place that the film was set. There was no use of sets.
Sound.
There is no nondiegetic music, only what is played in the background as part of the setting (i.e., cars, people walking by, music playing in the background at a party). Also, there is an emphasis on dialogue and frequent use of voice-over narration. "The Girl at the Monceau Bakery" contains no music, and the only sound that interrupts the sounds in the background is that of the narrator.


The 40-Year-Old Virgin

The 40-Year-Old Virgin is a 2005 American romantic comedy film directed by Judd Apatow in his directorial debut. The film stars Steve Carell (who co-wrote the film's screenplay with Apatow) as the titular 40-year-old virgin Andy, a clerk at an electronic store, with Romany Malco, Seth Rogen, and Paul Rudd playing colleagues who resolve to help him lose his virginity. Catherine Keener also stars as Andy's love interest. Filming took place in San Fernando Valley, California from January to April of 2005. "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" was released theatrically in North America on August 19, 2005 through Universal Pictures. It received positive reviews from critics and grossed over $177 million worldwide on a $26 million budget.
Plot.
40-year-old Andy Stitzer is an employee of electronics store Smart Tech who lives alone in an apartment with a collection of action figures and video games. When a conversation at a poker game with his co-workers David, Cal, and Jay turns to past sexual exploits, they learn that he is still a virgin and resolve to help him lose his virginity. Andy's co-workers give him various—often contradictory—pieces of advice on his appearance and how to interact with women. David brings them all to a speed-dating event and tries to reconnect with his ex-girlfriend Amy after meeting her there. Jay drags Andy to various social events, books a painful waxing appointment, and sets him up with a transvestite prostitute, which all end with embarrassing results. Cal advises Andy to simply be confident and "ask questions". He practices this on a bookstore clerk named Beth, who quickly becomes intrigued by him. David gives Andy his porn collection, encouraging him to masturbate.
Andy eventually lands a date with Trish Piedmont, a woman he meets on the sales floor. At the end of their first date, they almost have sex but are interrupted by Trish's teenage daughter Marla. Trish suggests that they postpone having sex, and Andy enthusiastically agrees; they agree to abstain for twenty dates. Andy and Trish's relationship flourishes over the following weeks. Trish encourages Andy's dream of starting a business, suggesting they fund it by selling his collectibles. After Marla argues with Trish over wanting birth control, Andy takes her to a group information session at a sexual health clinic, where she is mocked for being a virgin. Andy admits his own virginity to defend her, earning him Marla's respect.
Meanwhile, David suffers an emotional breakdown at work over his obsession with Amy and takes a vow of celibacy. Concerned for David, Cal hires a woman named Bernadette to work at the store hoping to match her with him. Jay's girlfriend breaks up with him due to his infidelity, and after getting in a fight with a customer, Jay concedes to Andy that sex can ruin a relationship. Following a reconciliation with his girlfriend, he later invites Andy and the others to a nightclub to celebrate her pregnancy.
On Trish and Andy's twentieth date, Trish tries to initiate sex, but Andy resists, which upsets her. The two argue, and Andy leaves to meet his friends at a nightclub. He gets drunk and leaves with Beth to have sex at her apartment. Cal gets David and Bernadette to hook up, while Marla convinces Trish to make up with Andy. At Beth's, Andy sobers up and decides to leave without having sex just as his friends arrive and encourage him to go back to Trish.
Andy returns to his apartment to find Trish waiting for him. She has found David's porn collection; Andy tries to explain, but she flees in alarm and disgust, fearing Andy may be a sexual deviant. While pursuing Trish on his bike, Andy collides with her car and flies through the side of a billboard truck. She rushes to his side, and Andy finally confesses that he is a virgin. Trish is relieved and accepting, and the couple profess their love for each other.
Andy and Trish eventually marry in a lavish ceremony with everyone in attendance, having generated over half a million dollars from the sales of his action figures to pay for it. They then have sex for the first time. The film ends with a musical sequence where all the characters sing and dance to "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In".
Cast.
Credits adapted from "TV Guide".
Production.
The film is based on a sketch Carell created while performing with the improv comedy troupe Second City. Carell did many versions of the sketch, trying out different scenarios where the 40-year-old man is hiding a "big secret."
Apatow had difficulty coming up with the ending for the film. Garry Shandling suggested it was important to show that Andy was having better sex because he was in love, and instead of directly showing the sex they decided to have Andy sing and have a musical number.
Apatow started casting the film early in the development process and having no preconceptions about the friends and workers in the store was able to tailor the script to the strengths of the actors. Catherine Keener was the first choice for the female lead. Lots of dialogue in the film was improvised. Keener stated in 2010 that Apatow "never really would even say cut" and instead would say "reload" when burning through film due to the improvisation, calling the experience "hysterically funny". She also mentioned "you had to kind of lose sense of being self-conscious on that movie because it was sort of an all-in in terms of throwing a joke out or even the writer would sit behind the monitors behind the curtain".
Filming for "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" started on January 17, 2005, and wrapped on April 1, 2005. It was shot in parts of San Fernando Valley, California, such as Ventura Boulevard. Production on the film was halted by Universal Pictures after the first week, due to concerns that the physical appearance of Carell's character resembled that of a serial killer, and that the early footage was not funny. Paul Rudd was criticized for being overweight and the studio was unhappy with how Apatow was "lighting [the film] like an indie". Universal had also refused to allow Apatow to cast Jason Segel in the film. Malco once pleaded for Apatow to cut his scenes out of the movie, fearing what would happen following its release and telling him "My mom is an ordained minister, bro, cut me out of the movie, please. I'm serious." This request was declined because Apatow found Malco funny. He was surprised to find out his mother ended up taking "all of her church friends to see it, multiple times", and stated the movie "changed my career" by leading to more subsequent job offers without prior auditions.
The chest waxing scene was done for real in one take, with five cameras set up to capture the moment. Carell insisted on having an actual wax, telling Apatow "It won't be as funny if it's mocked up or if it's special effect. You have to see that this is really happening." According to Miki Mia, it took three or four hours to shoot this, and she requested for some of the chest hair to be trimmed in advance in order to reduce his pain. Mia noted that only "a tiny bit" was removed "so that it'll look great on camera". The chest was never fully waxed for its recordings, and he shaved off all the hair after three weeks.
The production used over a million feet of film, a milestone reached on the last day of filming and recognized with free champagne by Technicolor.
The American Humane Association withheld its "no animals were harmed..." disclaimer due to the accidental deaths of several tropical fish used in the film.
Release.
On August 19, 2005, "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" premiered in theaters within the United States. The film opened at No. 1 at the North American box office, grossing $21,422,815 during the opening weekend, and stayed at No. 1 the following weekend. It grossed a total of $109,449,237 in this market, and $67,929,408 internationally, for a total of $177,378,645 against a budget of $26 million. The film was 25th in global gross, and 19th in the United States that year. It was released in the United Kingdom on September 2, 2005, and topped the nation's box office that weekend. A 2008 Blu-ray release of the film features an additional 17 minutes under the banner "unrated". For the 100th Anniversary of Universal Pictures, its theatrical edition was released on Blu-ray on January 10, 2012. This version also had a similar banner of "unrated".
Reception.
Critical response.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 85% based on 189 reviews, with an average rating of 7.20/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Steve Carell's first star turn scores big with a tender treatment of its titular underdog, using raunchy but realistically funny comedy to connect with adult audiences." Rotten Tomatoes declared it the "Best Reviewed Comedy of 2005." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 73 out of 100 based on 35 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.
Ebert and Roeper gave the film a "two thumbs up" rating. Roger Ebert said, "I was surprised by how funny, how sweet, and how wise the movie really is" and "the more you think about it, the better "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" gets." The pair gave minor criticisms, with Ebert describing "the way she (Catherine Keener as 'Trish') empathizes with Andy" as "almost too sweet to be funny" and Richard Roeper saying that the film was too long, and at times extremely frustrating. Roeper later chose the film as the tenth best of 2005. Owen Gleiberman of "Entertainment Weekly" gave the movie an A-, saying that Carell "plays him [Andy] in the funniest and most surprising way possible: as a credible human being." Manohla Dargis of "The New York Times" called the film a "charmingly bent comedy," noting that Carell conveys a "sheer likability" and a "range as an actor" that was "crucial to making this film work as well as it does." Emanuel Levy gave the film a B+ grade calling it "Raunchier and funnier than "Wedding Crashers", this is an R-rated comedy that despite crude surface and foul lingo has a generous heart and a sweet, almost naive center."
Brian Lowry of "Variety" wrote: "Crude, sophomorically homophobic but frequently funny, pic also overstays its welcome a bit and indulges in some juvenile excesses. All told, though, The 40 Year Old Virgin delivers enough belly laughs." Lou Lumenick of the "New York Post" gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, and called it "A calculating crowd-pleaser aimed squarely at the under-25 crowd, who can feel free to add a star or two to my rating." Ann Hornaday of "The Washington Post" is critical of the film but praised Carell for his performance: "the most surprising thing about "'The 40-Year-Old Virgin"' may be that despite the flagrantly exploitative and gratuitous efforts of his friends, Andy remains steadfastly chaste and genuinely humane. [...] Carell has succeeded in creating a character of old-fashioned decency in a movie that otherwise flouts it at every turn." A 2018 article from "Detroit Free Press" contributor Julie Hinds noted that "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" was "Michigan's favorite romantic comedy", and called that ranking "a fine choice" when "Carell's character has a heart of gold" and "eventually lands in a solid, committed relationship".
The film was criticized by Harry Forbes of Catholic News Service for promoting "the false premise that there's something intrinsically wrong with an unmarried man being sexually inexperienced," and by political columnist Cal Thomas for being an example of societal decline in regards to "self-control or what was once known as purity."
Accolades.
In December 2005, the film was chosen by the American Film Institute as one of the ten best movies of the year, the only comedy film to be so recognized (though the comedy-drama "The Squid and the Whale" was also chosen). The film was also ranked No. 30 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies".


