This Signpost "Featured content" report covers material promoted from 15 to 21 February 2015. Text may be adapted from the respective articles and lists; see their page histories for attribution.
Keen Johnson(
nominated by
Acdixon) Part of the nominator's long series of articles on Kentucky governors, Johnson edited several newspapers before running for lieutenant governor in the 1930s. In 1939, the governor resigned so that Johnson would appoint him to a Senate seat; Johnson won the subsequent election and governed Kentucky during the opening years of the Second World War. His later political career included a short stint as the first Undersecretary of Labor and an unsuccessful run for the US Senate in 1960. He died ten years later.
Horace Greeley(
nominated by
Wehwalt) One of Wikipedia's vital articles, Greeley was the editor of the New York Tribune, which under his leadership became the highest circulating newspaper in the United States. In the decade before the American Civil War, the Tribune became a major force in politics and had a non-trivial role in helping Abraham Lincoln get elected. Greeley himself helped found the Republican Party and eventually ran for president in 1872, where he lost badly to former army general
Ulysses S. Grant. Greeley died three weeks later, at which time Harper's Weekly wrote "Since the assassination of Mr. Lincoln, the death of no American has been so sincerely deplored as that of Horace Greeley; and its tragical circumstances have given a peculiarly affectionate pathos to all that has been said of him."
World Fantasy Award for Best Anthology(
nominated by
PresN) The
World Fantasy Awards are one of the most prestigious awards in
speculative fiction and the most prestigious devoted strictly to
fantasy. The winners are presented with a bust of
H.P. Lovecraft, a subject of controversy recently since Lovecraft was
notoriously racist and the last four
Best Novel winners have been a Nigerian-American, an Israeli, an American-born Muslim convert, and a Somali-American. This particular category has avoided controversy and been pretty much what you'd expect: a mix of best of the year compilations and original theme anthologies. Living legend
Ellen Datlow has racked up the most wins, eight out of thirty nominations, which is no surprise since she's a prolific anthologist and widely admired in the speculative fiction world. The most recent winners were two other legends in the field,
Gardner Dozois and
George R. R. Martin, for the original anthology Dangerous Women. This 2013 release was eagerly anticipated since it featured an original
novella by Martin, "
The Princess and the Queen", set in his A Song of Ice and Fire universe. And, yes, we mean Game of Thrones, if you've only seen the television version.
Castle by the River(created by
Karl Friedrich Schinkel,
nominated by
Hafspajen) A very moody, charming image, painted by
Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781–1841). The painting is full of lovely details – the target, the deer... Bit of a walk to get up to the castle, but I bet it'd be worth it. Schinkel was a German architect, city planner, and painter, known for his prolific production of buildings in a
neo-classicist style. He was also known for his paintings, in
Romantic style. The Napoleonic wars interfered with his work as architect, so he took up landscape painting while he was not able to work in his occupation, displaying a talent for the romantic delineation of natural scenery.
Vaxholm Castle(created by
Arild Vågen,
nominated by
Adam Cuerden) This photo is an aerial shot of
Vaxholm Fortress, a historic
fortification on a small island in the
Stockholm archipelago near Stockholm. It was originally constructed by the Swedish king
Gustav Vasa in 1544 to defend
Stockholm against shipborne attacks coming from the east. Today it houses the Swedish National Museum of Coastal Defence. The fortress was strategically situated on the main sea route to Stockholm to defend the city from naval attacks, and was attacked by the
Danes in 1612 and the
Russian navy in 1719. Since the mid 19th century, the fort became so rusty, unfashionable and outdated, that it was said the great
Prussian Field Marshal Von Moltke was only ever seen to laugh twice, once when they told him his mother-in-law was dead and again when he saw Vaxholm Fort... He was a jolly fellow.
Hospital at Scutari(created by
William Simpson, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden). The print "One of the wards in the hospital at Scutari" shows the
Selimiye Barracks during the
Crimean War, at which time they had been converted into a hospital.
Florence Nightingale and thirty-eight volunteer nurses arrived there to find overworked staff delivering poor care to wounded soldiers; Nightingale's reformation of the hospital was a pivotal event in her creation of the modern field of nursing.
