Tablescaping

In 2006, one of the words to be added to the new edition of the Oxford American Dictionary was the word “tablescape.” The word has been in use since 1991, but it has not come into common usage until recently. Tablescape basically means “everything you put on a table.” Although that is a simple definition, the possibilities of what a tablescape actually looks like are endless. Table-scaping is the art of decorating your table with a variety of different “tools,” in the form of tablecloths, runners, napkins, and placemats.
A tablecloth can be described as simply a covering for your table, but it is far from simple. There are many fabric choices, quality, style and shape, to choose from. The tablecloth will offer the most protection for the table, as it will usually cover the entire surface.
A table runner is similar to a tablecloth, but does not cover the whole table. Runners can be used to protect certain parts of the table while revealing the surface of the table in areas as well. For example, placing runners across the width of the table can be used as placemats on each side. A runner could also be placed down the center of the table to provide a place for other decorations so that they do not scratch the table surface.
Napkins and placemats are also available in a variety of choices. Although paper napkins and plastic placemats are good for picnics, when sitting down to dinner, a quality set of placemats and napkins can add a great deal of sophistication to your tablescape.
When it comes to tablescaping, the way you decorate your table can be as elaborate or simple as you like. The style you choose is entirely your own, which makes the possibilities endless. This could overwhelm some people, but if you approach it piece by piece, designing a tablescape can be very enjoyable. The secret is to start with a simple color theme or style design, and then stick to it. Once you decide on the main idea, the choices become much more limited, making the project less intimidating. For example, if it is the winter holiday season and you would like a snowy theme, the best colors to start with would be white, blue, and light shades of purple. With this foundation, your options become more limited and focused.
Many people may ask why go to all the effort to create a tablescape. There are two reasons for why it is worth it. First, if you have chosen a quality, beautiful piece of furniture for your table, protecting it is important. The table is a furniture piece that is used constantly, possibly many times a day. The longevity of the table is key. Protection of the finish from scratching and marring is provided by use of a table linen or runner.
The second reason for tablescaping is the need to create a peaceful and attractive place for you to enjoy your meals. Having such a place to eat meals at is much healthier for you than simply grabbing food and eating it over the counter. Research studies have show that people who sit and eat meals at a table eat more health foods, digest those foods more thoroughly, and gain the most benefit for their bodies. Eating slowly, turning off the television and other distractions, and eating with other people have been shown to help this as well.
In short, a peaceful, attractive, and pleasing tablescape can do wonders for your mind and body. It not only provides you with a healthier style of eating meals, but also offers a unique decoration to your home that you can be proud of creating.

