‘Little Corporal’ set to conquer Melbourne
June 1, 2012
“The life of Napoleon is the event of the century for all the arts” – Delacroix
Iconic paintings of Napoleon and his military accomplishments show that the political spin of contemporary media is an age-old strategy. During Napoleon’s leadership his image of power was imbued in the patronage of science, exploration, urban design, social policy, luxurious objects and magnificent art. In The Legend of Napoleon Sudhir Hazareesingh says that the glory of revolution and the triumphant achievements of Napoleon were not mutually exclusive in the eyes of those who represented him in painting.
The violence and destruction of war was transformed into majestic images of success which can be seen from 2 June at the NGV exhibition ‘Napoleon: Revolution to Empire’.
The portrait ‘Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul, crossing the Alps at Great St Bernard Pass, 20 May 1800′ by Jaques-Louis David symbolises Napoleon’s obsession with image. Mid-1800′s French historian Adolphe Thiers admired the brilliant military strategy it celebrates, but acknowledged the reality that the emperor crossed the Italian Alps not on a white charger but on a grey mule guided by a local peasant!
In Romanticism and Art William Vaughan says ’The Death of Marat’ 1793 represents David’s sense of public duty to honour the revolution and it’s leaders in paint, but sees in David’s pupil, Antoine-Jean Gros, the vitality of the new empire. ‘General Bonaparte at the Bridge of Arcole on 17 November 1796′ by Gros also belies a grimy reality. Steven Englund in Napoleon: A Political Life describes how Napoleon needed to be rescued after falling off a bridge into the swamp below, but is portrayed as a handsome, courageous leader holding the French flag and a sabre.
Englund emphasises that Napoleon’s collection of art and objects was not just an aesthetic pleasure; it was also a national symbol of regeneration and greatness. It was also created for posterity, so almost 200 years after Napoleon’s death we will be able to view nearly 300 works in Melbourne.
Written by Lisa
(Images courtesy of NGV)
Antoine-Jean GROS, French 1771–1835 ‘General Bonaparte at the Bridge of Arcole on 17 November 1796′ 1796, oil on canvas, 130.0 x 94.0 cm, Napoleonmuseum Thurgau, Schloss und Park Arenenberg, Salenstein, Collection of Queen Hortense
Jacques-Louis DAVID, French 1748–1825 ‘Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul, crossing the Alps at Great St Bernard Pass, 20 May 1800′ 1803, oil on canvas, 267.5 x 223.0 cm, Versailles, musée national du château (MV 8550), © RMN (Château de Versailles) / Franck Raux
Do you believe that?
The Pulitzer prize winners for 2012 have been announced and disappointingly, no award was announced for fiction this year. The last time there was no award for fiction was in 1977. “I’m angry on behalf of those novels,” declared Maureen Corrigan, one of the judges. The three nominated novels were:-
- Swamplandia! by Karen Russell
- The pale king: An unfinished novel by David Foster Wallace
- Train dreams by Denis Johnson
Joseph Pulitzer was the Hungarian-born American journalist who, by making specific provision in his will, established the Pulitzer prizes for journalism, literature, drama and the arts. His aim was to inspire excellence in the arts, particularly in the area of writing.
The book awards this year include; for history Malcolm X: a life of reinvention, by Manning Marable and for general non-fiction The swerve, how the world became modern, by Stephen Greenblatt.
In 2011 A visit from the goon squad, by Jennifer Egan won the Pulitzer award for fiction. Sarah Churchwell in the Guardian described the book as “an exceptional rendering of contemporary America”.
Which book would you have given the Pulitzer award for fiction to this year?
Revealing Reads by Anonymous Authors
May 29, 2012
While not all authors are household names like J.K. Rowling, having a book published usually means doing the rounds publicising and promoting your book. This involves TV and radio appearances, book signings and often a website.
Every now and then, however, an author has no desire for his or her readers to know anything about them and writes anonymously. This usually happens when the writer wants to base their work on real individuals and allows them to be more truthful or revealing without any backlash.
O: A Presidential Novel was written anonymously in 2011. It is about a black American President, called simply ‘O’ seeking re-election in 2012 and the title character is obviously based on Barack Obama. It is a revealing and insightful behind the scenes account of the Presidential race, focussing largely on the bit-players such as political staffers and journalists. To this day, nobody knows who wrote it.
Of course, when a book is written anonymously there is no guarantee that people won’t figure out who wrote it. This was the case for the novel Primary Colors, which was very obviously based on Bill Clinton. Various clues, including hand-writing analysis of the original manuscript (I suggest using a PC if you ever want to write anonymously) led to the revelation that the author was journalist Joe Klein.
Have you read a book written anonymously? Was the author’s identity ever discovered?
Written by Anonymous.
Now if you are into Zen Buddhism………….
