Song Dynasty ceramics marked “guan” were designated for use by the Imperial Court. But the term came to be associated with one of the Five Great Kilns in particular, near Zhejiang during the Southern Song (1127-1279). Guan ware is technically a form of celadon, but the precise glazing technique is not entirely understood. Multiple layersContinue reading “Ceramics Saturdays: Guan Ware”
Category Archives: magpie
Friday Favorites: Dance Performances to Watch
Since I posted on K-pop this week, I thought it would be nice to do a list of some of my favorite dance performances to watch. My tastes run toward street and Latin (mostly flamenco, which I studied for 2 years), so that’s what I’m sharing here: Might as well start with K-pop then, right?Continue reading “Friday Favorites: Dance Performances to Watch”
Japanese Straw Animal Sculptures
Mammoth Straw Creatures Populate Japanese Farmland in the Annual Wara Art Festival https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2021/09/wara-art-festival-japan/
Ceramics Saturdays: Ding Ware
The second entry in our series on the Five Great Kilns of the Song Dynasty…Ding ware was produced at a kiln in the north of China, near Hebei, during what is known as the Northern Song, the first of two peaks of imperial and cultural power during the 300-year dynastic period. Ding wares are typicallyContinue reading “Ceramics Saturdays: Ding Ware”
Friday Favorites: Feedly Cleanup +
Here are some more favorites from my Feedly plus some other things I came across this week that I thought were worth sharing: Rise of Phoenixes on Netflix. Don’t strap in for this one unless (a) you have about 70 hours to burn and (b) you really like brocade. But Chen Kun alone is worthContinue reading “Friday Favorites: Feedly Cleanup +”
Raven stamps are out!
Some Awesome Kid Art
I’m lucky to have friends with kids with some serious artistic skills. Today I thought I’d feature some of my favorite work of theirs. This first one is from my friend Amy’s son Graham. I love the pinwheel flower…. This next one is his older brother Ethan’s. I love the proportions here and the colors.Continue reading “Some Awesome Kid Art”
Ceramics Saturdays: Jun Ware
In homage to Tiara Thursdays, I thought I would start a series about ceramics, a minor obsession of mine I’ve previously written about here and here. We’re starting with the Five Great Kilns of the Song Dynasty (960-1279 CE), each of which produced wares that were collected by emperors, scholars, and aristocrats as soon asContinue reading “Ceramics Saturdays: Jun Ware”
Friday Favorites: Vlogs (Calmtainment and Lifestyle)
I became a pretty serious consumer of YouTube vlogs over the course of the pandemic. Naturally there was a strong escapism factor, but I also just appreciated these folks who were going to the emotional effort of sharing their stories and lives with the rest of us who were starved for community. Here are theContinue reading “Friday Favorites: Vlogs (Calmtainment and Lifestyle)”
Letter of Recommendation: Tiara Thursdays
Do not underestimate a tiara: it is really the Platonic ideal of jewelry. Unlike other pieces that can “wear” you rather than you wearing them–necklaces, etc.–a tiara places that issue entirely to the side. Because wearing a tiara is an event in and of itself. The entire raison d’être of a tiara is to dignifyContinue reading “Letter of Recommendation: Tiara Thursdays”
The Rookery 