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Posts tagged ‘travel’

Jul 8

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“Visiting” Hungary at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival

As if the 4th of July weren’t exciting enough in Washington D.C., the Smithsonian host the annual Folklife Festival that week on the National Mall.  Bringing together international musicians, storytellers and craftspeople, the Festival celebrates culture and the preservation of traditional arts throughout the world.  Every year, three themes are selected for the festival and usually include a country, region, or collective community experience.  This year the themes were 1) Hungary, 2) Endangered Languages and 3) African-American fashion.

The Hungarian Village section of the festival sought to celebrate traditional music, dance and crafts as well as the people who are revitalizing that culture today.  There were informative museum-like exhibits, artisan demonstrations and lots of concerts.  Ever the international traveler, I was so excited to explore the Hungarian portion of the festival!

Hungarian tower

The Peacock Tower designed by Transylvanian architect Gyule Szilegyi stood at the center of the 2013 Smithsonian Folklife Festival.

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Jul 1

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The God of Mozia, Sicily

coastline of Mozia, Sicily, Italy

The monthly ArtSmart Roundtable brings together some of the best art-focused travel blogs to post on a common theme.  This month we are discussing great sculpture!  You can find links below for the group’s posts this month.  The summer heat has got me thinking about Sicily and so I’m going to introduce you to a phenomenal, ancient piece that I happened to stumbled across on a secluded island (really!).

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Jun 24

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The Healing Ascelpium of Pergamon, Turkey

sacred way to the Ascelpium, Pergamon

The sacred way to the Ascelpium, just outside Pergamon, Turkey.

Even without the advantage of modern MRI’s and antibiotics, the Ancient Greeks understood something about health.  Just outside many of the largest ruins from the ancient world, you will find a Sanctuary to Asclepius, God of Health.  Taking in sick locals and travelers alike, most of these centers included steam-rooms, baths, theaters and doctors ready to interpret the patient’s dreams.  Seemingly the best cures resulted from a little relaxation and spa time.  And since near death patients were secreted out of the facility, it appeared the no one died at the Ascelpium under the care of the priests.

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Jun 19

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Bernini’s Rejected French Sculpture

st peters interior, Rome

Bernini created the interior marble facade, canopy and high altar of St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City (Photo: rachel_titiriga, flickr)

Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598 – 1680) should be familiar to visitors to Rome.  He essentially created the Baroque city that we see today producing sculptures, fountains, buildings and the majority of the interior of St. Peter’s Basilica.  Considering that he started creating accurate portrait busts at 14 and continued to work until he was 82, Bernini is deservedly known as a prolific genius.  But did you know that even his work was occasionally rejected? Read more

Jun 17

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Big Thank Yous!

I want to send a big Thank You to all my readers!  I write to satisfy my own fascination and passion for art and travel and it makes me happy that others find these things as interesting as I do.  Within the WordPress blogging community there are several awards that are passed around through peer nomination.  I have been honored to get four of these over the last year but haven’t had a chance to write about them!  And so I need to catch up on some long overdue thanks to these wonderful bloggers who nominated me: MidLife Traveler, will wander…, Florence and the Historian, and Sharp and Keen!

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