In a Pine Wood(created by
Christen Dalsgaard,
nominated by
CorrineSD)In a Pine Wood is a study of a young woman sitting in a chair reading a book in her hand, an attentive look on her face. The painting is painted by the Danish artist
Christen Dalsgaard (1824–1907), and the image is an example of a style of Scandinavian painting whose themes focused on scenes close to home, in contrast to previous styles. The painting depicts a very typical Danish home interior from the time period. One of the pieces of furniture depicted has the number 1828 painted on it, suggesting that our author stopped writing the sentence at this point... The original title in Danish is: En læsende pige fra Salling, which translates as "a girl from
Salling, reading", or, more literally, "a reading girl from Salling".
Lady Standing at a Virginal(created by
Johannes Vermeer,
nominated by
SchroCat)Lady Standing at a Virginal is a painting created by the
Dutch Golden Age artist
Johannes Vermeer around 1670–1672. It depicts a Dutch house interior with an elegantly dressed woman in yellow and blue playing a richly decorated
virginal, a type of early keyboard instrument similar to a
harpsichord. Her home has a tiled floor, paintings on the wall, and some of the locally manufactured
Delftware blue and white tiles of a type that appear in other Vermeer works. One painting depicted on the wall is a landscape and the other shows
Cupid holding a card; neither have been definitely identified, but the second was probably painted by
Caesar van Everdingen. Vermeer painted many women with virginals. There was an attempt to bring this concept to Scotland, and a large number of virginals were acquired, arriving in Inverness in the north of Scotland. Four and twenty virginals came down from Inverness, but when they came back, there were four and twenty less. Quite a disaster.
Toledo, Spain(created by
Chensiyuan,
nominated by
National Names 2000)Toledo is the capital city of the
Province of Toledo, 70 km south of
Madrid,
Spain. Toledo is known as the "Imperial City" for historically having been the court of
Charles I, and as the "City of the Three Cultures", because of the peaceful historical co-existence of Christians, Muslims and Jews, and remaining full of the cultural and monumental heritage of all three cultures. It was declared a
World Heritage Site by
UNESCO in 1986. Toledo has a history of production of
bladed weapons; if you go there, swords and daggers are the souvenirs you should buy, providing you can get them back through customs. If possible, go on Easter as that is declared as a National Tourist Interest, and it is cerebrated with various processions, and religious and cultural events... Quite a spectacle.
Portrait of a Young Woman(created by
Johannes Vermeer,
nominated by
Crisco 1492)Portrait of a Young Woman is a painting by the
Dutch Golden Age artistJohannes Vermeer. Because of the similar size and theme, it is often considered to be related to the artist's better-known Girl with a Pearl Earring. Both paintings depict young women who wear pearl earrings, have scarves draped over their head and shoulders, and are in front of a plain black background. In addition, it is likely that the creation of both works involved the use of a
camera obscura. The lack of idealised beauty has led to a general belief that this work depicts a real person and was painted on commission.
Italian Landscape with Umbrella Pines(created by
Hendrik Voogd,
nominated by
Alborzagros)Hendrik Voogd (1768–1839) was a Dutch painter and printmaker, active in Italy. As he was inspired by the French painter
Claude Lorrain, he was known as 'Dutch Claude'. He was famous for his historical landscapes, and painted mostly motifs taken directly from nature, such as trees and rocks. This painting depicts the golden light in the late afternoon at the
Villa Borghese in Rome, with high umbrella pines that stand out sharply against the magnificent sunset in the garden. An artist is leaning against a fallen tree while disturbed in his peace by some admirer. Long shadows can be spotted on the green grass.
Folio from a Quran(unknown creator;
nominated by
Alborzagros) This is a folio from an early
Quran, the Islamic holy book, written in
Kufic script from the
Abbasid period. It originates from the Near East or North Africa in 8th–9th century and shows the
Al-Fath Sura (Surah 48: 27–28). Kufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old
Nabataean script.