Shoplifters (film)

Shoplifters () is a 2018 Japanese drama film directed, written and edited by Hirokazu Kore-eda. Starring Lily Franky and Sakura Ando, it is about a non-biological family that relies on shoplifting to cope with a life of poverty.
Kore-eda wrote the screenplay contemplating what makes a family, and inspired by reports on poverty and shoplifting in Japan. Principal photography began in mid-December 2017.
"Shoplifters" premiered on 13 May 2018 at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Palme d'Or. The film was released in Japan on 8 June 2018 and was a critical and commercial success. "Shoplifters" won three Mainichi Film Awards, including Best Film, and the Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Feature Film, and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars and the Golden Globes.
Plot.
In Tokyo, a group lives in poverty: Osamu, a day laborer forced to leave his job after twisting his ankle; his wife Nobuyo, who works for an industrial laundry service; Aki, who works at a hostess club; Shota, a young boy; and Hatsue, an elderly woman who owns the home and supports the group with her deceased husband's pension.
Osamu and Shota routinely shoplift goods, using a system of hand signals to communicate. Osamu tells Shota it is fine to steal things that have not been sold, as they do not belong to anyone. One cold night, they see Yuri, a neighborhood girl they regularly observe locked out on an apartment balcony. They bring her to their home, intending to only have her stay for dinner, but choose not to return her after finding evidence of abuse.
Yuri bonds with her new family and learns to shoplift from Osamu and Shota. Osamu urges Shota to see him as his father and Yuri as his sister, but Shota is reluctant. The family learns on television that after almost two months police are investigating Yuri's disappearance, during which time her birth parents never reported her missing. The family cuts her hair, burns her old clothes, and gives her a new name: Lin.
Hatsue visits her husband's son from an affair, from whom she regularly receives money. The son and his wife are Aki's parents, who lie that their daughter is living in Australia. The family visits the beach and Hatsue expresses contentment that she will not die a lonely death. At home, she dies in her sleep. Osamu and Nobuyo bury her under the house and continue to collect her pension without reporting her death.
Osamu steals a purse from a car. Shota is uneasy, feeling this theft breaks their moral code. Shota recalls joining the family after Osamu and Nobuyo found him in a locked car. Increasingly guilt-ridden about teaching Yuri to steal, Shota interrupts her theft by stealing fruit from a grocery store in view of the staff. Cornered, he jumps from a bridge and breaks his leg.
Shota is hospitalised and detained. Osamu and Nobuyo attract the attention of the police and are caught after attempting to flee with Yuri and Aki. The authorities discover Yuri and the death of Hatsue and tell Shota that the family was going to abandon him. They inform Aki that Osamu and Nobuyo previously killed Nobuyo's abusive husband in a crime of passion and that Hatsue was receiving money from Aki's parents.
Nobuyo takes the blame for the crimes and is sentenced to prison. Shota is placed in an orphanage. Osamu and Shota visit Nobuyo in prison, and she gives Shota details of the car they found him in so he can search for his birth parents. Shota stays overnight with Osamu against the orphanage's rules. Osamu confirms that the family intended to abandon him and that he can no longer be his father.
The next morning, as he is about to depart, Shota says that he allowed himself to be caught. Osamu chases Shota's bus; Shota looks back and finally acknowledges Osamu as his father. Yuri is returned to her birth parents, who continue to neglect her.
Production.
Director Hirokazu Kore-eda said that he developed the story for "Shoplifters" when considering his earlier film "Like Father, Like Son", with the question "What makes a family?" He had been considering a film exploring this question for 10 years before making "Shoplifters". Kore-eda described it as his "socially conscious" film. With this story, Kore-eda said he did not want the perspective to be from only a few individual characters, but to capture "the family within the society", a "wide point of view" in the vein of his 2004 film "Nobody Knows". He set his story in Tokyo and was also influenced by the Japanese Recession, including media reports of how people lived in poverty and of shoplifting. To research the project, Kore-eda toured an orphanage and wrote a scene inspired by a girl there who read from "Swimmy" by Leo Lionni. Kore-eda said,
Lily Franky and Sakura Ando joined the cast before principal photography began in mid-December 2017. Child actors Sasaki Miyu and Jyo Kairi were cast for their first film. Sosuke Ikematsu, Chizuru Ikewaki and Yūki Yamada joined the cast in February. It was also one of the last films Kirin Kiki appeared in before her death in 2018.
Production began in December 2017, with Fuji Television Network, Gaga, and AOI Pro producing. Cinematographer Kondo Ryuto used 35 mm film with an Arricam ST, aware 35 mm was a preference of Kore-eda's and also seeking the right texture and grain for the story.
Release.
With Gaga Corporation as its distributor, the film was selected to screen at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, where it went on to win the Palme d'Or. In Japan, it was scheduled for release on 8 June 2018. Magnolia Pictures also obtained the rights to distribute the film in North America. On 23 May 2018, Thunderbird Releasing acquired the UK distribution rights, while Road Pictures secured the rights to distribute it in China.
Reception.
Box office.
The film grossed () in Japan by the end of 2018, making it the fourth highest-grossing domestic film of the year and the second highest-grossing Japanese live-action film of the year (after "Code Blue"). In China, the film grossed , in what "The Hollywood Reporter" called "an unprecedentedly strong performance for an imported pure arthouse drama". "Shoplifters" also grossed $3,313,513 in the United States and Canada, and $17,398,743 in other territories, for a worldwide total of . This makes it the most successful commercially of the five nominees for the 2019 Academy Award for Best International Film.
In its tenth weekend of release in the United States and Canada, following its Oscar nomination, the film made $190,000 from 114 theaters, for a running total of $2.5 million up until then.
Critical response.
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating 99% based on 226 reviews, with an average rating of 8.80/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Understated yet ultimately deeply affecting, "Shoplifters" adds another powerful chapter to director Hirokazu Kore-eda's richly humanistic filmography." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 93 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". "Shoplifters" was also listed on numerous critics' top ten lists for 2018.
Peter Bradshaw of "The Guardian" gave "Shoplifters" 4/5 stars, declaring it a "rich, satisfying film", but subsequently upgraded this to a 5/5 star review upon second viewing. "The Guardian" later ranked the film 15th in its Best Films of the 21st Century list. "The Hollywood Reporter" critic Deborah Young called it "bittersweet" as it "contrasts the frigid emotions of socially correct behavior with the warmth and happiness of a dishonest lower-class family". Robbie Collin of "The Daily Telegraph" awarded it five stars, hailing it as an "outstanding domestic drama, crafted by Kore-eda with crystalline insight and an unsparing emotional acuity".
For "IndieWire", David Ehrlich gave it a grade of "A–" and wrote the film "stings" with "the loneliness of not belonging to anyone, and the messiness of sticking together". "TheWrap"s Ben Croll declared it Kore-eda's "richest film to date". In "Time Out", Geoff Andrew gave it four stars and saluted Kore-eda as "a modern-day Ozu". "Variety"s Maggie Lee also compared it to "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens; Lily Franky's character Osamu was likewise compared to Dickens' character Fagin.
In Japan, "The Japan Times" gave "Shoplifters" five stars, writing "The cheers are entirely deserved" and credited it for an "outwardly naturalistic" style.
Accolades.
The film competed at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Palme d'Or on 19 May. It was the first Japanese Palme d'Or-winner since "The Eel" in 1997. Jury president Cate Blanchett explained the decision: "We were completely bowled over by "Shoplifters". How intermeshed the performances were with the directorial vision". In July 2018, "Shoplifters" also won Best International Film at the Munich Film Festival, with the jury citing it by stating it "opens up new possibilities and ultimately offers [...] hope".
In August, "Shoplifters" was selected as the Japanese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 91st Academy Awards. It made the December shortlist in 2018, before being nominated for the Academy Award in January 2019.


