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rapiaria.bsky.social
Rapiaria
@rapiaria.bsky.social
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Reaping and sowing.
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Rapiaria @rapiaria.bsky.social · Feb 26
Under protection of Saint Hubert of the High Woods, Sanctus Hubertus in Arduina Silva #Ardennes
rapiaria.bsky.social
The Beefs—gathered around a green pool table in a dimly lit room, smiling and leaning on a pool table, with several balls scattered across it. A harsh lamp hangs directly over the table, illuminating the subjects and their surroundings, which appear to be a casual bar or recreation area.
September 18, 2025 at 10:00 PM
rapiaria.bsky.social
Book cover for Alfred de Montesquiou's novel, Le crépuscule des hommes, set against the backdrop of the Nuremberg Trials. It shows a colorized photo of reporters in shirt sleeves, suits and trench coats carrying papers and equipment racing to file their stories after the verdict announcements. Publisher: Pavillions | Robert Laffont.
September 10, 2025 at 2:26 PM
rapiaria.bsky.social
Book cover for Agnès Michaux's biography on Joris-Karl Huysmans, showing a brightly coloured, stylized portrait of the author gazing intently at the viewer. Highly saturated mixed media in vibrant blues, pinks, yellows, and greens. Published by Cherche Midi.
September 10, 2025 at 1:42 PM
rapiaria.bsky.social
Lohner Porsche, first electric car, presented at the 1900 Paris World Fair
August 8, 2025 at 11:08 PM
rapiaria.bsky.social
Reliquary bust of St. Frederik, Bisshop of Utrecht (martyred July 18, A.D. 838) functioning as holder for part of the saint's skull. Partly gilt and standing on an edge of open tracing. The shoulders are covered with a chasuble, on which are driven-in tendrils ornament and birds on a punched ground. He also bears the amict, decorated with dragons and branches in relief. The wide curls, which enclose the entire head, are arranged symmetrically on the sides. The stubble beard is indicated by light engraving. On the head, which has a round opening in the crown, is a loose miter with symmetrical motifs in open tracing. Clamps are visible behind it, which probably contained a ground of enamel. The points on the front and back have a crucifix as a crown, on which a gem is attached. On the underside the reliquary is closed by a flat plate, on which is inscribed: 'ano dni mo ccco lxiio decan' captm sti saluator tiecten / me ex tuba // ptut innovaca exhi fi 'fecerut p elya / scerpswert aurifabru'. Made by Elias Scerpswert, Utrecht, 1362. Scerpswert was a goldsmith who worked in the 14th century. Another famous work is a reliquary bust of Saint Servatius. The pieces reflects the Gothic artistic style and serve as a testament to the craftsmanship of the period. Details: h 45.2 cm h 26.5 cm w 24.2 cm × d 17.5 cm. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.
July 18, 2025 at 3:20 PM
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Echternach Springprozession, early 20c. The last dancing pilgrimage in Europe held annually on Whit Tuesday. Honouring Willibrord, the patron saint of Luxembourg, who established the Abbey there, it has origins going back to the early Middle Ages and roots in penance rituals associated with possession. The vintage black and white souvenir postcard captures a large crowd teeming with people of various ages, many dressed in traditional or formal attire from the era. In the foreground, several individuals are clearly visible, with some men in what appear to be uniforms and women in long dresses and hats. The crowd extends far into the background, with many holding umbrellas. The overall impression is one of a bustling and well-attended religious event.
July 17, 2025 at 2:48 PM
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"TEAMWORK in Antwerp!" exhibit at the Gemäldegalerie Dresden showcasing three elaborate paintings by Pieter Brueghel the Younger and his contemporaries. The central, larger piece is a vibrant floral still life, flanked by two smaller works depicting figurative scenes within intricate floral garlands. This exhibit highlights the collaborative practices and crossover work among painters in the Low Countries, demonstrating how artists like Brueghel and others specialized in elements like figures, landscapes, or flowers, often working together on a single canvas.
