Monthly Archives: April 2024

It’s hard to imagine the garden of a grand stately home without a statue or three. Indeed these days even modest gardens like mine have a well placed bust or figure to add a touch of class to the surroundings. … Continue reading →

Last week’s Funny Faces  were not the only hybrid art form that evolved in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.   Landscape painting was developing too, especially in the Netherlands and artists, such as Arcimboldo whose work I looked … Continue reading →

We’re probably all familiar with  funny faces like these  although I suspect that most of us don’t know much more about them or the artist, except perhaps that his name was Arcimboldo. The obvious question is why  a serious court … Continue reading →

Last  week I explored the history of the former royal palace of Eltham, one of the favourite residences of medieval monarchs which  was later almost abandoned and fell into decline before being rediscovered, redesigned  and revitalised in the 1930s by … Continue reading →