history | Daydream Tourist

Apr 17

Dutch Interiors Spaces

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about genre paintings of the Dutch masters, it’s the importance of the domestic interior. In some of these paintings you see individuals, families, and colleagues carrying on their daily business with a quiet diligence. I am always impressed by the clean and orderly world these characters occupy. Nothing is ostentatious, nor it is boring. Judging from the open windows throughout Amsterdam, the modern Dutch have maintained their historic skill at creating peaceful interior design.

Here are just some of the modern and recreated examples of Dutch interiors I found in Amsterdam along with their art historical counterparts.

Rembrandt, “De Staalmeesters (The Sampling Officials)” 1662, Rijksmuseum Museum, Amsterdam

Apr 3

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Back from Spring Break!

As you probably noticed, I’ve been slacking on my weekly daydreaming. That’s because I picked up last minute, mileage tickets (read: free!) and had only 4 days to plan a whirlwind Spring Break! I didn’t end up having the city and museum break that I was thinking about, but I had an incredible time! Lots of new cities and new sights; I even wrapped up some unfinished business from this summer.

I have lots of art and history to share but first let me give you some clues about my trips via a new (well, actually very old) media.

Apr 1

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ArtSmart Roundtable – Trust me, that’s a lion

The monthly ArtSmart Roundtable brings together some of the best art history-focused travel blogs with a post around a common theme. In honor of April Fool’s Day, April 1, were looking at funny, weird or optical illusions in art. You can find links below to all the group’s examples this month. Enjoy!

With zoos and photography, we all know what exotic animals look like and certainly take that for granted. But what if you lived 500 years ago? If the you are trying to tell a story that required an animal you’ve honestly never seen before, then what do you do? Well most artists just made it up! Whales, leopards, and eagles can all look way off.

Mar 12

wood fence, Nauset Light Beach, Cape Cod

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A Day on Cape Cod

Maybe its because I’m really ready for Spring, but I’ve been thinking a lot about summer in Cape Cod. After 3 years in New England, I only got to the Cape this past year, and even then for only a day. Like a lot of the coastal US, the communities along the Cape were filled with summer cottages, ice cream shops, fish fry stands and eclectic craft shops. Everything seemed to exude the relaxation and fun of a summer vacation destination. I enjoyed exploring the extensive windswept beaches, the sea-side trails and a chance to take in the crashing waves. Cape Cod has had a rough winter with damaging wind and high tides. Hopefully the erosion has been minimal and the beaches are still there waiting for Spring too.

Nauset Lighthouse Beach along the Eastern coast of Cape Cod:

Feb 25

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Art Frames and Friedrich Wahle

Admittedly, my Friedrich Wahle research has been on the back-burner since I found the print version of my painting. I’ve mostly been trying to monitor the auction market where a few of his paintings surface every year. Interestingly, I happened across a television appraisal of a Fritz Wahle painting on Kunst & Krempel (Art & Stuff), the German version of Antiques Roadshow. It’s a well executed scene of a couple sharing a few private words at a dinner party which I think the show entitled “Eavesdropping”. While the image is beautiful, it was the frame that really got my attention – it is the same as the one on my Wahle!