John Philip Sousa(created by
Elmer Chickering, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden)John Philip Sousa was an American composer and conductor of the late
Romantic era, known primarily for
American military and patriotic marches. Because of his mastery of march composition, he is known as "The March King", or the "American March King" due to his British counterpart
Kenneth J. Alford also being known by the former nickname. He became the leader of the
U.S. Marine Band in 1880 and remained as its conductor until 1892. Upon leaving the Marines, he organized The Sousa Band, which toured from 1892 to 1931, performing at 15,623 concerts in America and around the world.
Emmanuel College(created by
David Iliff,
nominated by
Armbrust )Emmanuel College is one of the colleges of the
University of Cambridge, founded in 1584 by Sir
Walter Mildmay, and built on the site of a
Dominican Friary. It was intended to be a training college for
Protestant preachers. The chapel of the friary was converted to be the college's dining hall, and there is a large fish pond in the grounds, also part of the legacy of the friary. The pond is home to a colony of
ducks. The college originally took only male students, first admitting female students in 1979. Emmanuel is one of the wealthier colleges at Cambridge, for which they give thanks with a recitation of the Oratio Post Cibum after every dinner:
Confiteantur tibi, Domine, omnia opera tua, :et sancti tui benedicant te. :Agimus tibi gratias, omnipotens Deus, :pro universis beneficiis tuis, :qui vivis et regnas Deus per omnia saecula saeculorum.
Lindau Lighthouse(created
Taxiarchos228 and
nominated by
Crisco 1492) The
Lindau Lighthouse was built from 1853 to 1856 and has a clock in its façade. This lighthouse is the southernmost
lighthouse in
Germany, located in
Lindau on
Lake Constance. Nowadays the light is lit on demand by ships using radio signals. It is open to visitors and it is a popular subject for photographs, though most probably aren't as good as this one.
SpaceShipOne takeoff(nominated and created by
D. Ramey Logan)SpaceShipOne flight 17P was a
spaceflight in the
Tier One program that took place on October 4, 2004. The
White Knight, a carrier aircraft, took
SpaceShipOne to the launch altitude, in excess of 43,500 feet (13.3 km).
SpaceShipOne separated from White Knight at 07:49 and promptly ignited its
rocket. The rocket motor was capable of burning for approximately 87
s. The burn-out altitude was in excess of 200,000 feet (61 km). After burn-out, the craft continued to
coast upwards. The wing was feathered into high-drag configuration during the coasting phase. The spacecraft coasted to apogee at an altitude of 367,442 feet. The SpaceShipOne
pilot was
Brian Binnie, while White Knight was piloted by
Mike Melvill. It was the second competitive flight in the
Ansari X Prize competition to demonstrate a non-governmental reusable manned spacecraft, and is hence also referred to as the X2 flight. To win the X Prize, a spacecraft needed to make two successful competitive flights within a fortnight. SpaceShipOne made a successful competitive flight on September 29, 2004, and so needed to make a second by October 13, 2004 in order to win. It was a successful flight, winning the X Prize. After the launch of the first flight,
Mike Melvill approached our own WPPilot and gave him a handful of M&M's he had just taken into space, who promptly ate them and continued shooting photos :) & Still feeling a little spaced out to this day.
Thomas Gainsborough(created by
Thomas Gainsborough,
nominated by
Sagaciousphil) A self-portrait of
Thomas Gainsborough (1727–1788), a famous English portrait and landscape painter. He lived in Bath and London, where the fashionable society patronised him. He painted the portraits of the king and queen, but the king chose Gainsborough's rival
Joshua Reynolds for the position of royal painter. However, in 1769, he became a founding member of the
Royal Academy of Arts. Gainsborough is credited, together with
Richard Wilson, as the founder of the 18th century British landscape school. Gainsborough had a charming and original style, he painted quickly with vibrant brushstrokes, and caught his subjects on canvas depicting not only their outside but capturing the inside as well (That's how you say "his pictures give some idea of people's personality in their expressions and body language" in the language of art criticism). William Jackson, in his contemporary essays, said of him, "to his intimate friends he was sincere and honest and that his heart was always alive to every feeling of honour and generosity". His portrait and landscapes reflect the strong
romantic component in Gainsborough's artistic temperament.
Portrait of Pope Julius II(created by
Raphael,
nominated by
SchroCat) An
oil painting from 1511, Portrait of Pope Julius II shows the Pope lost in thought.