Boris Dyozhkin

Boris Petrovich Dyozhkin (also translated as Dezhkin) (; — 13 March 1992) was among the oldest, most prolific and influential Soviet animators, animation and art directors, as well as a caricaturist, book illustrator and educator at Soyuzmultfilm. A member of ASIFA. He was named Honoured Artist of the RSFSR in 1969.
Early years.
Dyozhkin was born in Kursk into a Russian working-class family. His father was a railwayman who was later transferred to Moscow. Boris started his career as a locksmith at a Moscow factory. Simultaneously he learned to draw caricatures and finished training courses organized by the "Krokodil" magazine and led by Alexei Radakov.
In 1934 he also finished animation courses at the Moscow Printing House. Same year he joined the Experimental Animation Workshop under the Main Directorate of the Photo-Cinematographic Industry along with Alexei Radakov, Vladimir Suteev and Pyotr Nosov. Headed by Viktor Smirnov, a former official at the New York-based Amkino Corporation responsible for distribution of Soviet movies in North America, it focused on developing animation style inspired by both Disney and Fleischer Studios. While their cartoons were practically unknown in the Soviet Union, they were highly regarded by authorities, including Joseph Stalin.
Soyuzmultfilm.
In 1936 the collective was merged with several other Moscow workshops into the Soyuzdetmultfilm Studio (renamed to Soyuzmultfilm in a year). Dyozhkin found himself working along with Ivan Ivanov-Vano, Aleksandr Ivanov, Leonid Amalrik, the Brumberg sisters and other prominent animators. All of them continued developing the so-called Disney style, which resulted in a line of traditionally animated shorts.
Dyozhkin quickly gained the reputation of one of the most skillful animators. Unlike some other colleagues who didn't want to copy the American way of filmmaking, he adored Walt Disney and redrew his films frame by frame in order to study all techniques. He learned to synchronize picture and sound, to follow the rhythm, which made him one of the most wanted animators at the studio. As a result, he himself managed to co-direct only one short "Hail to the Heroes!" (1937) before the Great Patriotic War.
With the start of war during the summer of 1941 Moscow survived heavy bombing by the Nazi aviation. One of the bombs hit the house of the fellow animator Roman Davydov where Dyozhkin and his wife Faina Yepifanova, also an animator, were staying at the time. Dyozhkin covered the wife with his body and was hit with a shell fragment. As a result, he lost his left eye to his great horror, since he had already experienced a vision loss by that time. He wore an eyepatch for the rest of his life.
After the war.
Nevertheless, Dyozhkin worked at Soyuzmultfilm for the next 40 years, often combining responsibilities of director, art director and animator, developing characters and pre-recorded soundtrack in order to synchronize it with movements. By 1955 he made himself a name with a popular line of short comedy films usually centered around two teams that competed in various sport disciplines such as football, hockey, skiing, boxing, etc. They contained few spoken lines and were based on fast-paced slapstick.
The only feature film he ever directed — "Cipollino" (1961), an adaptation of the Italian fairy tale of the same name, — was also made in the same distinctive manner. The score was written by the acclaimed Soviet composer Karen Khachaturian who later reused it for his "Cipollino" ballet performed in the Bolshoi Theatre up to this day.
After 1984 Dyozhkin stopped receiving offers from Soyuzmultfilm. He gained money by illustrating books and postal cards, although he continued writing screenplays and offering them to studio executives without much result. This undermined his health, and by the end of 1991 he became seriously ill.
Dyozhkin died in 1992 aged 77 and was buried at the Vagankovo Cemetery in Moscow. He was survived by the second wife Olga Gaiduk-Dyozhkina and his son from the first marriage Sergei Dyozhkin (27 December 1939 — 5 January 2000), also a prolific Russian animator.


Eddie Lightfoot

Eddie Lightfoot (January 14, 1895 – 1964) was an American minstrel dancer active for more than 40 years in the itinerant black stage and tent theatre circuits of the first half of the Twentieth Century. Missing the lower half of his right leg, he performed under the stage names "Peg" or "Peg Leg" Lightfoot in myriad minstrel companies including Alexander Tolliver's "Big Show" and "Smart Set", and The Rabbit's Foot Minstrels from as early as 1913 into the mid-1950s.
Life.
Eddie “Peg” or “Peg Leg” Lightfoot was born Edward Rodgers on January 14, 1895 in Memphis, Tennessee to a Victoria Dickerson (b.1878) and an unnamed father. Victoria married a Burl Lightfoot (b.1868) sometime prior to 1900 and Burl appears to have adopted Edward between 1900 and 1910 as his legal name changed to “Eddie Lightfoot” in that year’s census (which also states an approximate age of 15 and an occupation of “Laborer ; Brickyard”).
Whether the loss of his leg was from birth or the result of some youthful misfortune is unknown, but the earliest appearance of Lightfoot as an entertainer comes in an issue of "The Chattanooga News" from September 13, 1913 where an advertisement for a presumably all-black variety show, part of a G.A.R. convention at the city’s Savoy Theatre, billed him as “Eddie Lightfoot , Famous Peg-Leg Buck Dancer."
His World War I draft card can be found online and lists his occupation as an “Actor” for “Alex Tolliver” and notes “Right Leg Off” in a blank requesting information on physical disabilities. The latest published mentions of Lightfoot as a performer come in news reports of a 1954 tour of the “Rabbit’s Foot Minstrels” through the south, suggesting that for more than 40 years, Eddie danced prolifically in itinerant black minstrel companies (his 1940 census, for instance, which notes his occupation as “Dancer,” has him on the road for 47 weeks in the previous year).
This tireless schedule earned him at least some sense of financial security, as sometime between 1920 and 1930 he appears to have purchased a home for his mother and father in the emerging, affluent African-American subdivision of New Chicago in North Memphis at 162 Caldwell Ave., an address he maintained likely until his death in 1964 (a Memphis city directory as late as 1960 lists him at the address).
In RAGGED BUT RIGHT: Black Traveling Shows, "Coon Songs," and the Dark Pathway to Blues and Jazz (2009) Lynn Abbott and Doug Seroff noted:
""In the minstrel tent they can see such performers as Peg Leg Lightfoot, who dances on one good leg and one artificial one [...] “Peg” Lightfoot is the same one-legged dancer who, according to a Freeman report of 1913, had “gone violently insane” after collapsing on the stage of the Monogram Theater, and who, according to the Chicago Defender of July 21, 1923, “was beaten nearly to death by a mob of whites at Erlanger, Ky.” Who could have predicted that Lightfoot would survive more than forty years in the minstrel profession?” (pp.288)"
A review of a performance of Jailhouse Tolliver and his Colored Minstrels in the Uniontown, Pennsylvania EVENING STANDARD from September 25, 1934 included this description of Lightfoot’s act (amid glowing descriptions of Tolliver’s roller skate tap dancing):
"“Then Eddie (Peg) Lightfoot made his appearance, and the house was his. This one-legged dancer was a marvel when it came to the complicated rhythms of eccentric tap routines. The applause he received when he first appeared may have been and no doubt was occasioned by pity. But the applause at the closer of his performance was given out of sheer admiration for his cleverness.”"


Heinrich Stuhlmann

Heinrich Stuhlmann (28 December 1803, Hamburg - 23 October 1886, Hamburg) was a German painter, graphic artist and amateur photographer.
Life and work.
He was born to Johann Daniel Stuhlmann, an insurance and coffee broker. Following Johann's untimely death in 1814, Heinrich was adopted by his uncle, Matthias Heinrich Stuhlmann (1774–1822), the Pastor of St. Catherine's Church, who helped him complete his eductaion. As he developed a desire to become an artist, he took drawing lessons from Gerdt Hardorff. After serving a commercial apprenticeship, rather than go into business, he attended the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, where he worked in the studios of Christian David Gebauer.
In 1825, he returned to Munich and found a job with the "Zeitung für Pferdeliebhaber" (Newspaper for Horse Lovers), published by Major , and made several trips to study horses. For one year, he was employed by Frederick Francis I, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and drew horses for the (Redefin Stud Farm). During this time, he also did interior paintings and landscape studies, and accompanied a nobleman to Berlin to help him acquire art for his private gallery. In 1830, he visited Dresden to study landscape painting with Johan Christian Clausen Dahl.
In 1832, he and fourteen other artists founded what would come to be known as the . He published several books of etchings in 1838 and 1839; featuring landscapes, interiors, and wild animals. Some of his paintings were lost in the Great Fire of 1842. Following a photo shoot with fellow members of the Künstlerverein, in 1843, he developed an interest in daguerrotypes. Later, from 1863 to 1868, he operated a photography studio.
His works may be seen at the Hamburger Kunsthalle, the Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte, the Altonaer Museum, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.


Charles Burton Barber

Charles Burton Barber (1845–1894), was a British painter who attained great success with his paintings of children and their pets.
Barber was born in Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and studied from the age of 18 at the Royal Academy, London - receiving a silver medal for drawing in 1864, and first exhibiting there in 1866.
During his lifetime Barber was regarded as one of Britain's finest animal painters and received commissions from Queen Victoria to do paintings of her with grandchildren and dogs, and also the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) and his pets. A number of his portraits are in the Royal Collection. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1866 to 1893. In 1883 he was elected a member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters.
Barber became a very popular sporting and animal painter, specialising particularly in sentimental portraits of dogs, often with children. His work ranged from photographically realistic to quick sketches. Although some have regarded his work as overly sentimental, his work remains popular, largely because of his competent painting.
Barber received his final commission in 1894 to paint Queen Victoria, with her grandchildren, in her pony-carriage. He died in London soon afterwards. His place as foremost painter of children and pets was taken by Arthur Elsley.
Many of Barber’s paintings were made into prints, usually in the medium of photogravure. He exhibited at the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, Walker Art Gallery and Manchester Art Gallery. Much of his art is at the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Port Sunlight.


