What Norman Rockwell's Thanksgiving Picture's Really About

What Norman Rockwell's Thanksgiving Picture's Really About

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We all love visual shorthand for our lives, whether it’s the Apple logo for technology or a flag for patriotism. Just as Thomas Nast’s version of Santa Claus endures as the quintessential Christmas image, Norman Rockwell’s classic painting of an American family at Thanksgiving (detail shown above, full picture here) has stood for seven decades as the single

How Rodin Turned Early Neurology into Modern Sculpture

How Rodin Turned Early Neurology into Modern Sculpture

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When we look at the sculpture of Auguste Rodin, we can’t help but feel what his figures feel. Every inch of those sculpted bodies “speaks” the language of passion, whether it be of joy, love, yearning, or anguish. In a recent study of Rodin’s The Gates of Hell, art historian Natasha Ruiz-Gómez of the University of Essex links

How We Almost Lost JFK Twice

How We Almost Lost JFK Twice

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This week we mark the loss half a century ago of President John F. Kennedy. For that generation, Kennedy’s death was the “where were you” moment. For our generation, the “where were you” moment is September 11th. In the middle of all that devastation, few knew that we “lost” JFK in that moment, too. Locked away in a

How Raymond Pettibon Puts Words, Pictures, and Anger Back Together

How Raymond Pettibon Puts Words, Pictures, and Anger Back Together

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“I could erase an entire life,” thinks a pensive Adolf Hitler as he stares into his mirror in one of the many striking images from the career of artist Raymond Pettibon. In our time, when words mean little and images deceive, Pettibon creates art that rewrites the meaning of words and images erased by modern society by uniting

Should Films Be Rated for Sexism?

Should Films Be Rated for Sexism?

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Movie ratings in the United States today boil down to a few simple elements—sex bombs, f-bombs, and real (fake) bombs. Too much sex or nudity, too much profanity, or too much violence will win your film an R or maybe even an NC-17 rating, which can, depending on the filmmaker’s target audience, spell either doom or big box

Munch at 150: More to Scream About?

Munch at 150: More to Scream About?

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HomeBlogsPicture This Munch at 150: More to Scream About? by Bob Duggan November 8, 2013, 9:18 AM If you know only one work of modern art, it’s probably The Scream. More people know that “Mona Lisa” of modern angst than know the name of the artist that painted it over a century ago—Edvard Munch. From 1893 through 1910,

What Is the Legacy of Calvin and Hobbes?

What Is the Legacy of Calvin and Hobbes?

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HomeBlogsPicture This What Is the Legacy of Calvin and Hobbes? by Bob Duggan November 5, 2013, 9:10 PM Is there anyone who doesn’t like Bill Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes? I say “like” and not “liked” in the past tense, because the irrepressible Calvin and his faithful stuffed tiger Hobbes feel as present and lovable now as when Watterson

Making the “Divine” Bach Human Again

Making the “Divine” Bach Human Again

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HomeBlogsPicture This Making the “Divine” Bach Human Again by Bob Duggan November 2, 2013, 7:21 AM “This is what I have to say about Bach’s life’s work,” Albert Einstein once remarked. “Listen, play, love, revere—and keep your trap shut.” But how can anyone listen to the “divine” music of Johann Sebastian Bach and not wonder about a man