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Realism

Culture, Fine Art

During the 19th century, the Academic Art movement was extremely popular, incorporating themes of classic figures and themes, symbolism but above all, a realistic execution.  The French Academy, of course, took this to extreme lengths in that they pretty much decided that this style was the only worthwhile form of artistic expression and tried to suppress all other — which later led, perhaps justifiably, to their excoriation by the Impressionists and a subsequent loss of popularity.

Which I think is a shame, because along the way we lost the works of some incredibly-talented artists, such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau (pronounced “booger-oh”, for non-Francophiles).

I have a great fondness for Bouguereau’s work, as it happens, because while some of his paintings are kinda ordinary, there are several instances of startling and unsettling undertones.  Let’s start with the regular stuff:

All very innocent, really.  But one of the underlying reasons for this classicism was that it was a way of getting around the censors:  as long as the theme was classical, you see, an artist could depict pretty much anything of a more, shall we say, revealing nature.

Not to say implicitly sexual:

And just so we’re clear on the topic, here’s Bouguereau’s depiction of Dante and Virgil in the Inferno:

Now that’s realism.  Those effete Impressionists pale by comparison.

Large Caliber, Tiny Guns

Gratuitous Gun Pics

It’s been a while — too long, really — since I posted a Gratuitous Gun Pic, for which I apologize.  Here’s one that has me puzzled, though, and it comes from Collectors:

And here’s my question:  why on earth would anyone want a lightweight snubnosed revolver in .44 Mag?  And that especially when the entries are literally one after the other, and the prices are more or less the same?

I know, the pics are woefully small, so here’s the addendum (links in pics):

Lemme tell you, I even find the latter’s 5″ barrel a little short for comfort — but it’s still way better than that 329’s weeny pipe.

Of the Scandium lightweight frame we will not speak.

Discuss.

So Long, Faerie

Corporate Wokism, Drive Time

It’s probably too late, of course, but I see that Jaguar Land Rover (JLR, to use their stupid non-brand acronym) has finally decided to can the woke twerp who turned Jag into… well, nothing.

Just the “relaunch” ad’s smug payoff line was enough to set my teeth on edge:

“We’re here to delete ordinary. To go bold. To copy nothing.”

I hate to tell them this but if Jaguar was anything, it wasn’t “ordinary”.  And frankly, if anything was worth copying, it was Jaguar’s heritage of wonderful, sleek and bold designs.

I’d post pics of the suggested modern replacement for the above (as envisaged by the now-departed Gerry McGovern), but I don’t want to ruin anyone’s appetite.

I just wonder what Jag is going to do now?

Update:  OMFG

Culinary Discovery

Food & Drink

The Englishman sent me this merry little picture:

Of course, I had no idea what he meant (quite a common feature in our conversations, btw), so when I sought clarification (“WTF are you talking about?”), I got this:

Badger hams, I think they were a regular on the sideboard at Tuckers Grave. Badger are at their best from October to November, being fat and succulent by then.

The flesh can be treated as young pig meat in every respect, it being just as rich and having the flavor of a young pig. It can be cured by salting, the hams being exceptionally good fare. Badger pies are even better than pork pies, hot or cold.

Badger Ham, To Bake
A badger ham will weigh 7 to 8 pounds and needs cooking very carefully. Soak the ham for at least 6 hours in cold water. Wash it after soaking in lukewarm water. Cover it with a rough paste made with 3 pounds of flour and 3 pounds of water; make sure to wrap it well. Bake in a moderate oven, pre-heat to 350 F for 2½ to 3 hours.

Remove the paste and cover with bread raspings whilst still hot, if to be served cold. If to be served hot, serve with broad beans and fresh parsley sauce or cider sauce.

I had no idea that badgers were edible.

Also, I have no idea what he means by “Tuckers Grave” or “bread raspings”.

Two nations divided by a common language, we are.

Okay:  Tucker’s Grave Inn is a pub just outside Bath:

Of course, The Englishman assumes that I would be familiar with all the pubs around his farm — admittedly, not an altogether incorrect assumption — but in fact, I take it as a shortcoming of his hospitality that he’s never taken me there. [making note]

Bread raspings are the equivalent of panko crumbs.