May 25, 2012
“In the steps of Buddha“ is a fantastic free display of Buddhist statues and artefacts currently showing at the National Gallery of Victoria until 3 June. These beautiful images reflect the journey of Buddhism.Visual storytelling was used by Buddhists in early India to convey the meaning of their faith, but the actual image of Buddha dates later than the sculptured relief stories found in their monasteries.
- Indian Art by Vidya Dehejia tells us that having achieved enlightenment, Buddha had transcended the cycle of rebirth and was not shown in human form, but by his presence in footprints, an empty saddle on a horse or sometimes symbolically as an object such as a lotus. When it did appear, the image of Buddha changed as the Buddhist philosophy travelled to other Asian cultures.
- Buddhism by Louis Frederic describes many of the deities of Buddhism in India, Sri Lanka South East Asia, Tibet, China, Korea and Japan. This book explores the geographical distribution of the many deities, the cultural interpretation of their symbolism and in particular the art of the philosophy.
- Buddha by Karen Armstrong describes Buddha as one who revolutionised the religious ideas of his time and stands with Christ, Confucius and Muhammad.
- Siddhartha by Herman Hesse, the Nobel Prize winning author is a short fictional interpretation of a moving tale of a man who travels in search of the real Buddha.
The library has an extensive collection covering many religions and philosophies.
Written by Lisa and Rosemary
Do you talk with your pet?
May 23, 2012
l often talk with my cat and we share many interesting conversations. Sometimes the cat is not in a mood to talk and I have to respect him. There is a name for this: – “anthropomorphism”, meaning the transference of human behaviour into animals.
From early childhood we are familiar with anthropomorphic literature. Many authors have used this genre to create magic and to inspire imagination in its young readers. How many of us felt sad for the “Ugly Duckling” or went on adventures with ”Winnie the Pooh” ? We followed “Puss in Boots” who saved his master and worried about ” The Three Little Pigs” in their struggle with the Big Bad Wolf. Some years later we became fans of Jack London and could not put down ‘White Fang” or “Call of the Wild”.
Animals are often used as a metaphor that gives the story a different angle. In “Watership Down” by Richard Adams, the rabbits go on an epic journey to seek a new home. They face hardship, overcome a lot of difficulties and struggle to survive. There are many lessons from the rabbits that we can learn about friendship and courage .
We know that “ Animal Farm” is not about animals, but a famous political allegory. At the same time it is a typical anthropomorphic story with evil pigs, hard-working horses and other animals. In the end there are not many differences between the animals and the human characters.
You don’t need to be a child to enjoy a good anthropomorphic book. One of our favourites is “The Last Family in England” by Matt Haig where the black labrador, called Prince is the narrator. The dog has high standards to live up to and sacrifices a lot to save his human family. You never will look at your pet in the same way after reading this book.
Written by Vicky and Krista
Excellence in women’s writing
May 21, 2012
The shortlist for this year’s Orange Prize for Fiction has been announced. 
Set up in 1996 to promote fiction by women throughout the world, previous winners include Téa Obreht for The tiger’s wife, Marilynne Robinson for Home, Zadie Smith for On beauty, Lionel Shriver for We need to talk about Kevin and Kate Grenville for The Secret River.
Australian author Kate Grenville became known worldwide after being awarded the Orange Prize in 2001, confirming her place in international women’s fiction writing. Her most well-known books include; Dark places, Lilian’s story, The lieutenant, Sarah Thornhill and The idea of perfection.
The six shortlisted novels are:
- Half blood blues by Esi Edugyan
- The forgotten waltz by Anne Enright
- Painter of silence by Georgina Harding
- The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
- Foreign bodies by Cynthia Ozick
- State of wonder by Ann Patchett
The winner of the £30,000 prize will be announced in London on 30 May.
When there were no female authors in last year’s Miles Franklin Award list, the familiar argument of discrimination against women authors rose again in Australia. Sophie Cunningham, Australia Council’s new Chairwoman of the Literature Board (as reported via twitter and in the Age 18/5/12 – http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/books/cunningham-takes-lead-role-20120517-1ytmc.html) is among a group of women working towards a new prize for women’s writing called the ‘Stellas’: http://thestellaprize.com.au
Do you think Australia needs a specific award for women’s writing like the Orange Prize?
Wonders of Ancient Mesopotamia
May 17, 2012
Credit: by permission of the Trustees of The British Museum
On now at Museum Victoria until 7 October is ‘The Wonders of Ancient Mesopotamia’, an exhibition of artefacts from the British Museum representing the cultures of ancient Sumer, Assyria and Babylon. This is the land, in modern-day Iraq, where cities and writing were first developed, along with many fundamental discoveries such as the wheel, glass and irrigation. Explore samples of objects on display, find out about the educational program and read the blog at the Mesopotamia mini-site.