Raphael, through this much-copied portrait of
Pope Julius II, set a standard for the painting of future popes. This papal portrait was hung at the pillars of the church of
Santa Maria del Popolo on feast and high holy days.
Giorgio Vasari, writing long after Julius' death, said that "it was so lifelike and true it frightened everyone who saw it, as if it were the living man himself". Several versions of the painting exist; one has a hanging in the background with a blue and gold textile, either woven silk or
embroidery, with gold emblems in tear shaped light blue compartments against a dark blue background. The pope wears here a red velvet high-necked cape covering the neck and shoulders, trimmed with white fur, together with a fashionable red velvet men's cap. Below he wears a white, light, wide and loose silk robe with an especially flattering high waistline,
Empire silhouette, with tight sleeves completely covering the wrists, falling loosely below, flowing in graceful folds down, with no buttons or tapes in the front. On his fingers he wears several golden rings with brilliant gemstones. However ... no pearls.
William Faulkner(created by
Carl Van Vechten, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden)Carl Van Vechten was a novelist, essayist, and photographer. White and well to do, he was a friend and patron of many of the leading writers and artists of the
Harlem Renaissance, such as
Langston Hughes. He also took up photography, creating striking portraits of many of the leading artistic figures of the day: writers, actors, dancers, and painters. Many of those photos now accompany Wikipedia articles because the
Library of Congress has placed them all online and free of copyright restriction. Here is a 1954 photograph of some obscure regional novelist and failed screenwriter named
William Faulkner. Hailing from
Oxford, Mississippi, he chronicled the lives of people of the fictional
Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi in introspective and experimental novels, capturing spoken vernacular and internal monologues in works like The Sound and the Fury (1929), As I Lay Dying (1930), Light in August (1932), and Absalom, Absalom! (1936) that are now staples of literature curriculums. Faulkner received the 1949
Nobel Prize in Literature, which catapulted him to worldwide fame, something he was decidedly not happy about. He didn't even tell his own daughter, who learned of it from her high school principal.
This Signpost "Featured content" report covers material promoted from 15 to 21 February 2015. Text may be adapted from the respective articles and lists; see their page histories for attribution.
Keen Johnson(
nominated by
Acdixon) Part of the nominator's long series of articles on Kentucky governors, Johnson edited several newspapers before running for lieutenant governor in the 1930s. In 1939, the governor resigned so that Johnson would appoint him to a Senate seat; Johnson won the subsequent election and governed Kentucky during the opening years of the Second World War. His later political career included a short stint as the first Undersecretary of Labor and an unsuccessful run for the US Senate in 1960. He died ten years later.
Horace Greeley(
nominated by
Wehwalt) One of Wikipedia's vital articles, Greeley was the editor of the New York Tribune, which under his leadership became the highest circulating newspaper in the United States. In the decade before the American Civil War, the Tribune became a major force in politics and had a non-trivial role in helping Abraham Lincoln get elected. Greeley himself helped found the Republican Party and eventually ran for president in 1872, where he lost badly to former army general
Ulysses S. Grant. Greeley died three weeks later, at which time Harper's Weekly wrote "Since the assassination of Mr. Lincoln, the death of no American has been so sincerely deplored as that of Horace Greeley; and its tragical circumstances have given a peculiarly affectionate pathos to all that has been said of him."
World Fantasy Award for Best Anthology(
nominated by
PresN) The
World Fantasy Awards are one of the most prestigious awards in
speculative fiction and the most prestigious devoted strictly to
fantasy. The winners are presented with a bust of
H.P. Lovecraft, a subject of controversy recently since Lovecraft was
notoriously racist and the last four
Best Novel winners have been a Nigerian-American, an Israeli, an American-born Muslim convert, and a Somali-American. This particular category has avoided controversy and been pretty much what you'd expect: a mix of best of the year compilations and original theme anthologies. Living legend
Ellen Datlow has racked up the most wins, eight out of thirty nominations, which is no surprise since she's a prolific anthologist and widely admired in the speculative fiction world. The most recent winners were two other legends in the field,
Gardner Dozois and
George R. R. Martin, for the original anthology Dangerous Women. This 2013 release was eagerly anticipated since it featured an original
novella by Martin, "
The Princess and the Queen", set in his A Song of Ice and Fire universe. And, yes, we mean Game of Thrones, if you've only seen the television version.
