Monthly Archives: July 2014

A MOMENT OF SIMPLE BEAUTY

Living in a medieval house has its benefits. We have 14th century wall paintings in our dining room.Every now and then people ask to see them.Today it was a group of singers rehearsing in a nearby church for a concert of early music. I showed them into the room and left them in the hands of their capable guide, Marjan Buyle, who restored the paintings in the 1990’s.

By |2022-01-26T22:26:11+01:00July 18th, 2014|Archive|0 Comments

MAKING SENSE OF MIMESIS

For several years I have engaged in an email exchange with the young French scholar Karine Bouchy, who just completed her doctorate in Paris on the gesture in contemporary calligraphy and art. I described to her an experience I had in Samarkand. After visiting endless madrassas and mosques, all decorated with exquisitely patterned tiles, I went to a pre-Islamic building and suddenly saw a fresco of a human face.

By |2022-01-26T22:26:23+01:00July 13th, 2014|Archive|0 Comments

A DASH TO MELBOURNE AND BACK VIA DOHA

Just back from Australia, where I taught one of the most talented groups of calligraphers I have ever encountered. The trip was squeezed in between projects in Belgium, so I had no time to see the country, but it was worth it nevertheless. Two classes in five days, each with surprising results. The great reward of being a teacher is to survey the work of your students and say, silently, “I wish I had done that!”

By |2022-01-26T22:26:35+01:00July 11th, 2014|Archive|0 Comments

CORVEY ABBEY WINS UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE TITLE

Three incredible days in Corvey Abbey near the German town of Höxter in Westphalia. Charlemagne founded the monastery and constructed the great Westwork as his throne room. From here he governed the eastern provinces of his empire. The building still stands, and has just received the title of Unesco World Heritage site.

By |2022-01-26T22:27:06+01:00July 1st, 2014|Archive|0 Comments
Go to Top