SEASIDE In our local Northeast and North Yorkshire areas in the UK, we are blessed with many wonderful seaside places to visit and explore. We can access the sandy beaches of Alnmouth and Bamborough on the Northumberland coast or travel by car, bus or rail to larger towns like Whitby and Scarborough. We can visit smaller quaint places; like Saltburn, Sandsend, Runswick and Robin’s Hood Bay which also have amazing views. In this piece I wanted to explore our love of the seaside from Victorian times through art, consider the idea of the beach through literature, film and music and look at the Italian connection with the popularity of ice-cream in our culture. ART The lovely innocent painting above is called, Summer Day, Brighton Beach from c.1909 by Americal impressionist painter, Edward Henry Potthast. This Brighton Beach is near Brooklyn, New Jersey. Click the PIC to read more.
ART - THE SWING BY JEAN-HONORE FRAGONARD (1732-1806) We encounter different relationships in art and literature that have an impact on the human soul, which hopefully can increase our awareness and understanding of different aspects of the human condition. In this article I have chosen to examine some French relationships expressed in art and literature that cover the romantic, the dangerous and the unfortunate. The scene above is very romantic and light-hearted, it is the famous rococo painting entitled, The Swing or L'Escarpolette, it’s full titile is, The Happy Accidents of the Swing or Les Hasards heureux de l'escarpolette. We see a beautiful young lady, an aristocrat dressed in her pale pink silk and white lace finery, complete with fashionable bergère or shepherdess hat, throwing caution to the wind as she kicks off her dainty shoe, exposing her slender, silk-stockinged legs, as she enjoys the full movement of the swing in motion. Click the PIC to read more.
Georges Seurat: Sunday Afternoon on the Island of Grande Jatte - Un dimanche apres-midi sur l'ile de la Grande Jatte, c.1884-86. Art - These long warm summer days are perfect for planning a get together with friends or family; ideal for having a picnic in the park, or some other sunny spot with a magnificent view, in the countryside, near a riverbank or on the coast. Click the PIC to read more.
If you happen to live in York, or if you are planning a visit there this summer, then you may want to catch a wonderful exhibition at the York Art Gallery… click the PIC to read more.
Hello and welcome! I have selected this beautiful image for June’s article, which is aptly called Flaming June. Please click on the image to read the article in full.
Welcome to my website and my news/blog about arts and culture. I’m pleased to announce the birth of my novel, Aegean Adventure, which is now in paperback format from Amazon, please see the My Books page. Click the PIC to read more.
Vanda’s News & Blogvandacapaldi2026-04-08T17:05:25+01:00