July 10, 2025 at 4:13 PM
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Open cover of André Breton's "Second Manifeste du Surréalisme" (Second Manifesto of Surrealism), published in Paris in MCMXXX (1930) by Éditions Kra. The right page features the title and author, noting "FRONTISPICE DE SALVADOR DALI," indicating a frontispiece by the renowned surrealist artist. The left page presents the black and white illustration, composed of various surreal and often unsettling small sketches arranged in a collage-like fashion. These include abstract forms, distorted faces, what appears to be a key, and other enigmatic objects, reflecting the dreamlike and unconventional aesthetic central to the Surrealist movement. The book was a pivotal text in the development of Surrealism, outlining its principles and further solidifying Breton's role as its leading theorist, while Dali's contribution highlights the close artistic collaborations within the movement.
July 10, 2025 at 3:05 PM
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Hannah Riedel for Sleek Mag, photo from a series called Somewhere Else, showing a fair-haired figure in a theatrical setting, clad in a costume that blends historical child-like attire with modern elements, striking a rigid, doll-like pose within a stage framed by golden curtains against an abstract, painted backdrop and a flat green floor. A highly artificial scene exploring "the cute and the creepy" dichotomy, by presenting an unsettling uncanniness through the figure's puppet-like stance and depersonalized appearance. The work directly comments on issues of agency, the nature of reality, and the deconstruction of innocence to question authenticity and the performative aspects of identity in contemporary culture.
July 10, 2025 at 10:11 AM
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A watercolor painting by Antoine-Louis Barye (1795-1875) dubbed 'Resting Lion'. A large, tawny-colored lion with a brown mane lies in profile, facing left, with its head resting on its front paws. Its eyes are open, looking straight ahead. The background is a soft, muted wash of brown and gray tones.
July 9, 2025 at 6:26 PM
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An oil painting titled 'Figures at the beach, Brittany' by Danish artist Laurits Regner Tuxen, painted in 1905. The scene depicts two figures, possibly both women, on a rocky, brown and reddish-brown beach at low tide. One figure sits on a large rock while the other kneels nearby. In the background, a choppy gray-blue ocean extends to the horizon under a cloudy, light gray sky. Several white seagulls fly in the sky and dot the water's surface. A small, red-sailed boat is visible in the distant water to the left.
July 9, 2025 at 1:40 PM
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Artist's studio with white walls and wooden floors. A large painting of a still life rests on a table covered in paint supplies to the left. A smaller portrait hangs above a doorway in the center, which leads to a tiled bathroom. To the right, a wooden staircase leads to an upper level filled with stacked canvases, and a light blue rolling cart with art supplies is in the foreground.
July 9, 2025 at 9:29 AM
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An intricate and ornate Prague Astronomical Clock, shown from a close-up, low-angle perspective. The upper dial features a complex mechanism with gold, red, and blue concentric circles indicating various astronomical data and time. Below it, a richly carved stone arch frames a lower, circular calendar dial with golden medallions depicting the months and zodiac signs. To the left and right of this lower dial are sculpted figures, one appearing to be an angel with wings and a shield, and the other a robed figure with a turban. The entire structure is made of dark, weathered stone with elaborate gothic carvings.
July 7, 2025 at 1:16 PM
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Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Alpsonntag. Szene am Brunnen [Sunday in the Alps. Scene at the Well], 1923-24/ around 1929 Oil on canvas with original painted frame, 168 x 400 cm, Kunstmuseum Bern A German Expressionist painting depicting a group of figures, possibly farmers or villagers, amidst a vibrant, almost jagged alpine landscape. The colors are vivid and somewhat unnatural, with prominent use of yellows, oranges, and greens, suggesting a distorted or heightened reality. The brushstrokes are visible and energetic, contributing to the expressive quality of the scene.
July 5, 2025 at 5:11 PM
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Lucian Freud: Bella in her Pluto T-Shirt, 1995 - National Portrait Gallery. A high-contrast, black and white etching shows a person with short hair, wearing a t-shirt with a design, and pants, sitting in a wicker chair. The person's left arm rests on the armrest, with their hand hanging down, while their right arm is bent, with their hand supporting their head. The background is a solid, dark tone.
July 5, 2025 at 5:06 PM
rapiaria.bsky.social
A low-angle, wide-angle photograph of Getdown Services in a dimly lit club setting with red ambient lighting reflecting in the background. The man on the left wears a bright orange jacket and has dark hair and a mustache, looking directly at the camera with a neutral expression. The man on the right, closer to the camera and slightly to the right of center, has light brown or blondish wavy hair and a prominent, bushy mustache, also looking directly at the viewer with an intense gaze. The fisheye lens distorts their features slightly, emphasizing their faces and creating an immersive, slightly surreal atmosphere.
