Archive · Cinema · Observations · Ethnography
A Hungarian girl in national wedding dress. A colour photograph taken in Mezőkövesd in 1925-1930, and a wedding photograph from present-day Hungary. Firstly, it is fantastically beautiful and delightful that this beauty has survived to our own day. Secondly, we have undoubtedly found the reference for the costumes
NB! · Monarchies · Mores · Humour
Forgive me, sinner that I am, little father Tsar! We have been ordered, whenever we catch sight of you, to cry out
NB! · Architecture · Art · Moscow · Heritage
Charming painted decoration in the summerhouse at Grimsthorpe Castle in Lincolnshire. Especially the cat, peering down like a deity from the summit of the ceiling. Such paintings were to be found in many wealthy houses of the 19th century and earlier. In Moscow they survive in the Stanislavsky house, and
Archive · In the Press · Monarchies · People
Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich (1891-1942), grandson of Alexander II and first cousin of Nicholas II, pictured far left, took part in the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm. Dmitry Pavlovich was a member of the Russian equestrian team, the sport having been added to the Olympic programme that year. The
Interviews · Observations · Society · Pop Culture
I did not bother to look into why Miuccia Prada, one of the foremost designers of our time, is being cancelled just now, but I found a 2016 interview in which she anticipated her own vulnerable position. Jonathan Wingfield sent the young Tavi Gevinson, the stylist Katie Grand and the
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People · Pop Culture · Humour
The slide by which Miuccia Prada leaves her office. Photograph by Juergen Teller, 2016
Archive · Architecture · Heritage
The Moss Tower of the Sumsky Ostrog is one of the few surviving wooden defensive structures of the 16th century in Europe. The Sumsky Ostrog on the White Sea consisted of six hexagonal towers and protected the lands of the Solovetsky Monastery from the Swedes. The Moss Tower is 19
NB! · Art · Observations
A very interesting auction find. Estimated at 300 euros, this painting went for 13,000, unexpectedly bringing the sale to a close on such a triumphant note. It recalls Van Dyck and Pieter Thijs. When I see sales like this, I am glad that I am not the only such
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Architecture · Moscow · Observations · Nature
Most contemporary architectural projects look far better as visualisations than as built reality. So it was with the luxury residential complex Bosco Vertical in Milan, literally a "vertical forest", which in practice turned out to be not quite so green or so mysterious. Once construction was complete, the
NB! · Monarchies · Observations · Humour