Castle by the River(created by
Karl Friedrich Schinkel,
nominated by
Hafspajen) A very moody, charming image, painted by
Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781–1841). The painting is full of lovely details – the target, the deer... Bit of a walk to get up to the castle, but I bet it'd be worth it. Schinkel was a German architect, city planner, and painter, known for his prolific production of buildings in a
neo-classicist style. He was also known for his paintings, in
Romantic style. The Napoleonic wars interfered with his work as architect, so he took up landscape painting while he was not able to work in his occupation, displaying a talent for the romantic delineation of natural scenery.
Vaxholm Castle(created by
Arild Vågen,
nominated by
Adam Cuerden) This photo is an aerial shot of
Vaxholm Fortress, a historic
fortification on a small island in the
Stockholm archipelago near Stockholm. It was originally constructed by the Swedish king
Gustav Vasa in 1544 to defend
Stockholm against shipborne attacks coming from the east. Today it houses the Swedish National Museum of Coastal Defence. The fortress was strategically situated on the main sea route to Stockholm to defend the city from naval attacks, and was attacked by the
Danes in 1612 and the
Russian navy in 1719. Since the mid 19th century, the fort became so rusty, unfashionable and outdated, that it was said the great
Prussian Field Marshal Von Moltke was only ever seen to laugh twice, once when they told him his mother-in-law was dead and again when he saw Vaxholm Fort... He was a jolly fellow.
Hospital at Scutari(created by
William Simpson, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden). The print "One of the wards in the hospital at Scutari" shows the
Selimiye Barracks during the
Crimean War, at which time they had been converted into a hospital.
Florence Nightingale and thirty-eight volunteer nurses arrived there to find overworked staff delivering poor care to wounded soldiers; Nightingale's reformation of the hospital was a pivotal event in her creation of the modern field of nursing.
In a Pine Wood(created by
Christen Dalsgaard,
nominated by
CorrineSD)In a Pine Wood is a study of a young woman sitting in a chair reading a book in her hand, an attentive look on her face. The painting is painted by the Danish artist
Christen Dalsgaard (1824–1907), and the image is an example of a style of Scandinavian painting whose themes focused on scenes close to home, in contrast to previous styles. The painting depicts a very typical Danish home interior from the time period. One of the pieces of furniture depicted has the number 1828 painted on it, suggesting that our author stopped writing the sentence at this point... The original title in Danish is: En læsende pige fra Salling, which translates as "a girl from
Salling, reading", or, more literally, "a reading girl from Salling".
Lady Standing at a Virginal(created by
Johannes Vermeer,
nominated by
SchroCat)Lady Standing at a Virginal is a painting created by the
Dutch Golden Age artist
Johannes Vermeer around 1670–1672. It depicts a Dutch house interior with an elegantly dressed woman in yellow and blue playing a richly decorated
virginal, a type of early keyboard instrument similar to a
harpsichord. Her home has a tiled floor, paintings on the wall, and some of the locally manufactured
Delftware blue and white tiles of a type that appear in other Vermeer works. One painting depicted on the wall is a landscape and the other shows
Cupid holding a card; neither have been definitely identified, but the second was probably painted by
Caesar van Everdingen. Vermeer painted many women with virginals. There was an attempt to bring this concept to Scotland, and a large number of virginals were acquired, arriving in Inverness in the north of Scotland. Four and twenty virginals came down from Inverness, but when they came back, there were four and twenty less. Quite a disaster.
Toledo, Spain(created by
Chensiyuan,
nominated by
National Names 2000)Toledo is the capital city of the
Province of Toledo, 70 km south of
Madrid,
Spain. Toledo is known as the "Imperial City" for historically having been the court of
Charles I, and as the "City of the Three Cultures", because of the peaceful historical co-existence of Christians, Muslims and Jews, and remaining full of the cultural and monumental heritage of all three cultures. It was declared a
World Heritage Site by
UNESCO in 1986. Toledo has a history of production of
bladed weapons; if you go there, swords and daggers are the souvenirs you should buy, providing you can get them back through customs. If possible, go on Easter as that is declared as a National Tourist Interest, and it is cerebrated with various processions, and religious and cultural events... Quite a spectacle.
