Tag Archives: Sculpture
Enough room to swing a hundred babies in Oslo’s Frogner Park
Norwegians seem to be constantly coming from, going to, or actively engaged in robust outdoor activities. Oslo is a sea of bouncing ponytails (from the almost comical amount of joggers.) The trains are full of cross-country ski shleppers. Women in their seventies are hiking with backpacks and bedrolls. There’s a national obsession with cabins (one […]
The gods at Shuanglin temple are caged panthers
Before visiting someplace I’ve never been, I need to first project myself there in my imagination. I do this by picturing one essential cultural experience. It could be seeing an artwork, walking through a cathedral or listening to a particular sort of music. Without this initial mind-travel, I can’t conceptualize doing something so strange as, […]
Sculptures have weird necks in Tallinn
Tallinn is a beautiful city. Tallinn is a beautiful city full of sculptures with weird necks. HOB and I were checking out St. Nicholas Church in Tallinn and we saw this sculpture by the front door. “Whoa!” I said, in my most eloquent and sophisticated tone “that dude has a weird neck!!!” Then, on realizing that […]
On the run (from a nun) in Sandomierz Cathedral
Getting busted by a nun was the best thing that could have happened to us in Sandomierz. Because of our bus snafu in Zamość, we arrived later than expected and rushed our tour of the town. Now just look how funky this town hall is, one of those types of buildings that every generation adds something […]
Song, sculpture and huggy-huggy trees at the Bunan tribe’s farm
As soon as the man with the top-knot hairstyle dropped us off at the entry to the Bunan farm he took off to join in a performance. We left our bags and followed close behind, where other members of the tribe, wearing similar embroidered outfits, began a program of traditional Bunan singing and dance. The Bunan […]
Is that broken crockery on your pants or are you just happy to see me? Jiannian temple décor in Taiwan
The next time you’re in Taiwan find a temple and look at the roofline: dragons! There are always dragons on the Taiwan’s temple rooflines and they are fantastic. Go ahead and click on this beauty (I put a high res shot in just so you can appreciate the detail.) Notice the dragon’s dynamically twisting form, […]
Stećci, the mysterious medieval tomb sculptures of the Balkans (and a Bosnian coffee break)
Any of you nerds out there wait breathlessly for UNESCO to announce the newest additions to their list of World Heritage Sites? [Raises hand]. Well, a few days ago I was delighted to read that stećci, tombstones from medieval graveyards in the Balkans, had been added to the list. Most Stećci—about 60,000 of them—are found in graveyards in Bosnia […]
Giving torch-wielding putti the side eye in the Chapel of the Blessed Giovanni Orsini, Trogir
Okay, so I didn’t pay much attention during mass at the Cathedral of St. Lawrence in Trogir, Croatia. I mean, I sat quietly still and was passably respectful, but my face surely resembled that of a flounder: The reason for my flounder face? I was straining with all my power to get a look at the Chapel of […]
The jauntiness of Bilbao: Guggenheim Museum and caroling Basques
Bilbao is just right: budget friendly, full of lively contemporary architecture, a handsome old town, decent public transportation and of course a spectacular museum I’d really hate to be a pig in Spain. This isn’t even a specialty store–just a regular grocery and your choice of hanging pig legs. The Zubizuri (that’s White Bridge in Basque) […]
Picnic at the Cathedral 