Category: Arts & Tradition

Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales’: The Wife of Bath: A Character With Surprising Views

One of the most recognized characters of Geoffrey Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales,” the Wife of Bath, is known for her novel ideas on marriage and love. Chaucer created a character that inspired future writers of Western literature. One of the 30 pilgrims featured in these 24 tales, the Wife of Bath represented the changing views about…


Popcorn and Inspiration: ‘On a Wing and a Prayer’: Faith Isn’t an Incident, but a Journey

PG | 1 h 42 min | Drama | 2023 It’s Easter in 2009, and 56-year-old pharmacist Doug White (Dennis Quaid), wife Terri (Heather Graham), and their teenage daughters are returning in a small, private plane to their Louisiana home, after mourning the sudden death of Doug’s older brother Jeff in Florida. Ten minutes in,…


AI Is for Artificial Intelligence, Not Artistic Imitation

Commentary Art is the highest form of human expression; that is, art is most effective in evoking and exploring expressions intrinsic to the human experience. There can be no room for what you might call fake art, art that is, at its heart, inauthentic. I examined authenticity in my Honour’s thesis, and submit that authentic…


Highlighting Endangered Heritage Crafts in the UK

What does arrowsmithing, coppersmithing, and straw hat making have in common? They are three of the eleven heritage crafts that have been newly classified as “critically endangered” in the UK, meaning that those craft skills could disappear in a generation. Sights such as Cornish coppersmith Francis Cargeeg working in his workshop in 1951 are now…


The Making of a Renaissance Master: Alonso Berruguete’s Rise to Prominence

In 1504, the young and ambitious Spanish artist Alonso Berruguete arrived in Italy with an aspiration to become part of the elite artistic world of the High Renaissance. Undertrained in comparison, he made the risky move not knowing if, or when, he would succeed. Only two years were necessary for those questions to be answered….


The Power of the Dog: Centuries of Canines in Art

Tens of thousands of years ago, though the exact date is disputed, dogs were domesticated by humans. Likewise, the depiction of canines in art has a rich history that runs the gamut. Dogs have made their appearances in early cave and rock paintings, ancient Greek ceramics, Roman mosaics, medieval tapestries and statues, as well as…


Artist William-Adolphe Bouguereau’s Penchant for Motherly Love

A sample of paintings by 19th-century French artist, William-Adolphe Bouguereau, expresses a talent fascinated by the tender beauty of womanhood. Regarded today as one of the best painters of human anatomy, he breathed life into his figures by capturing the subtle nuances of personality and mood. Bouguereau’s appreciation for young mothers reached a classical reverence…


Miss NTD Global Chinese Beauty Pageant Celebrates Ancient Values

The New Tang Dynasty (NTD) Global Chinese Beauty Pageant combines beauty with a higher purpose through its mission to educate young Chinese women about their heritage. In its first year, the pageant has invited young women from all nations between ages 18-30, who are of at least one-third Chinese origin and fluent in either Mandarin…


St. Francis of Assisi: The Art of Prayer and Devotion

Around 1635, Spanish artist Francisco de Zurbarán painted “Saint Francis in Meditation,” a striking life-size portrait of Francis kneeling in prayer and gazing up to God in adoration.  Zurbarán made Francis’s faith palpable by painting Francis the man, without the fanfare of his miracles. Francis wears the habit worn by the friars of the Capuchin…


Holy Relics and Their Medieval Reliquaries

Relics are sacred materials customarily from the body of a holy person or a fragment of an object a holy person touched. They are believed to retain the power and sanctity of the original revered person, often Jesus or a saint. In the Middle Ages, elaborate and magnificent reliquaries (objects that house relics) were created…