Portrait of a Young Woman(created by
Johannes Vermeer,
nominated by
Crisco 1492)Portrait of a Young Woman is a painting by the
Dutch Golden Age artistJohannes Vermeer. Because of the similar size and theme, it is often considered to be related to the artist's better-known Girl with a Pearl Earring. Both paintings depict young women who wear pearl earrings, have scarves draped over their head and shoulders, and are in front of a plain black background. In addition, it is likely that the creation of both works involved the use of a
camera obscura. The lack of idealised beauty has led to a general belief that this work depicts a real person and was painted on commission.
Italian Landscape with Umbrella Pines(created by
Hendrik Voogd,
nominated by
Alborzagros)Hendrik Voogd (1768–1839) was a Dutch painter and printmaker, active in Italy. As he was inspired by the French painter
Claude Lorrain, he was known as 'Dutch Claude'. He was famous for his historical landscapes, and painted mostly motifs taken directly from nature, such as trees and rocks. This painting depicts the golden light in the late afternoon at the
Villa Borghese in Rome, with high umbrella pines that stand out sharply against the magnificent sunset in the garden. An artist is leaning against a fallen tree while disturbed in his peace by some admirer. Long shadows can be spotted on the green grass.
Folio from a Quran(unknown creator;
nominated by
Alborzagros) This is a folio from an early
Quran, the Islamic holy book, written in
Kufic script from the
Abbasid period. It originates from the Near East or North Africa in 8th–9th century and shows the
Al-Fath Sura (Surah 48: 27–28). Kufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old
Nabataean script.
John Philip Sousa(created by
Elmer Chickering, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden)John Philip Sousa was an American composer and conductor of the late
Romantic era, known primarily for
American military and patriotic marches. Because of his mastery of march composition, he is known as "The March King", or the "American March King" due to his British counterpart
Kenneth J. Alford also being known by the former nickname. He became the leader of the
U.S. Marine Band in 1880 and remained as its conductor until 1892. Upon leaving the Marines, he organized The Sousa Band, which toured from 1892 to 1931, performing at 15,623 concerts in America and around the world.
Emmanuel College(created by
David Iliff,
nominated by
Armbrust )Emmanuel College is one of the colleges of the
University of Cambridge, founded in 1584 by Sir
Walter Mildmay, and built on the site of a
Dominican Friary. It was intended to be a training college for
Protestant preachers. The chapel of the friary was converted to be the college's dining hall, and there is a large fish pond in the grounds, also part of the legacy of the friary. The pond is home to a colony of
ducks. The college originally took only male students, first admitting female students in 1979. Emmanuel is one of the wealthier colleges at Cambridge, for which they give thanks with a recitation of the Oratio Post Cibum after every dinner:
Confiteantur tibi, Domine, omnia opera tua, :et sancti tui benedicant te. :Agimus tibi gratias, omnipotens Deus, :pro universis beneficiis tuis, :qui vivis et regnas Deus per omnia saecula saeculorum.
Lindau Lighthouse(created
Taxiarchos228 and
nominated by
Crisco 1492) The
Lindau Lighthouse was built from 1853 to 1856 and has a clock in its façade. This lighthouse is the southernmost
lighthouse in
Germany, located in
Lindau on
Lake Constance. Nowadays the light is lit on demand by ships using radio signals. It is open to visitors and it is a popular subject for photographs, though most probably aren't as good as this one.
SpaceShipOne takeoff(nominated and created by
D. Ramey Logan)SpaceShipOne flight 17P was a
spaceflight in the
Tier One program that took place on October 4, 2004. The
White Knight, a carrier aircraft, took
SpaceShipOne to the launch altitude, in excess of 43,500 feet (13.3 km).