June 30, 2025 at 12:41 PM
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Sepia-toned vintage postcard (ca. 1900) titled "Marvejols - Château de Saint-Lambert" in Marvejols, Lozère, France. The stately, light-colored château features a prominent round tower with a conical roof and several rectangular windows. It is surrounded by lush trees, particularly tall conifers on the right. In the foreground, a field of grass separates the viewer from the château, with a single man wearing a hat and light-colored attire standing to the left, facing away from the camera. The postcard identifies the publisher as "Phototypie Labruche Frères, Toulouse".
June 29, 2025 at 4:08 PM
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Sepia-toned postcard (ca. 1900) features the "Porte de Soubeyran" in Marvejols, Lozère, France. The central focus is a large, imposing medieval gatehouse with a distinctive, multi-faceted roof and a large arched passageway. Surrounding the gatehouse are several traditional stone buildings, some with multiple stories and dormer windows. On the left, a building is labeled "Café Raynal" and on the right, other building bear the signs "Au Cheval Rouge" and "Café du Palais". The scene is bustling with activity. Several figures are visible, including a person sweeping near the gate, others standing by, and what appears to be a cart or farm equipment pulled by animals. Piles of hay or straw are visible on the side of the road.
June 29, 2025 at 4:04 PM
rapiaria.bsky.social
A black and white photo shows the five members of the band The Strokes around 2002. From left to right, they are Fabrizio Moretti (partially covering his face), Nick Valensi (smiling slightly), Julian Casablancas (looking directly at the camera with long, shaggy hair and wearing a corduroy jacket over a graphic t-shirt), Albert Hammond Jr. (with curly hair and a leather jacket), and Nikolai Fraiture (with longer, straight hair and a collared shirt). They stand casually in front of a textured wall.
June 28, 2025 at 8:17 PM
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A close-up shot of a vibrant piece of Slovak folk embroidery, likely a shawl or part of a costume. The textile features geometric patterns in bright colors including fuchsia, orange, black, white, and yellow, with beaded embellishments. The design includes vertical stripes of alternating patterns, some with diamond shapes and crosses, and a central panel with smaller, intricate motifs. A textured white border with a delicate lace-like edge is visible at the bottom.
June 28, 2025 at 5:58 PM
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View of an ornate wooden pulpit inside St. Bartholomew's church in Marksveld, Low Countries. The hexagonal pulpit features intricate carvings, including a central medallion with a bust of the saint, surrounded by scrolling foliage and putti. Below, a carved figure of an angel supports the structure. To the right, mounted on a white wall, stands a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary holding a young Jesus. In the background, arched columns and the altar with a radiant sunburst motif are visible, and the floor is a black and white checkerboard pattern.
June 28, 2025 at 5:42 PM
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An oil painting by Stanislas Lépine titled "Le pont d’Austerlitz au quai de la Rapée à Paris" (1867) depicts a view of the Seine River in Paris under a cloudy sky. The Pont d'Austerlitz, a multi-arched bridge, spans the river in the middle ground, with buildings and the recognizable towers of Notre Dame Cathedral visible on the far bank. On the near bank, to the right, is a sandy embankment where several figures are present: two individuals on horseback are partially submerged in the river, while others walk along the shore, including one with a dog. Boats are scattered on the river, and smoke emanates from a steamboat near the bridge. The overall palette is muted, dominated by grays, blues, and browns, typical of a slightly overcast day, capturing an everyday scene of 19th-century Parisian life along the river.
June 28, 2025 at 9:50 AM
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Opere Varie with the project “La Ferme du Chaudron”, in collaboration with Bast architects. The project is a refurbishment of a farm and a house for a new cultural center of bio-agriculture and bio-food.
June 27, 2025 at 10:07 PM
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Characters from carnival in Castille by La Perdiz Roja
June 27, 2025 at 3:23 PM
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An elderly Segovian man in traditional cape and wide-brimmed hat stands in the doorway of a historic building, captured by Otto Wunderlich in early 20th-century Spain. Wunderlich’s iconic photos documented local life and customs, preserving Castilian heritage through evocative portraits like this.
June 27, 2025 at 2:49 PM