The Louvre Museum In Paris France

The Louvre was originally a royal palace that was built on the site of an old castle and added to by different Kings, but with the construction of Chateau de Versailles it became obsolete and was then turned into a museum back in the 1700's.
It was first given the name Musee Central des Arts, then it changed to the Musee Napoleon and from that changed its name again to the official title of Musee du Louvre, which is what it has been known as ever since, although is affectionately known as just The Louvre.
Being one of the oldest and largest museums, it is home to probably the most well-known painting in the world, the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci and has become the most famous and most visited art museum in the world with over 8 million visitors coming here every year.
In an easily accessible part of Paris located by the River Seine, The Louvre once again incorporates the beautiful Carrousel and the Tuileries Gardens that are a great place for a casual stroll, yet this means that it brings the museum outside with sculptures and statues from artists such as Aristide Maillol and Auguste Rodin.
Most people now find The Louvre recognisable by the large glass pyramid that is located in the central courtyard and this serves as the main entrance to this awe inspiring Paris museum, which is in alignment with the Champs-Elysees axis, but did you realise that it was only actually built in 1989! And it is from this point that tourists can access different temporary displays, the fascinating history of this world famous museum, along with the bookshop, Le Cafe Marly restaurant, etc, but also outside there is an equestrian statue of King Louis XIV.
Even if you are not a fan of art, you will still thoroughly enjoy your time at The Louvre, as it houses some very impressive collections, which include Egyptian, Roman and Greek artefacts, sculptures and other works of art that date back to the Middle Ages, right through to around 1850.
Realistically you need at least a day, or even more at The Louvre, as only allocating a few hours does not do the place justice, but it is extremely worthwhile obtaining a map of the place, as it is so vast you could end up missing exhibits you specifically wanted to see, especially if you have time restraints, yet do not be concerned that the exhibits are not all on one level as there are lifts to make them accessible to wheelchair users.
Obviously there is an entrance fee, but on the first Sunday of the month this and many other museums in Paris are completely free, however it also gets extremely busy, but arriving early and making a bee-line for famous exhibits like Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People, will ensure you get a good view before they get too crowded!
Yet when you need a well earned rest or need to refuel your body, then there is an enormous different choice of food on offer in the cafeterias and restaurants and incredibly, there are six different cafes and restaurants to choose from, that are open every day except for a Tuesday when the whole museum is also closed.
Whilst visiting The Louvre, do venture into the bookstore located in the Hall Napoleon under the glass pyramid and along with visitors guides available in more than ten different languages, it also stocks the largest selection of books on art history in France, plus has numerous other books, a children's section and even sells prints made up from the museums collection, with absolute thousands to choose from.
Now we quickly mentioned visitors guides, and if you are not fluent in the French language, then we would say that this is a must to fully appreciate the place, as many of the exhibit descriptions are not in any other language bar French, alternatively, if you plan your visit to the Musee du Louvre well in advance, you can have a guided tour that lasts about 2 hours and takes you round the most well known exhibits, leaving you to wander around the rest of this museum at your own leisure afterwards.
There will definitely be something of interest for everyone at The Louvre, including children, and it certainly lives up to its reputation of the best museum to visit when in Paris, but do bear in mind that it is closed every Tuesday and on national holidays, but is open from 9am to 6pm every other day and also has a late night opening on a Wednesday until 10pm.

Evaluate the Dexterity of Artists

Art gallery is the place where artists can exhibit their work to public. Art galleries can be interpreted as niche for artists and art lovers. In these galleries various forms of art is displayed such as sculptures, paintings, photography, handlooms etc. including animation art. The galleries are often used to display other artistic activities such as concerts or poetry reading.
The art galleries carry an objective: to promote art and artists. The works of some celebrated artists are preserved in these galleries. So, art lovers will find this place as a stand to evaluate the unique works of artists.

For fresh artists art gallery acts as a platform where they can show their adroitness to the public. An art gallery serves as spring board to unsung artists where they can propel their careers. Furthermore, art galleries organise showdowns and bestow scholarships to the fresh artists so that they can work on their passions.
Art gallery can be classified into private and public. The private art galleries are dominated by profit-motive. In these galleries, artists can sale their works. The private galleries are also named as contemporary art gallery and meant entirely for profit commercial gallery. Usually, these sorts of galleries are seen clustered together in large urban areas. Relatively to private galleries, the public galleries host works of selected and renowned artists. The public art galleries are funded by governments and an attempt to preserve some worthy works of art from extinction.
Today, the tradition of exhibiting art has been shifted from galleries to online. Using the facilities of online technology, artists and art lovers can upload multiple images and display on websites. They can either send it through emails or e-cards among friends for promoting. An art gallery is an ideal place where art lovers and artists can share their common interest and work in harmony for the sake of promoting art. Many art galleries carry status of local and international importance.
To find more information about art and artists visit an art gallery. At art galleries, art lovers avail an opportunity to meet renowned artists personally and evaluate their skills of demonstrating their ideas into the canvas.