SpaceShipOne separated from White Knight at 07:49 and promptly ignited its
rocket. The rocket motor was capable of burning for approximately 87
s. The burn-out altitude was in excess of 200,000 feet (61 km). After burn-out, the craft continued to
coast upwards. The wing was feathered into high-drag configuration during the coasting phase. The spacecraft coasted to apogee at an altitude of 367,442 feet. The SpaceShipOne
pilot was
Brian Binnie, while White Knight was piloted by
Mike Melvill. It was the second competitive flight in the
Ansari X Prize competition to demonstrate a non-governmental reusable manned spacecraft, and is hence also referred to as the X2 flight. To win the X Prize, a spacecraft needed to make two successful competitive flights within a fortnight. SpaceShipOne made a successful competitive flight on September 29, 2004, and so needed to make a second by October 13, 2004 in order to win. It was a successful flight, winning the X Prize. After the launch of the first flight,
Mike Melvill approached our own WPPilot and gave him a handful of M&M's he had just taken into space, who promptly ate them and continued shooting photos :) & Still feeling a little spaced out to this day.
Thomas Gainsborough(created by
Thomas Gainsborough,
nominated by
Sagaciousphil) A self-portrait of
Thomas Gainsborough (1727–1788), a famous English portrait and landscape painter. He lived in Bath and London, where the fashionable society patronised him. He painted the portraits of the king and queen, but the king chose Gainsborough's rival
Joshua Reynolds for the position of royal painter. However, in 1769, he became a founding member of the
Royal Academy of Arts. Gainsborough is credited, together with
Richard Wilson, as the founder of the 18th century British landscape school. Gainsborough had a charming and original style, he painted quickly with vibrant brushstrokes, and caught his subjects on canvas depicting not only their outside but capturing the inside as well (That's how you say "his pictures give some idea of people's personality in their expressions and body language" in the language of art criticism). William Jackson, in his contemporary essays, said of him, "to his intimate friends he was sincere and honest and that his heart was always alive to every feeling of honour and generosity". His portrait and landscapes reflect the strong
romantic component in Gainsborough's artistic temperament.
Portrait of Pope Julius II(created by
Raphael,
nominated by
SchroCat) An
oil painting from 1511, Portrait of Pope Julius II shows the Pope lost in thought.
Raphael, through this much-copied portrait of
Pope Julius II, set a standard for the painting of future popes. This papal portrait was hung at the pillars of the church of
Santa Maria del Popolo on feast and high holy days.
Giorgio Vasari, writing long after Julius' death, said that "it was so lifelike and true it frightened everyone who saw it, as if it were the living man himself". Several versions of the painting exist; one has a hanging in the background with a blue and gold textile, either woven silk or
embroidery, with gold emblems in tear shaped light blue compartments against a dark blue background. The pope wears here a red velvet high-necked cape covering the neck and shoulders, trimmed with white fur, together with a fashionable red velvet men's cap. Below he wears a white, light, wide and loose silk robe with an especially flattering high waistline,
Empire silhouette, with tight sleeves completely covering the wrists, falling loosely below, flowing in graceful folds down, with no buttons or tapes in the front. On his fingers he wears several golden rings with brilliant gemstones. However ... no pearls.
William Faulkner(created by
Carl Van Vechten, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden)Carl Van Vechten was a novelist, essayist, and photographer. White and well to do, he was a friend and patron of many of the leading writers and artists of the
Harlem Renaissance, such as
Langston Hughes. He also took up photography, creating striking portraits of many of the leading artistic figures of the day: writers, actors, dancers, and painters. Many of those photos now accompany Wikipedia articles because the
Library of Congress has placed them all online and free of copyright restriction. Here is a 1954 photograph of some obscure regional novelist and failed screenwriter named
William Faulkner. Hailing from
Oxford, Mississippi, he chronicled the lives of people of the fictional
Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi in introspective and experimental novels, capturing spoken vernacular and internal monologues in works like The Sound and the Fury (1929), As I Lay Dying (1930), Light in August (1932), and Absalom, Absalom! (1936) that are now staples of literature curriculums. Faulkner received the 1949
Nobel Prize in Literature, which catapulted him to worldwide fame, something he was decidedly not happy about. He didn't even tell his own daughter, who learned of it from her high school principal.
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