1.
Turin
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Turin is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region and was the first capital city of Italy. The city is located mainly on the bank of the Po River, in front of Susa Valley and surrounded by the western Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 892,649 while the population of the area is estimated by Eurostat to be 1.7 million inhabitants. The Turin metropolitan area is estimated by the OECD to have a population of 2.2 million, in 1997 a part of the historical center of Torino was inscribed in the World Heritage List under the name Residences of the Royal House of Savoy. Turin is well known for its Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neo-classical, many of Turins public squares, castles, gardens and elegant palazzi such as Palazzo Madama, were built between the 16th and 18th centuries. This was after the capital of the Duchy of Savoy was moved to Turin from Chambery as part of the urban expansion, the city used to be a major European political center. Turin was Italys first capital city in 1861 and home to the House of Savoy, from 1563, it was the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, then of the Kingdom of Sardinia ruled by the Royal House of Savoy and finally the first capital of the unified Italy. Turin is sometimes called the cradle of Italian liberty for having been the birthplace and home of notable politicians and people who contributed to the Risorgimento, such as Cavour. The city currently hosts some of Italys best universities, colleges, academies, lycea and gymnasia, such as the University of Turin, founded in the 15th century, in addition, the city is home to museums such as the Museo Egizio and the Mole Antonelliana. Turins attractions make it one of the worlds top 250 tourist destinations, Turin is ranked third in Italy, after Milan and Rome, for economic strength. With a GDP of $58 billion, Turin is the worlds 78th richest city by purchasing power, as of 2010, the city has been ranked by GaWC as a Gamma World city. Turin is also home to much of the Italian automotive industry, the Taurini were an ancient Celto-Ligurian Alpine people, who occupied the upper valley of the Po River, in the center of modern Piedmont. In 218 BC, they were attacked by Hannibal as he was allied with their long-standing enemies, the Taurini chief town was captured by Hannibals forces after a three-day siege. As a people they are mentioned in history. It is believed that a Roman colony was established in 27 BC under the name of Castra Taurinorum, both Livy and Strabo mention the Taurinis country as including one of the passes of the Alps, which points to a wider use of the name in earlier times. In the 1st century BC, the Romans created a military camp, the typical Roman street grid can still be seen in the modern city, especially in the neighborhood known as the Quadrilatero Romano. Via Garibaldi traces the path of the Roman citys decumanus which began at the Porta Decumani. The Porta Palatina, on the side of the current city centre, is still preserved in a park near the Cathedral
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Paris
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Paris is the capital and most populous city of France. It has an area of 105 square kilometres and a population of 2,229,621 in 2013 within its administrative limits, the agglomeration has grown well beyond the citys administrative limits. By the 17th century, Paris was one of Europes major centres of finance, commerce, fashion, science, and the arts, and it retains that position still today. The aire urbaine de Paris, a measure of area, spans most of the Île-de-France region and has a population of 12,405,426. It is therefore the second largest metropolitan area in the European Union after London, the Metropole of Grand Paris was created in 2016, combining the commune and its nearest suburbs into a single area for economic and environmental co-operation. Grand Paris covers 814 square kilometres and has a population of 7 million persons, the Paris Region had a GDP of €624 billion in 2012, accounting for 30.0 percent of the GDP of France and ranking it as one of the wealthiest regions in Europe. The city is also a rail, highway, and air-transport hub served by two international airports, Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Paris-Orly. Opened in 1900, the subway system, the Paris Métro. It is the second busiest metro system in Europe after Moscow Metro, notably, Paris Gare du Nord is the busiest railway station in the world outside of Japan, with 262 millions passengers in 2015. In 2015, Paris received 22.2 million visitors, making it one of the top tourist destinations. The association football club Paris Saint-Germain and the rugby union club Stade Français are based in Paris, the 80, 000-seat Stade de France, built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, is located just north of Paris in the neighbouring commune of Saint-Denis. Paris hosts the annual French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament on the red clay of Roland Garros, Paris hosted the 1900 and 1924 Summer Olympics and is bidding to host the 2024 Summer Olympics. The name Paris is derived from its inhabitants, the Celtic Parisii tribe. Thus, though written the same, the name is not related to the Paris of Greek mythology. In the 1860s, the boulevards and streets of Paris were illuminated by 56,000 gas lamps, since the late 19th century, Paris has also been known as Panam in French slang. Inhabitants are known in English as Parisians and in French as Parisiens and they are also pejoratively called Parigots. The Parisii, a sub-tribe of the Celtic Senones, inhabited the Paris area from around the middle of the 3rd century BC. One of the areas major north-south trade routes crossed the Seine on the île de la Cité, this place of land and water trade routes gradually became a town