Charles Edgar Buckeridge

Charles Edgar Buckeridge (1864–11 May 1898) was an English church decorative artist and the son of Charles Buckeridge, a Gothic Revival architect.
Life and career.
Born in Headington, Oxford in 1864, the son of Annie and Charles Buckeridge, a Gothic Revival architect, he trained with Burlison & Grylls, ecclesiastical decorators. He exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in 1882 with a painting of Hampton Court and became known for his religious works, described as a "highly esteemed painter in this field".
He was employed by C. Hodgson Fowler, Arthur Blomfield, John Oldrid Scott, John Loughborough Pearson and Edmund Harold Sedding. His most important patron was George Frederick Bodley for whom he completed the decoration at St Martin-on-the-Hill, Scarborough, that had been started by Edward Burne-Jones and Morris & Co. in the 1860s.
He worked in partnership with Charles Stephen Floyce (c1857-1895), a French artist, until the end of 1890. They advertised as 'panel and mural painters' and 'artists in stained glass'. Floyce later (1892) worked with Blomfield on the Royal Memorial Church of St George, Cannes.
Other projects included paintings (1894) for Pearson's chapel at St Antony's College, Oxford; the original architect of the nunnery had been his father.
A painting of the Annunciation originally in St Margaret's Church, Burton upon Trent, is now in St Mary's Church, Claxby by Normanby. Other paintings from St Margaret's are a Crucifixion in St Paul's, Burton upon Trent, and the Agony in the Garden in St Andrew's, Stainton le Vale.
The reredos formerly in St Mark's Church, Horsham, is now in St Mary's Church. It cost about £200. "The upper part of the reredos is in the form of a triptych. The framework is of oak, and the panels, gilt and coloured, are painted in oils, the work being of the Flemish school. The centre panel represents the adoration of the infant Jesus by the Virgin and St Joseph. The side panels bear figures of the four Evangelists. Sir Arthur Blomfield was the architect, and Messrs. Floyce and Buckeridge, of London, were the artists."
At St Mary Magdalene, Enfield, he painted the East Wall and the angels on the ceiling in the chancel (1897/8).
"The altar and reredos of the church of St. Nicholas, Rodmersham, Kent, have been exquisitely painted by Messrs. Buckeridge and Floyce". "It represents the best order of ecclesiastical art, viz., the 15th Century German, whilst the character of the ornament is founded on the old Norfolk work".
His masterpiece is probably the triptych (1892-3) for the architect Norman Shaw's All Saints' Church, Richard's Castle, Shropshire.
Personal life.
Charles married Ellen Dunkley in Marylebone in 1888 and had one son, Albert (b 1881). In 1882 his address was given as 4, Duke Street, Portland Place and in 1891 Wilmot Place, St Pancras. He later lived at Mortimer Street, Marylebone. He died at 64 Agamemnon Road, West Hampstead in 1898, and is buried in Camden.
Works.
Incomplete. (After Andrew Saint with additions)


Margaret Pellegrini

Margaret Pellegrini (' Williams"'; September 23, 1923 – August 7, 2013) was an American actress, vaudeville performer and dancer, best known for playing one of the Munchkins from the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz." Until her death in 2013, she was one of the three surviving munchkins, the other two being Jerry Maren and Ruth Robinson Duccini.
Biography.
Pellegrini was born Margaret Williams in Tuscumbia, Alabama. When she was helping a relative in a potato chip booth at the Tennessee State Fair, a group of little people came by and asked if she wanted to join their show, Henry Kramer's Midgets. "At that time I didn't think I was a midget," says Pellegrini (who then stood about ). In the film, Pellegrini played a "sleepyhead" flower pot and Munchkin villager. After the film, she married Willie Pellegrini (an average-sized ex-fighter) and had two children. Through the years, Pellegrini frequently appeared at surviving Munchkins of Oz festivities.
Munchkins Walk of fame.
Pellegrini was present on November 21, 2007, when the remaining Munchkins were given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was also named the Grand Marshal of this year's annual "Oz-Stravaganza" parade in Chittenango, New York, but health issues prevented her from attending. Near the time of her death, she was described as a widowed great-great grandmother living in Glendale, Arizona, with a room in her house devoted to her treasured Oz collectibles. She was survived by daughter Margaret, grandchildren William III, Anna, Juliette, Joe, Vincent, and Dawnelle Mowrey. Great grandchildren are: Anthony, Ashley, Barbara, Cheryl, Dalyn, Elizabeth, Heaven, Kaylee, and Shayla, and two great-great grandchildren Sejla, and Amel
Death.
Pellegrini died on August 7, 2013, in Glendale, Arizona, due to complications from a stroke she suffered two days earlier. She was 89. She was cremated and her remains were given to her family.


Tamara De Treaux

Tamara Detro (October 21, 1959 – November 28, 1990), known by the stage name Tamara De Treaux, was an American actress. She stood 31 inches tall and had dwarfism.
Career.
De Treaux played one of the three creatures in John Newland's horror TV movie "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" (1973), which was her first film role. Making the prosthetics for De Treaux to play a "gnome-like creature" took some special adaptations, according to John Chambers. After "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark", she played on stage in the Dickens Faire and also did commercials. For "Little Miss Marker" (1980), she worked as a stand-in for the child actress. De Treaux later worked with a singing group in San Francisco called the Medflies in 1980. At one of the Medflies' performance in Los Angeles, she was noticed by Steven Spielberg. She became one of the performers who played E.T. in Spielberg's film "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" (1982). De Treaux's work in "Ghoulies" (1985) was praised by Michael Wilmington in the "Los Angeles Times" who hated the movie, but enjoyed her performance.
De Treaux went back to the stage, appearing in by Ramón del Valle-Inclán in 1989 in Los Angeles in a performance staged by The Bilingual Foundation for the Arts. De Treaux was one of the models in "Daphne and Apollo, Los Angeles" (1990), photographed by Joel Peter Witkin.
She was a friend of the American writer Armistead Maupin. Her diaries supplied the main influence for the heroine "Cadence Roth" in his novel "Maybe the Moon".
Personal life.
De Treaux stood at 31 inches tall and had dwarfism. She was the verified shortest ever actress. She first became interested in acting at age 13.
She was a 1978 graduate of San Leandro High School, San Leandro, California. De Treaux would make many of her own clothes.
In 1990, she died at age 31 from respiratory and heart problems at the North Hollywood Medical Center and is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills).


The Pit (film)

The Pit (also known as Teddy) is a 1981 Canadian horror film starring Sammy Snyders and Jeannie Elias. Although it is a Canadian production, it was actually filmed in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin.
Plot.
Jamie Benjamin is a misfit 12-year-old boy. He's the whipping boy of his classmates, of the other kids of the city, and of the grandmothers who live in his small town. When he encounters other people, they tease and ridicule him. His only friend is a stuffed bear named Teddy, with whom he regularly holds conversations. The audience hears Teddy's voice as he talks to Jamie.
On the cusp of puberty, Jamie develops an unhealthy obsession with girls. Thus, when his parents go away on a business trip and leave the attractive psychology student Sandy O'Reilly to babysit him, he falls completely in love with her. His lust for her is first revealed when he drops his napkin at the dinner table and when he reaches for it, he uses the opportunity to look at Sandy's panties.
During one of his conversations with Sandy, Jamie asks her if she can keep a secret. Jamie reveals that in the forest, he has found a pit full of mysterious creatures, which he calls "Trogs", which he takes care of by feeding them raw meat. He steals money from Sandy's purse in order to obtain meat for the creatures. Teddy suggests feeding the people who tormented him to the Trogs, and Jamie takes his advice. After he runs out of people, he takes Sandy to the pit, where she accidentally falls in and is eaten by the monsters. Heartbroken and angry, Jamie lowers a rope into the pit, and the Trogs escape. After rampaging through the countryside, they are tracked down and chased back to their pit, where they are shot by the local militia and buried in it. In order to avoid panic, the killings are blamed on "wild dogs". Jamie goes to live with his grandparents, where he meets a girl named Alicia who says she will be his friend. The film ends with the girl tricking Jamie into following her into the woods, where she pushes him into her own pit.
Production.
Ian A. Stuart's original screenplay was considerably different from the final film. In his screenplay, Jamie was 8 or 9 years old and the Tra-la-logs were figments of his imagination. When Lew Lehman signed on to direct, he made Jamie older, the monsters real and added more humor to the original script. Stuart has expressed dissatisfaction with the final result.
Reception.
The film received mixed reviews from critics. It is currently ranked as a 42% "freshness" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Due to its unusual premise and Sammy Snyders' effective performance, it has retained a small cult following.
Novelization.
"Teddy" by John Gault is a novelization of the film published in 1980. It appears to adhere closer to Ian A. Stuart's original screenplay than the finished film, containing more character development and a far darker tone.


