As I sit here finishing the last of my year end papers, I find myself procrastinating drifting away to a sweeter place and scowering the web for the finest pâtisserie's/bakeries from around the world and discovering some marvelous local ones on the way.
There seems to be something wonderful and magical that these shops have that lure you to them and when inside turns into a means of escape where we get lost in the aroma, decor, and of course the decadent variety of tasty treats they have to offer, all perfectly positioned in a linear fashion behind the glass that stands between you and the object of your affection.
It's like the world gets better when you step into this lovely little realm. Anyone have any notable ones that I need to know about?
Massimo Gammacurta's logo lollipops from Paris Fashion week! It made me think of the edible designer collection at the Berkeley Hotel in the Knightsbridge of London's fashionable high tea. I think that Louboutin cookie is the only Louboutin I could actually afford.
What flavours/tastes would you associate certain designers with?
A few that I can think of at the moment: Chanel - oysters/cavier/champaign. Betsy Johnson - strawberry shortcake-ish. Prada - something on the lines of a full bodied Merlot.
Thought I'd shift the attention to men's fashion for this post. I love this Tom Ford quote as he perfectly sums it up, "If a man is poorly dressed, first you notice the clothes then the man. Now if the man is well dressed, first you take notice of the man, and then his clothes." - Tom Ford
I quite admire those that put a little effort into embellishing their wrists, as it's a part of the body that I find often gets neglected (well for me at least!) in the dress up department. Here are a few examples of ladies who do it right while making it look effortless and tasteful (best viewed when zoomed in). It is something that's definitely worth noticing as it's the little details that matter.
When I should have been reading about Manet and an article by James Rubin entitled The Artist as Subject: the Paris of Édouard Manet. I actually went on a blog break and came across this wicked Kanye West video for his song Heartless. It’s not his next single, Amazing will be. He is dropping the idea since there’s another video out there that’s doing the same technique.
I had this idea to relate Kanye West to Impressionist painter Édouard Manet in order to relieve my guilt for procrastination. In my research I found that both approach the expression of art in a similar fashion. Manet took his own world as subject matter for painting, declaring a social position and artistic attitude much like Courbet. Manet’s art had captured something of a modern consciousness where his visual and social experiences were coextensive. He referred to his hometown and always put his origins and loyalties on display. Manet’s name was associated with radical, avant-garde destruction to tradition and throughout the decade received lots of criticism for his painting style, particularly for his paintings Déjeuner sur l’herbe and Olympia. Manet painted with Monet and Renoir at Argenteuil where they influenced each other a lot and shared an interest in modern subject. A critic named Louis Gonse considered Manet to be the "father of modernism."
Édouard Manet - Déjeuner sur l’herbe and Olympia (1863)
If you really think about it Kanye West is not so different in producing music and clothing instead of paintings. His lyrics are similar in Manet’s subject matter in that he rhymes about what he’s about and his experiences and loyalties. His recent album 808s & Heartbreak pushes the boundaries of what is considered to be acceptable in rap music. On the subject of criticism, Kanye has been dubbed “Mr. Controversial” and has received a plethora of criticism during his career about his political lyrics and his memorable Bush line during the Hurricane Katrina fundraiser. Kanye West’s music videos are an art form of their own. They are iconoclastic and innovative going above and beyond to produce an effective visual to illustrate what he raps (or sings) about. Like any artist they become influenced by their peers and their environment this is not any different in the hip-hop world. Kanye has been influenced by producer RZA from Wu-Tang Clan, Daft Punk, Michael Jackson, and Jay Z just to name a few. He has worked with numerous artists throughout his career who have shared his creative vision and have integrated it into their works of art. Kanye West has been considered to be one of the most commercially successful "back-pack" rappers. (Back-pack rapper: Person who raps about real life stuff that matters and his experiences. He is true to himself while rapping and uses his head and heart to write not simply with a pen and producing meaningless words). Perhaps Kanye West is our modern day Manet?
So there you have it: Art history meets Hip-hop. I wonder if Professor Carney would appreciate my juxtaposition? McCleary would for sure!
Images 1. en.wikipedia.org 2 & 3. fadis.com 4. prettymuchamazing.com 5. youtube.com (Screenshot of a fanmade typographic video for Amazing)
On one of many procrastination trips I stumbled upon this and thought it was quite lovely and perfect seeing as Valentine's day is just around the corner. Everyone has their own unique definition of love (this is where I would say the "Different strokes for different folks" phrase that I use quite often) so I'm curious to know...what is love to you? ♥
School is getting rather hectic at the moment thus the lack of updates! But hopefully after these assignments I will get back to regular updates and finally getting around to personalizing this blog! Thanks to those who keep checking back! Heart you.
I came across this quote on my way to school one day on the topic of breaks which I thought I'd leave you for the time being.
"A break between relationships is crucial for the self-reflection needed to improve behaviour patterns."