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Anarchism
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Anarchism is a political philosophy that advocates self-governed societies based on voluntary institutions. These are often described as stateless societies, although several authors have defined them more specifically as institutions based on non-hierarchical free associations, Anarchism holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful. While anti-statism is central, anarchism entails opposing authority or hierarchical organisation in the conduct of all relations, including, but not limited to. Anarchism does not offer a fixed body of doctrine from a particular world view. Many types and traditions of anarchism exist, not all of which are mutually exclusive, Anarchist schools of thought can differ fundamentally, supporting anything from extreme individualism to complete collectivism. Strains of anarchism have often divided into the categories of social. The term anarchism is a word composed from the word anarchy and the suffix -ism, themselves derived respectively from the Greek ἀναρχία, i. e. anarchy. The first known use of this word was in 1539, various factions within the French Revolution labelled opponents as anarchists although few shared many views of later anarchists. The first political philosopher to call himself an anarchist was Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, on the other hand, some use libertarianism to refer to individualistic free-market philosophy only, referring to free-market anarchism as libertarian anarchism. The earliest anarchist themes can be found in the 6th century BC, among the works of Taoist philosopher Laozi, zhuangzis philosophy has been described by various sources as anarchist. Zhuangzi wrote, A petty thief is put in jail, a great brigand becomes a ruler of a Nation. Diogenes of Sinope and the Cynics, their contemporary Zeno of Citium, Jesus is sometimes considered the first anarchist in the Christian anarchist tradition. Georges Lechartier wrote that The true founder of anarchy was Jesus Christ, the first anarchist society was that of the apostles. This is exemplified when the glorification of the state is viewed as a form of sinful idolatry, the French renaissance political philosopher Étienne de La Boétie wrote in his most famous work the Discourse on Voluntary Servitude what some historians consider an important anarchist precedent. The radical Protestant Christian Gerrard Winstanley and his group the Diggers are cited by authors as proposing anarchist social measures in the 17th century in England. The term anarchist first entered the English language in 1642, during the English Civil War, as a term of abuse, used by Royalists against their Roundhead opponents. By the time of the French Revolution some, such as the Enragés, began to use the term positively, in opposition to Jacobin centralisation of power, by the turn of the 19th century, the English word anarchism had lost its initial negative connotation. Modern anarchism emerged from the secular or religious thought of the Enlightenment, as part of the political turmoil of the 1790s in the wake of the French Revolution, William Godwin developed the first expression of modern anarchist thought
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Art critic
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An art critic is a person who is specialized in analyzing, interpreting and evaluating art. Their written critiques or reviews contribute to art criticism and they are published in newspapers, magazines, books, exhibition brochures and catalogues, some of todays art critics use art blogs and other online platforms in order to connect with a wider audience and expand debate about art. Differently from art history, there is not a training for art critics, art critics come from different backgrounds. Professional art critics are expected to have an eye for art. Typically the art critic views art at exhibitions, galleries, museums or artists studios, very rarely art critics earn their living from writing criticism. The opinions of art critics have the potential to stir debate on art related topics, due to this the viewpoints of art critics writing for art publications and newspapers adds to public discourse concerning art and culture. Art collectors and patrons often rely on the advice of such critics as a way to enhance their appreciation of the art they are viewing. Many now famous and celebrated artists were not recognized by the art critics of their time, an experience-related article is Agnieszka Gratza. Always according to James Elkins in smaller and developing countries, newspaper art criticism normally serves as art history, Art criticism List of art critics History of art criticism Good audio version of symposium on contemporary art criticism entitled Empathy and Criticality, sponsored by the Frieze Foundation
5.