Lisa Hammond (actress)

Lisa Jayne Hammond (born 3 June 1978) is an English actress, known for her roles as Donna Yates in "EastEnders" and as Tina in "Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere". In 2005, she had a minor role in the BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens' "Bleak House". In 2011, she appeared in the first series of "Psychoville". She also appeared in 8 episodes of the British Crime Drama Vera, from 2015–2017.
Career.
She played the character Denny in "Grange Hill" between 1994–1996. Hammond did not star in any major roles again until 2004 when she played Tina in "Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere". However, she had minor appearances in television programmes such as "Holby City", "Where the Heart Is" and "Casualty", and in the film "Quills". Hammond also played the major role of the herald in the Royal Shakespeare Company revival of "Marat/Sade" in 2011. In 2005, she played Harriet in the BBC TV mini series, "Bleak House", whilst in 2009 and 2011 Hammond played Kerry in the first and second series of TV comedy "Psychoville".
In April 2015, Hammond appeared in detective television series, "Vera", as Helen, a police intelligence officer. She left "Vera" in April 2017.
In June 2015 Hammond appeared in BBC crime drama "The Interceptor" as a rental car salesperson.
"EastEnders".
On 19 March 2014, it was announced that the popular BBC long-running continuous drama "EastEnders," had cast Hammond in the role of disabled market trader Donna Yates. The character of Donna was not originally going to be written into "EastEnders" as a disabled character, but Hammond impressed bosses at her audition, and was awarded the part. Donna is the second disabled regular in the soap, after Adam Best (David Proud) who left the show in 2010. Speaking of her casting, Hammond said: "I'm really excited to join the cast of "EastEnders". It's a great opportunity to be a part of such a big and popular show. Donna is a bit of a handful but they're always the most fun characters to play! It feels good to be bad!" Donna's storylines have included: her fierce attitude, which often runs her into arguments; the introduction of her family; and a relationship with Fatboy (Ricky Norwood). Lisa decided to leave the soap in 2018 to pursue other roles. Her last appearance in "EastEnders" was on 20 July 2018, when Donna was seen leaving in the back of a black cab.
Personal life.
Hammond grew up with a restricted growth condition. She revealed in October 2015 that she has received abuse from strangers in the street because of her disability. She spoke about how her wheelchair use received backlash from the public. "The main image of wheelchair users is that of paralysis. So when I get out of my chair to do a scene on my feet, people don't like it. If I'm feeling good and want to walk in that scene, I will. But if I can't or pain levels are bad then I'll use my chair. I've been shouted at. I've had people say, 'Oi, why are you in a chair when you were walking on "EastEnders" last night?'" Hammond also revealed how she had received criticism like this before joining "EastEnders" and that she can struggle with this backlash. "People always think I'm this feisty girl and I can hold my own but in those moments you just don't think of anything to say. It's shock and disbelief. I have to laugh it off."
On 7 September 2017, she participated in the documentary series "Who Do You Think You Are?" and discovered that her maternal side originally came from Wales.


Kiran Shah

Kiran Shah (born 28 September 1956) is a Kenyan-Indian actor and a stunt double.
Shah was born in Nairobi, Kenya. He lived in Kenya until he was twelve years old, when he moved to India with his family. While living in India, he became interested in films, and when his family moved to Feltham, he became involved in show business. His first film was "Candleshoe" (1977), as a stand-in. When stunt coordinator Bob Anderson asked him to do stunts as well, his career was started. Shah played the part of Bolum in "The People That Time Forgot" (1977).
Shah is often confused with Deep Roy; they are both dwarf Nairobi-born Kenyan actors of Indian descent who got their starts in film and television in the late 1970s. He is the world's shortest stuntman according to the "Guinness World Records". He has appeared as an actor in 31 films; and 37 as stuntman or body double.
Stand-in, stunt, and background work.
He has been in several blockbuster films since, such as "Superman" (1978), "Superman II" (1980), "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), "The Dark Crystal" (1982), "Return of the Jedi" (1983), "Legend" (1985), "Aliens" (1986), "The Sign of Four" (1987), "Bullseye!" (1990), "Braveheart" (1995), and "Titanic" (1997) where he stunt doubled all the children in the film.
He has appeared as a stunt double or stand-in in "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" film series. He was the scale double for Elijah Wood as Frodo, though he doubled for all the other main hobbits, being the only scale-double capable of stunts. He doubled Bilbo Baggins as played by both Martin Freeman (in ', ', and ') and Ian Holm ('). He is one of only three actors to play the titular character in the "Hobbit" films.
Character work.
His most featured role was as "", where he played Ginarrbrik. He also portrayed an Andaman islander in the Sherlock Holmes film "The Sign of Four", and the monster who came out of a painting and attacked Natasha Richardson in the 1987 film "Gothic". In addition to doubling for Martin Freeman as Bilbo in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey", he also appeared as the Goblin Scribe.
Shah appeared as the mysterious figure in the Steven Moffat scripted "Listen", the fourth episode of the eighth series of "Doctor Who", also episode 2 of series 10 as Emojibot 1 in "Smile".
Shah appeared in the 2015 "", as Teedo, a small, brutish scavenger that roams the planet Jakku's vast wasteland on his semi-mechanical Luggabeast.
Poetry.
In addition to being an actor and a stuntman, Kiran is also a poet. His poetry has been published in Great Britain and the United States, and is based on his personal thoughts, feelings, and experiences.


Louis Wain

Louis William Wain (5 August 1860 – 4 July 1939) was an English artist best known for his drawings, which consistently featured anthropomorphized large-eyed cats and kittens. Later in life, he was confined to mental institutions and was alleged to have suffered from schizophrenia. This claim is disputed among specialists. According to some psychiatrists, the onset of schizophrenia can be seen in his works.
Life.
Early life.
Louis William Wain was born on 5 August 1860 in Clerkenwell in London. His father, William Matthew Wain, was a textile trader and embroiderer; his mother, Felicia Marie/Julie Felicie (Boiteux) was French. He was the first of six children and the only male child. None of his five sisters ever married. At the age of thirty, his youngest sister was certified as insane, and admitted to an asylum. The remaining sisters lived with their mother for the duration of their lifetimes, as did Louis for the majority of his life.
Wain was born with a cleft lip and the doctor gave his parents the orders that he should not be sent to school or taught until he was ten years old. As a youth, he was often truant from school and spent much of his childhood wandering around London. Following this period, Louis studied at the West London School of Art and eventually became a teacher there for a short period. At the age of 20, Wain was left to support his mother and his five sisters after his father's death.
Artistic career.
Wain soon quit his teaching position to become a freelance artist. In this role, he achieved great success. He specialized in drawing animals and country scenes, and worked for several journals including the "Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News", where he stayed for four years, and "The Illustrated London News", beginning in 1886. Through the 1880s, Wain's work included detailed illustrations of English country houses and estates, along with livestock he was commissioned to draw at agricultural shows. His work at this time includes a wide variety of animals, and he maintained his ability to draw creatures of all kinds throughout his lifetime. At one point, he hoped to make a living by drawing dog portraits.
At the age of 23, Wain married his sisters' governess, Emily Richardson, who was ten years his senior (which was considered scandalous at the time), and moved with her to Hampstead in north London. Emily soon began to suffer from breast cancer and died three years into their marriage. Prior to Emily's death, Wain discovered the subject that would define his career. During her illness, Emily was comforted by their pet cat Peter, a stray black and white kitten who had been rescued after he was heard meowing in the rain one night. Emily's spirits were lifted by Peter, and Louis began to draw extensive sketches of him, which Emily strongly encouraged him to have published. She died before this happened, but he continued to make cat sketches. Wain later wrote of Peter, "To him, properly, belongs the foundation of my career, the developments of my initial efforts, and the establishing of my work." Peter can be recognized in many of Wain's early published works.
In 1886, Wain's first drawing of anthropomorphized cats was published in the Christmas issue of the "Illustrated London News", entitled "A Kittens' Christmas Party". The illustration depicted 150 cats, many of which resembled Peter, engaged in activities such as sending invitations, holding a ball, playing games, and making speeches. The picture as a whole spreads across eleven panels. The cats remain on all fours, unclothed, and without the variety of human-like expression which would characterize Wain's later work.
In subsequent years, Wain's cats began to walk upright, smile broadly and use other exaggerated facial expressions and would wear sophisticated, contemporary clothing. Wain's illustrations showed cats playing musical instruments, serving tea, playing cards, fishing, smoking, and enjoying a night at the opera. Such anthropomorphic portrayals of animals were popular in Victorian England and were often found in prints, on greeting cards and in satirical illustrations such as the work of John Tenniel.
Over the next thirty years, Wain was a prolific artist. At times he produced as many as several hundred drawings a year. He illustrated about one hundred children's books, and his work appeared in papers, journals, and magazines, including the "Louis Wain Annual", which ran from 1901 to 1915. His work was also regularly reproduced on the picture postcards, currently highly sought-after. In 1898 and 1911 he was chairman of the National Cat Club.
Wain's illustrations often parody human behaviour, satirizing fads and fashions of the day. He wrote, "I take a sketch-book to a restaurant, or other public places, and draw the people in their different positions "as cats", getting as near to their human characteristics as possible. This gives me "doubly" nature, and these studies I think [to be] my best humorous work."
Wain was involved with several animal charities, including the Governing Council of Our Dumb Friends League, the Society for the Protection of Cats, and the Anti-Vivisection Society. As mentioned earlier, he was active in the National Cat Club, acting as President and Chairman of the committee at times. He felt that he helped "to wipe out the contempt in which the cat has been held" in England.
Despite his popularity, Wain suffered financial difficulty throughout his life. He remained responsible for supporting his mother and sisters and had little business sense. Wain was modest, naive and easily exploited, ill-equipped for bargaining in the world of publishing. He often sold his drawings outright, retaining no rights over their reproduction. He was easily misled and would found himself duped by the promise of a new invention or other money-making schemes.
He travelled to New York in 1907, where he drew some comic strips, such as "Cats About Town" and "Grimalkin", for newspapers owned by the Hearst Corporation. His work was widely admired, although his critical attitude towards the city made him the subject of sniping in the press. He returned home with even less money than before, due to imprudent investment in a new type of oil lamp.
Circa 1914, Wain created a number of ceramic pieces produced by Amphora Ceramics. Dubbed the "futurist cat" the pieces were of cats and dogs in angular shapes and with geometrical markings. They are considered to be in the Cubist art style and represent Wain's artistic expression in ceramics.
Later life.
The onset of Wain's schizophrenia may have been precipitated by "Toxoplasma gondii", a parasite which is excreted by cats in their faeces. The theory that toxoplasmosis can trigger schizophrenia is the subject of ongoing research, though the origins of the theory can be traced back as early as 1953.
In 1924, when his sisters could no longer cope with his erratic, sometimes violent behaviour, Wain was committed to a pauper ward of Springfield Mental Hospital in Tooting. A year later, he was discovered there, and his circumstances were widely publicized. This led to appeals from such figures as H. G. Wells and the personal intervention of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin. Wain was transferred to the Bethlem Royal Hospital in Southwark, and again in 1930 to Napsbury Hospital near St Albans in Hertfordshire, north of London. Napsbury was relatively pleasant, with a garden and colony of cats, and he spent his final 15 years there in peace. While he became more and more deluded, his erratic mood swings subsided, and he continued drawing for pleasure. His work from this period is marked by bright colours, flowers, and intricate and abstract patterns, though his primary subject of cats remained the same.
Death.
Wain is buried in his father's grave at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Cemetery, Kensal Green, London.
Legacy.
Theories and controversy regarding Wain.
Writing in 2001, Dr Michael Fitzgerald disputes the claim of schizophrenia, saying that Wain more likely had Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Of particular note, Fitzgerald indicates that while Wain's art became more abstract as he grew older, his technique and skill as a painter did not diminish, as one would expect from a person with schizophrenia. Elements of visual agnosia (the inability to recognize certain objects, even though a person can recall them if asked), moreover, are demonstrated in his painting. If Wain did have visual agnosia, it might have manifested itself as extreme attention to detail.
Series of his paintings have commonly been used as examples in psychology textbooks to putatively show the change in his style as his psychological condition deteriorated. However, given that Wain did not date his works, it is not known if these works were created in the order presented in textbooks, which typically show more florid, abstract pictures as appearing later, indicative of Wain's mental state. Rodney Dale, the author of "Louis Wain: The Man Who Drew Cats", has criticized this characterization and argued that "Wain experimented with patterns and cats, and even quite late in life was still producing conventional cat pictures, perhaps 10 years after his [supposedly] 'later' productions which are patterns rather than cats."
In 2012, Dr Kevin Van Eeckelen proposed in an article about psychotic patterns that evidence of deterioration was found in Louis Wain's earlier (narrative) work, for instance in the "Louis Wain Kitten Book" (1903). This analysis is based on the mimetic (girardian) view of psychosis, which focuses on the continuity between 'normality' and 'madness'.
In December 2012, the psychiatrist Dr David O’Flynn, at a gallery talk at an exhibition of "Kaleidoscopic Cats" at the Bethlem Royal Hospital Archives & Museum, proposed viewing the series as the creation of two men, "Louis Wain, who created them, and Walter Maclay (1902–1964), the psychiatrist who organised them into a series."
O'Flynn suggested Maclay saw in the series a proof of his own ideas, partly based on his 1930s experiments with art and mescaline-induced psychosis. Maclay concluded that the creative ability of people with schizophrenia deteriorated. O'Flynn says that, based on examination of the work of outsider artists, the link between schizophrenia and the deterioration of artwork doesn't hold true. Looking at Wain's late work, O'Flynn sees greater experimentation and use of colour, not a deterioration. Despite the series being known to be assembled, and the pictures not dated since the 1960s, "their representation of something that doesn't exist, namely psychotic deterioration, has been surprisingly robust". The series has become "the Mona Lisa of asylum art".
Praise.
H. G. Wells said of him, "He has made the cat his own. He invented a cat style, a cat society, a whole cat world. English cats that do not look and live like Louis Wain cats are ashamed of themselves."
Current recognition.
His work is now collectable, but forgeries are common. Admirers and collectors include David Tibet, best known as the founder of experimental music project Current 93. He has referenced Wain's work in a musical context.
Although Wain's books are all in the public domain, to date none have been reprinted other than "Father Tuck's Struwwelpeter". A number of collections of his artwork, however, have been released.


