Art on Sunday Stamps

I joined Sunday Stamps hosted by Viridian in the second week it ran and have participated since up to this, its 200th edition. As Viridian is handing over the baton after this week to Violet Sky I must pay tribute to Viridian for all the hard work she has put in for us to reach that 200 milestone.

Over the weeks there have been many stamps depicting art of various forms, but I am returning to British paintings on stamps issued on 12 August 1968. I have shown two of these before but have since acquired the full set of four.

Great Britain - British Paintings

The paintings are:

• 4d Queen Elizabeth I - unknown artist
• 1s6d Ruins of St Mary Le Port - John Piper
• 1s Pinkie - Thomas Lawrence
• 1s6d The Hay Wain - John Constable

The 'Darnley Portrait' of Elizabeth I hangs in the National Portrait Gallery.Painted about 1575 it was named after a previous owner and shows the Queen with a crown and sceptre on the table beside her. The portrait is the source of the face pattern 'The Mask of Youth' used for portraits of Elizabeth for years to come.

John Piper was commissioned as a war artist during WWII to paint the 'Home Front.' His series of paintings of bombed buildings included the Bristol church of St Mary le Port which had been hit in attacks on Bristol Docks in November 1940

Pinkie, painted in 1794 by Thomas Lawrence hangs in the Huntington Library at San Marino, California. The museum has given it the title of Sarah Barrett Moulton, Pinkie. Sarah was about eleven years old when she posed for the artist.

Constable's Hay Wain finished in 1821 is one of the greatest and most popular English paintings. It show the wagon in the River Stour between the counties of Suffolk and Essex - the left bank is in Suffolk, the right in Essex.

For links to other art, cross over to Sunday-stamps-200.

Bushes and Trees - Thematic Photography

I've a lot to choose from for this week's theme of bushes and trees. As this fellow is singing his heart out in my garden I thought he deserved pride of place - the tree is just the stage for him.

Song Thrush

Image how old this beech tree must have been before it lost it's top. What's the message it is passing on?

Beech Tree in Preston Park (Eaglescliffe)

How many points would you give out of 10 for this week of art?

The Tree with no name (Artist - Anon)

For some a tree is an essential part of life.

Wait your turn (Photographer - Anon)

You've seen Fountains Abbey on my blog before - it fits a tree theme too.

Fountains Abbey, North Yorkshire

Coming closer to home, this is the St Mary Magdalene Church at Yarm.

St Mary Magdalene from the River Tees

Finally we are back to my garden for trees and bushes photographed in April 2004.

Garden View

View from another angle

Some bushes are full of thorns and their appearance may be deceptive like this on my garden wall - the bush is next door.

Pyracantha (1 inch thorns)

For more trees and shrubs please check out others at Carmi's thematic photographic 195

Sepia Saturday's Library

Despite the amount of time I spend in the local libraries and my love of books this is what I found.

Unknown Library (?) Art

However at the British Library some works need translation.

Miniature of the martyrdom of Thomas Becket, and the beginning of his suffrage, Book of Hours

(18 January 2012 Source British Library manuscripts blog)

For the interior of a library the years have moved on.

Library - 1842

Perhaps the linguists among my readers can translate the description: Source - Eberhard Gailer: Neuer orbis pictus für die Jugend oder Schauplatz der Natur, der Kunst und des Menschenlebens. 5. Auflage, Reutlingen, Joh. Conr. Mäcken jun., 1842.

The source for may photos shown on Sepia Saturday is often the Library of Congress so here's another from there.

Low Library Rotunda - Columbia University, New York City - 1900-1910

 Then there is this shot where a Pets for Therapy dog was the star. The venue's a library.

Luka, a Bernese Mountain Dog in Yarm Library

 For more bookish library posts pay a visit to Sepia Saturday 120