On display in the palatial MNAC are 32 drawings by the gifted, though now unjustly forgotten Catalan artist, Xavier Nogués. The paramount ‘noucentiste’, Nogués reached considerable fame at the beginning of the 20th-century for his humorous drawings of popular Catalan scenes and aphorisms. The drawings, executed in a loose and confident style reminiscent of Honoré Daumier, are from Nogués’ once-famous book, ‘Picturesque Catalonia’, first published in 1919 with commentaries by the writer Francesc Pujols.
Rathaus
May 22, 2009 at 4:00 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: fun, rathaus
Classical music fans will enjoy an evening on Rathausplatz in front of Vienna’s mock-Gothic City Hall where the annual Rathaus film festival is once again underway. Throughout July and August there are nightly showings of operas and classical concerts filmed in Vienna’s famous auditoria. It’s worth arriving early as this is one of the city’s most popular summer freebies, as the gigantic screen and powerful soundsystem guarantee optimum listening. The whole area is surrounded by a variety of stands offering everything from sushi to strudel, attracting the locals and tourists alike.
The Wild Party
May 18, 2009 at 4:00 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: holiday, party, wild
Broadway may be getting down and dirty as never before, with Chicago and other Bob Fosse tributes, but George C Wolfe and Michael John LaChiusa’s musical adaptation of Joseph Moncure March’s 20s epic poem may be some of the raunchiest fare yet on the Great White Way. From the first sullen exchanges between Toni Collette’s Queenie and Burrs, her angry clown boyfriend played by Mandy Patinkin, it’s clear that the party which will transpire later that night will end in tears, and worse. An ensemble cast that includes the magnificent Eartha Kitt takes the audience through a rollicking jazz-driven orgy of lust, ambition, treachery and violence. Bracing stuff.
Art From Central Europe 1949-1999
May 2, 2009 at 4:00 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: 1949-1999, art, central, europe
The artistic views of ‘unofficial’ artists during the post-war regimes in Central Europe are aired in this comprehensive exhibition. The 120 works by 92 artists cover just about every artistic medium, from painting and sculpture to photography, video and installations. While the Iron Curtain was up, many of these artists worked in semi-secrecy and their labour is still practically unknown to the rest of the world. The current exhibition does much to shed light on artistic activity from one of the most creative areas of Europe.