Josh Ryan Evans

Joshua Ryan Evans (January 10, 1982 – August 5, 2002) was an American actor who became known for his role of Timmy Lenox in the soap opera "Passions". Though he was 17 years old when "Passions" debuted, Evans had the appearance and voice of a small child due to achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism. He was tall.
Early life and career.
Born in Hayward, California, Evans began his career at age 12, appearing in various commercials. He made his film debut as a toddler in "Baby Geniuses" in 1999. The following year he played the role of the young Grinch (Jim Carrey's character) in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas". He also appeared as General Tom Thumb in the A&E miniseries "P.T. Barnum". Evans also had guest spots on "Ally McBeal", "7th Heaven", and "".
In 1999, Evans began portraying Timmy on the soap opera "Passions". Evans' character was a doll that the evil witch Tabitha Lenox brought to life with magic. For his work on the series, he was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2000 and won two Soap Opera Digest Awards in 2000 and 2001.
The character of Timmy was intended to become an angel and remain a presence on the show, but this entire storyline was quickly rewritten after Evans' death to excise the character (although one already-filmed scene was eventually aired, showing Timmy in Heaven, as a sort of coda).
Death.
On August 5, 2002, Evans died during a medical procedure in San Diego from complications related to a congenital heart condition. He was 20 years old. The death scene Evans had previously taped for "Passions" aired the same day that he died. The episode was dedicated to him.
Evans was cremated and his ashes interred in a niche at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills.


Marina DeBris

Marina DeBris is the name used by an Australian-based artist whose work focuses on reusing trash to raise awareness of ocean and beach pollution. DeBris uses trash washed up from the beach to create trashion, 'fish tanks', decorative art and other works of art. DeBris recently found almost 300 face masks, and used them in her trashion and other displays. She has also used beach trash to provide one perspective on what the earth might look like from space. As well as creating art from debris, DeBris also is a fund raiser for environmental organizations, and collaborates with non-profit organizations and schools to educate children about ocean pollution. DeBris is also a social activist, for example, participating in a panel on how artists can contribute to environmental public policy, promoting clean energy and curating eco-art exhibitions. DeBris's work is not just in pollution, but also works with non profits to raise funds for art education. DeBris is listed with the Women Environmental Artists Directory, has been cited by EcoSalon as one of four artists whose work raises awareness of environmental concerns, and has been listed as one of ten key eco artists. DeBris is also listed as one of the 30 most influential contemporary women artists, and as one of 10 eco friendly artists who will blow your mind.
Education and personal life.
DeBris was educated at Indiana University and the Rhode Island School of Design. She has lived and worked in New York City, London, England, and Sydney, Australia. She was born in Detroit, had lived in Los Angeles, and currently lives in Australia
Genre and venues.
Works by DeBris are often displayed in galleries, in a maritime museum, Sculpture by the Sea, featured in magazines, included in science events, included in the Smithsonian Institution’s Washed Ashore Project, or may be used by organizations such as the United Nations as awards. Her works are also displayed in venues not typically thought of as galleries, but are art venues nonetheless, such as retail venues, Burning Man, a trasher's ball, a downtown art walk, an Earth Day creek spring clean-up, and an Environmental & Animal Justice Exhibit.
DeBris also partners or works with various anti-pollution organizations, such as Friends of Ballona Wetlands, 5 Gyres, RuckusRoots, the United Nations Special Assembly on Climate Change Heal the Bay and other organizations, such as Aquarium of the Pacific. Marina DeBris has also designed accessories for Captain Charles J. Moore, who worked to bring attention to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. DeBris' work with the United Nations Special Assembly was a collaboration with actress/poet Sheryl Lee, dancer Maya Gabay, and musician Marla Leigh.
DeBris also partnered with an office building, MLC Centre, to highlight the problems of throwaway coffee cups. The MLC Centre hosted her work "Disposable Truths" created from used throwaway coffee cups.
Awards.
DeBris's "Inconvenience Store" was a joint recipients of the Allens People’s Choice Award at the 2017 Sculpture By the Sea. The "Inconvenience Store" was also awarded with the Sydney Water Environmental Sculpture Subsidy for her work on water pollution and consumption, and won the Waverley Council Mayor’s Prize.