Neo-impressionism
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Neo-Impressionism is a term coined by French art critic Félix Fénéon in 1886 to describe an art movement founded by Georges Seurat. Around this time, the peak of France’s modern era emerged, followers of Neo-Impressionism, in particular, were drawn to modern urban scenes as well as landscapes and seashores. Science-based interpretation of lines and colors influenced Neo-Impressionists characterization of their own contemporary art, the Pointillist and Divisionist techniques are often mentioned in this context, because it was the dominant technique in the beginning of the Neo-impressionist movement. Some argue that Neo-Impressionism became the first true movement in painting. The Neo-Impressionists were able to create a movement very quickly in the 19th century, partially due to its connection to anarchism. The movement and the style were an attempt to drive harmonious vision from modern science, anarchist theory, during the emergence of Neo-Impressionism, Seurat and his followers strove to refine the impulsive and intuitive artistic mannerisms of Impressionism. Neo-impressionists used disciplined networks of dots and blocks of color in their desire to instill a sense of organization, in further defining the movement, Seurat incorporated the recent explanation of optic and color perceptions. The development of theory by Michel Eugène Chevreul and others by the late 19th century played a pivotal role in shaping the Neo-Impressionist style. Ogden Rood’s book, Modern Chromatics, with Applications to Art and Industry, acknowledged the different behaviors exhibited by colored light, while the mixture of the former created a white or gray color, that of the latter produced a dark, murky color. As painters, Neo-Impressionists had to deal with colored pigments, so to avoid the dullness, mixing of colors was not necessary. There are a number of alternatives to the term Neo-Impressionism and each has its own nuance and it emphasized the studies of color and light which were central to his artistic style. This term is used today. Divisionism, which is commonly used, is used to describe a mode of Neo-Impressionist painting. It refers to the method of applying individual strokes of complementary, unlike other designations of this era, the term Neo-Impressionism was not given as a criticism. Instead, it embraces Seurats and his followers ideals in their approach to art, note, Pointillism merely describes a later technique based on divisionism in which dots of color instead of blocks of color are applied. Neo-Impressionism was first presented to the public in 1886 at the Salon des Indépendants, the Indépendants remained their main exhibition space for decades with Signac acting as president of the association. But with the success of Neo-Impressionism, its fame spread quickly, in 1886, Seurat and Signac were invited to exhibit in the 8th and final Impressionist exhibition, later with Les XX and La Libre Esthétique in Brussels. In 1892, a group of Neo-Impressionist painters united to show their works in Paris, in the Salons of the Hôtel Brébant,32, the following year they exhibited at 20, rue Laffitte
6.
Georges Seurat
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Georges-Pierre Seurat was a French post-Impressionist painter and draftsman. He is noted for his use of drawing media and for devising the painting techniques known as chromoluminarism and pointillism. His large-scale work, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, altered the direction of art by initiating Neo-impressionism. Seurat was born 2 December 1859 in Paris, at 60 rue de Bondy, the Seurat family moved to 136 boulevard de Magenta in 1862 or 1863. His father, Antoine Chrysostome Seurat, originally from Champagne, was a legal official who had become wealthy from speculating in property. Georges had a brother, Émile Augustin, and a sister, Marie-Berthe and his father lived in Le Raincy and visited his wife and children once a week at boulevard de Magenta. Georges Seurat first studied art at the École Municipale de Sculpture et Dessin, near his familys home in the boulevard Magenta, Seurats studies resulted in a well-considered and fertile theory of contrasts, a theory to which all his work was thereafter subjected. His formal artistic education came to an end in November 1879, after a year at the Brest Military Academy, he returned to Paris where he shared a studio with his friend Aman-Jean, while also renting a small apartment at 16 rue de Chabrol. For the next two years, he worked at mastering the art of monochrome drawing and his first exhibited work, shown at the Salon, of 1883, was a Conté crayon drawing of