Art and Culture

Europe has always been known for its cultural diversity, for being an entity forged by history and geography into a multiethnic and disparate whole, displaying a characteristic plural identity against a common backdrop. Hence, the vast diversity that the European continent has brought to the art of pictorial expression has been remarkable throughout the ages. The multiplicity in unity was the natural outcome of the relative isolation of the different parts and the tempering characteristic of having the same basic conditioning.
However, modern times tend rightly to use the term 'European' solely in its geographical sense, at the expense of the more subtle reference to that conglomerate of differing sensibilities and values distinguishing the old world in earlier times. After having watered down national and regional ties as determining causes for the creative act, it is but natural that the tendency moves on to a continental scale.
We may consider that this semantic evolution has entered its terminal phase as we advance into a largely harmonized 21st century. The ongoing extinction of the cultural sense of 'European' saw its beginnings in the 1960's and has gained momentum ever since. Media, flux and migrations transform the world into a mono-cultural society where geographical origin ceases to be a diversifying factor. In fact we are inevitably moving ahead, not only towards the end of European diversity, but towards the end of cultural diversity in general. This evolution is certain to be accomplished during the decades to come.
We can remain neutral as to the worth of this evolution and yet clamour with reason that our interest in art, as expression of human perception and sensibility, is doomed to diminish at the rate that standardization, reproduction, simplification, streamlining and machine language take hold.
This makes pre-1960's art all the more interesting. Not from a nostalgic point of view but simply for showing us the potential for variety. In the works of those times we are facing familiar yet puzzling manners of viewing a world whose diversity is still astonishing and above all stimulating. From that point onwards, the art world fell largely into repetition, make-believe and navel-staring. And most dramatically, the extension of the domain of art to include everyday trivia made the notion of art itself nonsensical.
For European painting, the subtleness of viewpoint, coming from a geographically small but still highly dismembered whole, created optimal conditions for innovation and creativity. Encounters with differently formed sensibilities brought dynamism to individual work, akin to the beneficial 'melting pot effect' that New York City enjoyed after the second world war thanks to a highly multicultural population. It is no wonder that the very last really creative acts of the abstract movement, and as such of the modern art movement as a whole, took place in such circumstances.
An international style has emerged, supplanting old concepts of regional schools and national manners. As everything went global, so did inevitably art. In the recent revival of painting this evolution is striking. Nothing in contemporary painting will make a particular cultural reference evident. For some time already, cultural precisions such as 'European' or 'American' have become meaningless.

The BYU Museum Of Art Features An Extensive Art Collection

The many museums that are dedicated to showcasing the art of different eras, peoples and cultures, are wonderful places to go to develop new understanding and insights about the artists and the message they are relaying through their art. Often, a sense of connection is developed between the museum patron and the artist. In some ways, thoughtfully viewing the pieces within a museum of art can even provide a spiritual experience and can bring about increased self awareness and understanding.
For those who work diligently to create the beautiful and meaningful art exhibitions that are found at a fine art museum, they strive to create presentations of art that lift and inspire. In most cases, the overriding desire is to foster an experience for the visitor through the various exhibitions that will nurture a more reflective state of mind, will increase the capacity for deeper inquiry, will foster a greater commitment to excellence and integrity, and will heighten the appreciation for other people, their cultures and ideas.
As of yet, the Museum of Art at BYU, or Brigham Young University, does not have a large following outside of the Mountain West where it is located. However, the facility, located in the college town of Provo, Utah, is one of the largest art museums in the region and it draws a significant number of visitors throughout the year, thanks to the dynamic rotation of art exhibitions that are showcased yearly.
The BYU art museum features an extensive permanent collection of art, world-class traveling art shows and a variety of unique temporary gallery exhibitions that help to fulfill the unique mandate and goals of the museum, as set out by the administration of the university and the museum. Accordingly, one of the most important roles of the museum is to contribute to the overall academic mission of the university.
From aspects of research and detailed study of the artwork in the museum collections, to the instruction and learning that happens in the art exhibitions, galleries, and classrooms, the museum is seen as playing a key role in the academic goals and objectives of many students at BYU. The museum also connects to broader community audiences through its many varied art exhibitions and community educational programs.
Since it first opened its doors in the fall of 1993, the Museum of Art at Brigham Young University has quickly become recognized as one of the premier university art museums anywhere in North America. In 2004, the Association of Art Museum Directors conducted a survey of more than 150 member museums. The BYU facility ranked number one in attendance for university campus art museums.
The BYU art museum has a permanent collection that in comprised of more than 16,500 art objects, which have a special emphasis on American historic art and religious art. The American art history collection is made up of paintings, photography, prints and works of sculpture from the later part of the 18th century to the present time. This collection includes significant pieces from the Hudson River School landscape paintings and many works of American impressionism as well.
Aside from the many permanent art exhibitions that the BYU Museum of Art features, the facility also frequently houses a number of traveling art exhibitions that come to them on loan from some of the world's finest museums. Some of the exhibitions that have been recently featured have come from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the London Museum, the Vatican, the Israel Antiquities Authority, and many other well-known collections.