Goutham Nanda

Goutham Nanda is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language action-drama film written and directed by Sampath Nandi. Produced by J Bhagavan and J Pulla Rao under Sri Balaji Cine Media Banner, the film stars Gopichand in a double role along with Hansika Motwani and Catherine Tresa. It also features Mukesh Rishi, Sachin Khedekar, and Nikitin Dheer in pivotal roles. The film has music composed by S. Thaman.
The narrative revolves around two lookalikes, Goutham and Nanda, who meet while trying to end their lives. Goutham is a billionaire's spoiled son who wants to feel emotions and Nanda is a poverty-stricken techie who wants to become a billionaire. They decide to swap their identities for a month and eventually face challenges from each other's respective enemies as they both start savoring the lives they wanted to live.
"Goutham Nanda" was released theatrically on 28 July 2017. It received praise for the production values, action sequences, performances, music, dialogues and technical aspects. Despite failing commercially, it became the highest grossing film in Gopichand's career.
Plot.
Goutham Ghattamaneni (Gopichand) is the only son of Ghattamaneni Vishnu Prasad (Sachin Khedekar), the 50th richest billionaire in the world. He does not have any emotions and leads a luxurious life in Bengaluru, Karnataka. Mugdha (Catherine Tresa), the daughter of Vishnu Prasad's business partner Mudra (Mukesh Rishi), is deeply in love with Goutham. In a party, a waiter (Tanikella Bharani) spills food on his jeans, making Goutham slap and insult him. The waiter calls him a spoiled brat who doesn't know himself, leading Goutham to realize that he does not have any individual identity without his father. In an attempt to end his life, he crashes his car into another person, who turns out to be Nanda Kishore (portrayed by Gopichand again).
Both of them reveal their stories to each other. Nanda hails from a lower-middle-class family, living in a slum in Hyderabad with his parents (Chandra Mohan & Seetha) and sister (Shreeradhe Khanduja), along with Spoorthi (Hansika Motwani), who is in love with him. Nanda's aspiration to develop an app fails, due to which his father sends him to Bangalore to get a job. However, he chooses to end his life which would enable his family to claim insurance. Now, Goutham is also fed-up with an opulent lifestyle and wants to feel the emotions of living in poverty. Both of them decide to exchange their lives for a month, which would expose them to experience the lifestyle that they have been craving for, after which Goutham would be introduced to the world as the sole heir of his father's wealth. They spend a night in a hotel learning about each other and fitting into each other’s shoes to begin their new lives.
Goutham starts off rough, but with some words from Nanda's father for not taking up a job and returning home but living with Nanda's family, he experiences all the emotions that he has been longing for and helps them by being a better son than Nanda could ever be. On the other hand, Nanda has the perfect beginning, with the exception of a few questions from his staff. Goutham starts to fall for Spoorthi and Nanda for Mugdha. Meanwhile, Mudra and Goutham's Chief of Security Gowda (Nikitin Dheer) plan to kill Goutham. After a failed attempt to kill Nanda (who they think is Goutham), they realize that Goutham had switched places with Nanda and plan to finish him off him in Hyderabad. They make several attempts at killing Goutham, though they fail. Goutham realizes that even Nanda is trying to kill him when he found out an imprint of one of his own expensive shoes on the mud, even though his family (Nanda’s) is collateral damage. When confronted about the same, Nanda confesses that he did all this for money and so he had joined hands with Mudra and Gowda when he found out that the duo was trying to kill him.
Soon, Nanda frames Goutham by publicly murdering their slum corporator's son, but Goutham escapes the cops and confronts Nanda in the presence of his family (Goutham’s), who were manipulated by Nanda (whom they think is Goutham). They fail to recognize that Nanda is in Goutham’s place, and they hand Goutham over to the cops. Goutham escapes the cops with the help of Mugdha, who knows that he is Goutham. They arrive at the spot where Spoorthi has been held hostage by Nanda, who also kills Mudra. A fight breaks out between Goutham, Nanda and Gowda which leads to the deaths of Gowda followed by another fight on the helipad in which Nanda ends up dead by falling off. Later, Goutham is introduced as the legal heir to his father’s wealth but he announces his venturing towards the path of humanity and donates the entire wealth to a charity, and when asked for an autograph he signs "Goutham Nanda". Mugdha is made the CEO to his father's company, and he shares his life with Nanda's parents and Spoorthi. The film ends with Gautama Buddha's saying "Greed for money is the root of all evil."
Soundtrack.
Music composed by S. Thaman. The soundtrack was released by Zee Music Company.


The Captive Slave

The Captive Slave is a portrait painted by the artist John Simpson (1782–1847), which was first exhibited in London in 1827. It shows a man, manacled, on a stone bench and looking pensively or plaintively upward. Its subject matter, historical period, and mode of creation suggest the artist intended the painting as a statement against slavery. Until acquired by the Art Institute of Chicago in 2008, it had not been displayed to the public for 180 years.
Simpson's painting.
The three-quarter portrait shows a dark-skinned man in orange-red open collar clothing, sitting on a stone bench, against a muted background, with the sitter taking up most of the frame. Large metallic manacles are visible around his wrists, which lie on his lap, and a heavy chain falls across the bench and out of the frame. The man is gazing up and to his left.
At its original showing it was entitled, "The Captive Slave," and the viewer is informed of the sitter's condition as a slave by the manacles and by his dark skin, which connects him to the African slave trade. His clothes suggest somewhat foreign origin but also prison garb. The features of the subject show the man as a recognizable individual person. The painting is described as a portrait but also a hybrid with genre painting, as the name of the character in the painting is unknown. His aspect is saintly or heroic, imploring, vulnerable, and somewhat passive in rest, which allowed the British viewer when the portrait was shown to safely sympathize or pity the subject and deplore his condition. While the portrait follows high art conventions for depicting the saintly or long suffering, portraits of individual slaves were rare in the European high art tradition.
Artist and artwork.
The artist, John Simpson, was a British portrait painter, who studied at the Royal Academies, and was a longtime assistant of the portraitist Thomas Lawrence. Today, Simpson is described as "little known". The painting was created on a used canvas that x-rays show had previously depicted a stately home and another portrait; this reuse suggests that the artist did not paint it on commission, which is how he made his living, but here he appears to have chosen the subject of his own volition. The portrait was displayed in London at the Royal Academy not once but twice, in 1827 and again in 1828; it was also displayed at an exhibition at the Liverpool Academy in 1828. Several contemporary reviews at that time noted the pathos that the painting evoked, and associated the painting with "radical" or "sentimental" anti-slavery literature.
In this period, Britain was debating whether to abolish slavery throughout its empire. The British slave trade had been outlawed in 1807, but abolition was still a pressing political question in the late 1820s. Against this background, the two London showings and the showing in Liverpool, "a city synonymous with the slave trade, and whose merchants continued to prosper from [slavery]" is seen as significant. The artist included lines of William Cowper' poetry in the first exhibition catalogue: "Ah but! what wish can prosper or what prayer/for merchants rich in cargoes of despair" (from the poem, "Charity", 1784). Reviewer Martin Postle concludes:
The model for the painting is thought to be the American-born actor Ira Aldridge. Aldridge was born a free negro and educated in New York City, he left America because of the lack of serious acting opportunities there for a black man. He went on to become a successful Shakespearean actor in Europe, despite sometimes racist comments from theater critics.
Provenance.
Simpson's painting was sold in Dublin from a private collection in 1996, at the time a label on the frame read "J. Simpson, "The Slave"". A private British collector later sold it to an art dealer, who sold it to the Art Institute of Chicago in 2008. Prior to the acquisition by the museum where it underwent scientific testing, the painting had not been displayed to the general public for 180 years. What is now considered to be a copy from an unknown hand is in the collection of the Wilberforce House museum in Hull, England.


Coat of arms of Quebec

The coat of arms of Quebec () was adopted by order-in-council of the Government of Quebec on 9 December 1939, replacing the arms assigned by royal warrant of Queen Victoria on 26 May 1868.
Symbolism.
The shield is divided into three horizontal fields:
The shield is surmounted by the Tudor Crown and accompanied by a silver scroll bearing the province's motto, ().
Blazon.
The blazon is:
History.
Arms were first granted to the province in 1868 by Queen Victoria. They were blazoned as follows:
However, in 1939, the Quebec government adopted arms by order-in-council, replacing the two blue fleurs-de-lis on the golden field with the royal arms of France Modern in chief. Quebec is the only Canadian province to have adopted arms by its own authority.
The federal government is inconsistent in the use of the two variants: it often uses the 1939 variant, but in some cases, such as on the Centennial Flame on Parliament Hill and the badge of the Royal 22e Régiment, it uses the 1868 variant.