Aman-Jean. He also studied the works of Eugène Delacroix carefully, making notes on his use of color and he spent 1883 working on his first major painting—a large canvas titled Bathers at Asnières, a monumental work showing young men relaxing by the Seine in a working-class suburb of Paris. Seurat also departed from the Impressionist ideal by preparing for the work with a number of drawings, Bathers at Asnières was rejected by the Paris Salon, and instead he showed it at the Groupe des Artistes Indépendants in May 1884. Seurats new ideas on pointillism were to have a strong influence on Signac. In the summer of 1884, Seurat began work on A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, the painting shows members of each of the social classes participating in various park activities. The tiny juxtaposed dots of multi-colored paint allow the eye to blend colors optically. It took Seurat two years to complete this 10-foot-wide painting, much of which he spent in the park sketching in preparation for the work and it is now in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. The painting was the inspiration for James Lapine and Stephen Sondheims musical, Seurat concealed his relationship with Madeleine Knobloch, an artists model whom he portrayed in his painting Jeune femme se poudrant. In 1889 she moved in with Seurat in his studio on the 7th floor of 128bis Boulevard de Clichy, when Madeleine became pregnant, the couple moved to a studio at 39 passage de lÉlysée-des-Beaux-Arts. There she gave birth to their son, who was named Pierre-Georges,16 February 1890, Seurat died in Paris in his parents home on 29 March 1891 at the age of 31
7.
Arthur Rimbaud
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Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud was a French poet who is known for his influence on modern literature and arts, which prefigured surrealism. Rimbaud was known to have been a libertine and for being a restless soul, having engaged in an at times violent romantic relationship with fellow poet Paul Verlaine, which lasted nearly two years. After the end of his career, he traveled extensively on three continents as a merchant before his death from cancer just after his thirty-seventh birthday. As a poet, Rimbaud is well known for his contributions to Symbolism and, among other works, A Season in Hell, Arthur Rimbaud was born in the provincial town of Charleville in the Ardennes département in northeastern France. He was the child of Frédéric Rimbaud and Marie Catherine Vitalie Cuif. Rimbauds father, a Burgundian of Provençal extraction, was an infantry captain risen from the ranks, from 1844 to 1850, he participated in the conquest of Algeria, and in 1854 was awarded the Légion dhonneur by Imperial decree. Captain Rimbaud was described as good-tempered, easy-going and generous, with the long moustaches and goatee of a Chasseur officer. In October 1852, Captain Rimbaud, then aged 38, was transferred to Mézières where he met Vitalie Cuif,11 years his junior and she came from a solidly established Ardennais family, but one with its share of bohemians, two of her brothers were alcoholics. Her personality was the exact opposite of Captain Rimbauds, she was narrowminded, stingy, completely lacking in a sense of humour. When Charles Houin, a biographer, interviewed her, he found her withdrawn. Arthur Rimbauds private name for her was Mouth of Darkness, nevertheless, on 8 February 1853, Captain Rimbaud and Vitalie Cuif married, their first-born, Jean Nicolas Frédéric, arrived nine months later on 2 November. The next year, on 20 October 1854, Jean Nicolas Arthur was born, three more children followed, Victorine-Pauline-Vitalie on 4 June 1857, Jeanne-Rosalie-Vitalie on 15 June 1858 and, finally, Frédérique Marie Isabelle on 1 June 1860. Though the marriage lasted seven years, Captain Rimbaud lived continuously in the home for less than three months, from February to May 1853. The rest of the time his military postings—including active service in the Crimean War and he was not at home for his childrens births, nor their baptisms. Isabelles birth in 1860 must have been the last straw, as after this Captain Rimbaud stopped returning home on leave entirely. Though they never divorced, the separation was complete, thereafter Mme Rimbaud let herself be known as Widow Rimbaud, neither the captain nor his children showed the slightest interest in re-establishing contact. Fearing her children were being over-influenced by the children of the poor. Rimbaud moved her family to the Cours dOrléans in 1862 and this was a better neighbourhood, and the boys, now aged nine and eight, who had been taught at home by their mother, were now sent to the Pension Rossat