Your local library can also help you find out more about this fascinating culture. What better way to learn about a civilisation that to build key artefacts for yourself? Aimed at a primary school audience, Step into Mesopotamia has clear instructions for making such items as a bull’s head lyre, model chariot, clay writing tablet and more. Alongside the projects children can explore Mesopotamian history through pictures and text.
Students can learn about the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in The seven wonders of the ancient world. Other treasures of the fabled city, such as the Ishtar Gate and Ziggurat of Marduk, basis of the legend of the Tower of Babel, are also covered. The librarian at the Information Desk will be happy to assist you in finding further sources.
Credit: by permission of the Trustees of The British Museum
A most beautiful book in the collection is The Middle East : the cradle of civilization revealed. Overflowing with photographs and artwork, and written by a team of archaeologists and historians, this is probably the next best thing to seeing the antiquities in the Museum. Alongside the images of sculpture, artefacts and architectural remains are landscape photographs that give a feel for the environments in which the history unfolded.
Take a trip back to the beginning of civilization at your library!
Not a travel guide to Hong Kong
May 16, 2012
Planning a trip to Hong Kong and want to read a good book about the place? Try Fragrant Harbour by John Lanchester. It’s not a travel guide but a novel; a story about a young man who travelled to colonial Hong Kong in the 1930s. Through his eyes you see the history of this fascinating city. The author takes you on a journey from British Hong Kong before the war to the Japanese occupation in 1941, the Communist Revolution and finally to handover in 1997. Lanchester was raised in Hong Kong so he has an insider’s view of the place, where your fortunes can change in a blink of an eye.
After reading this book I became interested in the author. He writes for the Observer, the Guardian, and the New Yorker. Family romance is a memoir about his family and its secrets. The beauty of his writing is that it totally involves the reader in his family story. As an only child he did not know much about his family history, and after his mother’s death he discovered that she spent most of her life as a nun in India.
His latest book is Capital set in London during the current financial crisis. The story takes place on a single street that represents layers of contemporary society in London. It is the beginning of the property disaster in England and many things are about to change for its occupants. The author offers a panoramic view of life in that city, with the concept of “capital” or money playing a crucial role in the lives of its inhabitants.
John Lanchester is a smart, funny, perceptive and very talented writer - give his books a try.
100th Anniversary:Patrick White (1912-1990)
May 11, 2012
Patrick White’s name is strongly linked with Australian Literature as Australia’s only Nobel Laureate in Literature. We celebrate the 100th anniversary of his birth during this month of May.
His plays - his true love – are outstanding, his novels and short stories world-famous and his autobiography Flaws in the glass caused enormous controversy leading to the decay of his own health. White’s contribution to Australian literature is indisputable. The biography, Patrick White: a life by David Marr provides a brilliant and insightful account.
The recent film starring Geoffrey Rush and Judy Davis, The eye of the storm based on the book of the same name and published the year of his Nobel Prize win in 1973, has revived interest in White’s writing. The posthumous publication of his final unpublished and incomplete novel, The hanging garden commemorates this important anniversary. It is the story, or rather the third of a story, of two children drawn together in wartime who form an extraordinary bond. White’s insights into human nature clearly reflect the era, providing a glimpse of Australian consciousness at that time.
Read more about this very complicated man and his controversial writings in: Ten essays on Patrick White, edited by Gerald Wilkes and Patrick White: a tribute compiled by Clayton Joyce.
The National Library of Australia is holding an exhibition The Life of Patrick White from 13th April - July 2012. For those who can’t attend this exhibition there is a wealth of information in our library.
What do you consider to be White’s best work?
Goodnight Maurice
May 9, 2012
The world was certainly a more interesting place with Maurice Sendak in it.
The unique children’s book author and illustrator who saw the sometimes darker side of childhood in books like Where the Wild Things Are and In the Night Kitchen has died at age 83.
Where the Wild Things Are earned Sendak a prestigious Caldecott Medal for the best children’s book of 1964 and became a hit movie in 2009. In 1996, US President Clinton awarded Sendak a National Medal of the Arts for his vast portfolio of work.
I still remember the fun of reading WTWTA to children at storytime and everyone joining in with ‘and roared their terrible roars’ etc , etc.
I love Sendak’s approach to his work and fame: ‘Kids don’t know about best sellers,’ he said. ‘They go for what they enjoy. They aren’t star chasers and they don’t suck up. It’s why I like them.’
Sendak started his career doing the pictures for wholesome works such as Ruth Krauss’ A Hole Is To Dig and Else Holmelund Minarik’s Little Bear. He also created costumes for ballets and staged operas.
‘I write books that seem more suitable for children, and that’s OK with me. They are a better audience and tougher critics. Kids tell you what they think, not what they think they should think.’
