Hans Holbein the Younger was German painter; draftsman; and designer renowned for the precise rendering of his drawings and the compelling realism of his portraits. Holbein was one of the greatest portraitists and most exquisite draftsmen of all time. Holbein was associated early on with the Basle publishers and their humanist circle of acquaintances. In Basle; Holbein was also active in designing woodcuts for title pages and book illustrations. He increased his reputation as a book illustrator by a series of woodcuts for the German translation of the Bible by Martin Luther. The artists most famous work in this area is a series of 41 scenes illustrating the medieval allegorical concept of the Dance of Death. Its scenes display an immaculate sense of order; packing much information about the lifestyles and habits of Deaths victims into a very small format. He completed also a series of pen-and-ink sketches for The Praise of Folie by the Dutch scholar Desiderius Erasmus. Holbein acted not only as a portraitist but also as a fashion designer for the court. The artist made designs for all the state robes of the king; he left; in addition; more than 250 delicate drawings for everything from buttons and buckles to pageant weapons; horse out-fittings; and book-bindings for the royal household. This choice of work indicates Holbeins Mannerist concentration on surface texture and detail of design; a concern that in some ways precluded the incorporation of great psychological depth in his portraits.
#483713 in eBooks 2015-10-08 2015-10-08File Name: B01C34V3EC
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Hamilton - The History of an "Ambitious City"By ScottoMark Osbaldestonrsquo;s ldquo;Unbuilt Hamilton: The City That Might Have Beenrdquo; is the third installment in his ldquo;Unbuiltrdquo; series. His previous two books focused on Toronto; Hamiltonrsquo;s one-time rival in what is known as the Golden Horseshoe region of southern Ontario.History is usually the stuff of what occurred and why. The ldquo;Unbuiltrdquo; series is ingenious in that it inverts the traditional proposition as it explores questions of what might have been and what events; personalities and politics prevented city building projects ndash; good and bad ndash; coming to fruition. Itrsquo;s a fascinating twist and speaks to the human need to explore modals of lost opportunity or; as they are more commonly known; matters of ldquo;should have; could have and would have.rdquo;Hamilton is known to some as the ldquo;Ambitious Cityrdquo;. Itrsquo;s a city whose history will strike a familiar chord with readers of Sinclair Lewisrsquo; Progressive Era novel ldquo;Babbittrdquo;. While ldquo;Babbittrdquo; is a satire of the American middle class; its author would chafe at the notion that his purpose in writing it was solely satirical. In fact; there is a thread of empathy that runs through the novel for its main character; George Babbitt and his civic pride; decency; ldquo;boosterismrdquo; and longing for an ldquo;American Dreamrdquo; that appears to have lost its way. In reading Markrsquo;s impeccably researched book; I can surmise that the ldquo;Ambitious Cityrdquo; of Hamilton had no shortage of its own George Babbitts and; for a young city with history ahead of it; this cannot be an entirely bad thing.As a kind of disclosure; I went to school with Mark. We were both attending Queenrsquo;s Universityrsquo;s Graduate Programme in History during 1990/91. I qualify my disclosure because I think the important bit lies in our long walks home after a lecture we shared. During those walks; I came to know Mark; his long list of interests and his passion for architecture and the ldquo;Rat Packrdquo;. We would debate frequently and I grew to respect how Mark always stated his position with eloquence; listened carefully to an opposing opinion; asked the perfect exploratory questions and consistently left me feeling better for conversation vigourously pursued. He brings these qualities to the books he writes.As I read ldquo;Unbuilt Hamiltonrdquo; and learned of the many fantastic projects that might have been (including a gorgeous proposal for an amphitheatre built into the ice-age rock face of the Niagara Escarpment) if not for the equally numerous competing visions for the city; I couldnrsquo;t help but wonder if Mark felt a sense of frustration while researching and writing his book. I had the opportunity to ask a version of the question at a recent lecture given by the author. His response was vintage Mark. It was eloquent; intelligent and persuasively presented. In essence Mark argued for the greater good that emerges from a civically engaged population in city planning.Markrsquo;s position is thoroughly democratic and in contrast to his fellow Hamiltonian; John Wodell; who wrote a visionary piece in 1903 called ldquo;Hamilton in 2003rdquo;; which is described in ldquo;Unbuilt Hamiltonrdquo;. Itrsquo;s a fascinating bit of work with intriguing illustrations by Julian Seavey. In the article; however; Wodell argues that the wondrous industrial city of millions he envisioned could only come about through the machinations of an unelected Board of Commissioners. Democracy and civic activism had only a tenuous role at best in Wodellrsquo;s Hamilton.Mark reinforced his argument with a personal anecdote. At the foot of the Niagara Escarpment; surrounded by wooded valleys and waterfalls; Hamilton is set in a beautiful part of the province. Many Hamiltonians have fought for decades to protect its environment from poorly planned development. Mark spoke of one such instance involving Hamiltonrsquo;s Red Hill Valley.For decades plans were made; scuttled and remade to build a freeway through the pristine valley. Markrsquo;s brother was one activist who lobbied against the project an was regularly questioned by his parents as to why he bothered to care. Markrsquo;s brotherrsquo;s response was simplehellip; ldquo;Walk through the valley.rdquo; And so; like any good civic-minded Hamiltonian; Markrsquo;s parents did just that the following weekend. They never asked ldquo;why bother?rdquo; again and instead joined forces with those who opposed the development.In the story is democracy and the activity of persuading and encouraging citizens to seek out a better future. Other cities have chosen different routes and opted to despotically destroy centuries-old neighbourhoods and businesses under the guise of progress. In many cases the results are magnificent; but the stories of the inhabitants of those bulldozed neighbourhoods are rarely; if ever; told.The ldquo;Unbuilt Seriesrdquo; is unlike other city histories. In exploring questions of what might have been; Mark taps into peoplersquo;s dreams for themselves and for the places they call home. His work is thoroughly engaging.