Noel Harding

Noel R. Harding (December 21, 1945 May 26, 2016) was a Canadian contemporary artist.
He produced sculptures, installations, video works, and public artworks during an artistic career that spanned over forty years.
Life.
Noel Robert Harding was born December 21, 1945 in London England.
Harding taught in the Department of Fine Art at the University of Guelph between 1972 and 1979, and in the Department of Experimental Art at the Ontario College of Art between 1977 and 1982. From 1984 to 1995, he taught at the Academie voor Beeldende Kunst (AKI) in Enschede, The Netherlands and at the Dutch Art Institute (ArtEZ) in Enschede, in the International Post Graduate Program.
He died in Caledon, Ontario on May 26, 2016 from sudden heart failure.
Work.
Video works.
Harding initially became known as an artist through his video works in the early 1970s. Some of his video works include
During the period that he was producing video art, Harding was a part of the Centre for Experimental Art and Communication that existed in Toronto between 1975 and 1978. In 1976, Harding was a founding member of the artist run video access centre Ed Video in Guelph Ontario.
Sculptural installations.
In the 1980s, Harding built several installations around the theme of agriculture and the environment. In 1980 he was commissioned by the Ikon Gallery in Birmingham, England to produce the work "Scenic Events on A Path of Upheaval". In "Scenic Events", a small cart carrying live heads of lettuce traverses the gallery while goldfish swim in a wraparound tank along the gallery walls, and an overhead speaker relays the sound of bombs. Harding is reported to have made the work as a response to the Soviet–Afghan War that began in late 1979. In his 1981 piece "Enclosure for a Conventional Habitat", he created a work that placed six live chickens on a conveyor belt with an automatic feeding mechanism. The piece brought the sight, sound and smell of food production into the art gallery environment.
Public art.
From the 1990s until his death, Harding produced primarily public artworks. In 1990 he completed and installed "The Potato Eaters" at the Mississauga Civic Centre. This was followed by "The Elevated Wetlands" in 1997 and 1998. Installed in Taylor Creek park, Toronto, the piece consists of a set of elevated gardens supported on sculptures made of recycled polystyrene and acrylic. The sculptures act as a water filtration system, using solar panels to pump water from the adjacent Don River into the sculpture's elevated wetlands, where the water is purified organically. Elevated Wetlands is his most well known work.
In 2013 he installed the public sculpture "Dawes Crossing" at the intersection of Dawes Road and Victoria Park Avenue in Toronto, Ontario. The piece integrates the outline of a traditional barn with a solar wand wind-powered system that irrigates a small garden beneath the barn. The sculpture was negatively received by some local residents, who were confused as to what the purpose of the structure was.
His 2013 public artwork "Raincatcher" is installed outside the Edmonds Community Centre in Burnaby, British Columbia.
In 2015, Harding completed the public sculpture "Reverb" outside the General Motors Centre in Oshawa, Ontario. Harding also collaborated with CIMA+, DTAH and others to complete a master plan for the Alton Millpond landscape art and pond rehabilitation project in the community where he resided, Caledon, Ontario.
Just prior to his death in 2016, Harding had been selected to create a public artwork outside the Royal York (TTC) subway station in Toronto Ontario.
Collections.
Harding's work is included in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Canada and the Canada Council Art Bank.


Coat of arms of Berlin

The coat of arms of Berlin is used by the German city state as well as the city itself. Introduced in 1954 for West Berlin, it shows a black bear on a white shield.
On top of the shield is a special crown, created by the amalgamation of the mural crown of a city with the so-called people's crown ("Volkskrone"), used in Germany to denote a republic. Berlin's various boroughs use their own emblems.
The bear has been used as a charge in the Berlin coat of arms since 1709, formerly alongside the eagles of Brandenburg and Prussia.
A bear occurs on seals, coins and signet rings from as early as the late 12th century (but not as heraldic charge before 1709), presumably due to a canting association with the city's name.
History.
The oldest preserved and known seal of Berlin is from 1253. It depicts the Brandenburg Eagle spreading its wings in a clover-shaped archway. The text on the seal is "SIGILLVM DE BERLIN BVRGENSIVM" (seal of Berlin's citizens). It supposedly was the seal of Berlin's first mayor Marsilius.
A later seal dated to 1280 shows bears as supporters of the Brandenburg coat of arms. The bear appears to have risen in popularity during the 17th century, with an early depiction on a coat of arms in a signet ring dated 1603, and it was adopted as a heraldic charge in 1709.
The shield was now divided in three parts, showing the bear below the eagles of Brandenburg and Prussia.
Heraldist Adolf Matthias Hildebrandt in 1883 designed a number of proposals for a new coat of arms. One of these was the simplified "azure a bear rampant sable" with a mural crown in the crest. This was in use as minor coat of arms from 1920, and was adopted as the only coat of arms of West Berlin in 1954, while East Berlin continued to use the design of 1935.
State logo.
To enable civilians and non-governmental institutions to express their affinity with Berlin, the Senate of the Interior and Sports provided a logo which features the arms' shield without the crown in black and white or coloured versions.
Legal status.
The coat of arms was laid down in a law of 1954:
Symbol of Berlin.
The bear has come to be used as the mascot of Berlin, and was used almost excessively by local authorities, so that Hans Brendicke, editor of the journal of the Historical Society of Berlin, in 1896 remarked on the ubiquity of badly designed bears in Berlin. A member of the Historical Society went on to collect a total of 273 different representations of bears in Berlin.
Hildebrandt in 1915 again complained about the excesses of variation in the bear, especially deviation from the Prussian tincture of black on white.
The bear has remained the city's mascot,
and in 2001 has been developed into the so-called "Berlin Buddy Bears", fiberglass sculptures of bears first introduced in 2001, have been used to promote the qualities of "tolerance" and "Weltoffenheit" (cosmopolitanism) associated with the city.


Boating (Manet)

Boating is an 1874 painting by French artist Édouard Manet in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Done in oil on canvas, the painting depicts a man (believed to be Manet's brother in law, Rodolphe Leenhoff) and an unknown woman boating on the River Seine at Argenteuil in the Paris suburbs.
In the work Manet uses a delicate touch to exploit the broad planes of color and strong diagonals of Japanese prints.
The work is on view in Gallery 818.


Michelangelo Pittatore

Michelangelo Pittatore (12 February 1825, Asti - 24 March 1903, Asti) was an Italian painter who specialized in portraits and religious paintings.
Biography.
His father originally wanted to be a painter, but gave it up to support his family, becoming a framer and decorator instead. When he saw that his son had some artistic talent, he sent him, at the age of eleven, to study with Agostino Cottolengo, who he remained with until 1838.
When he turned fourteen, his father decided that he needed more formal instruction and enrolled him in classes at the Accademia di San Luca in Rome. He also copied works by the Old Masters and created some original works inspired by theirs.
In 1845, he received his first commission, from the knights of the Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation, for portraits that would be presented to Queen Maria Cristina. The Queen was impressed and, two years later, commissioned him to do decorations for the Sanctuary of Oropa (designed by Canina), as well as some private residences. He remained in Rome until 1848, when political events made it wiser to go back home.
Thanks to commissions from the Vicar of Costigliole, he was able to return to Rome in 1852. He soon became an habitué of the Antico Caffè Greco, where he became a lifelong friend of Rudolf Lehmann. For a time, he concentrated on works that combined traditional still-lifes with elements of genre painting, although continuing to do his usual portraits. He made occasional trips home, where he created some religious works, then returned there in 1859.
In 1868, possibly at the prompting of his friend, Lehmann, he moved to London. Once there, he became part of the city's Italian community and made the acquaintance of Giuseppe Mazzini, who gave him a letter of introduction that gained him entry to the upper echelons of Victorian society. The high point of his career there was an exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts.
He returned to Italy in 1872 where, after 1880, his portraits began to show the influence of photography. He died peacefully at home in 1903. In his will, he left 10,000 Lire to the city of Asti, to be used for art education.


Child of God (film)

Child of God is a 2013 American crime drama film co-written and directed by James Franco, and starring Scott Haze, based on the novel of the same name by Cormac McCarthy. It was selected to be screened in the official competition at the 70th Venice International Film Festival and was an official selection of the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. The film made its United States premiere at the 51st New York Film Festival and then was screened at the 2013 Austin Film Festival.
Plot.
Set in mountainous Sevier County, Tennessee, in the 1950s, "Child of God" tells the story of Lester Ballard. Ballard is a dispossessed, violent man whom the narrator describes as "a child of God much like yourself perhaps." Ballard's life is a disastrous attempt to exist outside the social order. Successively deprived of parents and homes, and with few other ties, Ballard descends literally and figuratively to the level of a cave dweller, as he falls deeper into madness, crime and degradation.
Production.
On September 14, James Franco announced at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival that he was set to direct an adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's third novel "Child of God".
In January 2012, it was announced that Scott Haze had signed on to play Lester Ballard, the film's protagonist. It was also announced that Tim Blake Nelson and Jim Parrack had signed on to play Sheriff Fate and Deputy Cotton, respectively. Production on the film began on January 31, 2012, in West Virginia.
Reception.
The film received mixed to negative reviews, holding a rating of 42% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. The critical consensus states: "An obviously reverent adaptation that fails to make a case for the source material being turned into a movie, "Child of God" finds director James Franco outmatched by Cormac McCarthy's novel."


Gualtiero Tumiati

Gualtiero Tumiati ( 8 May 1876 – 23 April 1971) was an Italian actor and stage director.
Life and career.
Born in Ferrara, Tumiati studied at the College of the Oaks in Florence and there he attended the acting courses held by Luigi Rasi. He later graduated in law and while working as an apprentice lawyer at his father's law firm he started performing in some local stage companies. Tumiati's breakout role was Cyrano de Bergerac in a critically acclaimed representation of the Edmond Rostand's eponymous play held in 1910. With his wife, the actress and painter Beryl Hight, in 1928 Tumiati founded the "Sala Azzurra" ("Blue Room"), one of the first Avant-garde theaters in Italy. He taught acting at the Accademia d'Arte Drammatica in Rome and at the Accademia dei filodrammatici in Milan. Gone blind, his last role was in the blind Tiresias in a representation of Sophocles' "Oedipus Rex" held in 1969 in the La Scala theatre.


The Hunted Slaves

The Hunted Slaves is a mid 19th century painting by British artist Richard Ansdell. Done in oil on canvas, the work depicts two African American slaves facing down a group of hunting dogs as the two slaves flee. The work is in the collection of the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool.