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Holy lockdown! Indian man spends COVID-19 crisis making handwritten Bible
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Rejin Valson presents his handwritten Bible to St. Antony's Church in North Karamuck, India. (Credit: Courtesy to Crux)


MUMBAI, India -- Lockdowns imposed due to the COVID-19 coronavirus have given a lot of people extra time to fill. One person in India decided to create a handwritten copy of the Bible, using standard letter-sized paper and ballpoint pens.

Rejin Valson, a 28-years-old who attends St. Antony's Church in North Karamuck -- in the Archdiocese of Thrissur in the southern Indian state of Kerala -- finished the project after 113 days, from April 1-July 22. The 73-book Catholic Bible has 2,755 pages, and Valson ended up using 32 ballpoint pens to complete the job. The finished Bible weighs over 30 pounds.

"My wife, Choice, is pregnant with our first child, she is in her seventh month. I wanted to complete this mission before the delivery. I did not do it for publicity. It is for my baby's good health and I want to be a good father," Valson told Crux.

He is a firefighter at Cochin International Airport, and his wife Choice was a lecturer at St Mary's College in Thissur: They were married in August 2018.


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The handwritten Bible created by Rejin Valson. (Credit: Courtesy to Crux)


[...]

India went into complete lockdown due to the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus on March 25, and began "unlocking" on June 1.

"I began writing on April 1, but prior to that, I had one week of preparation -- including practicing -- from the last week of March. Some days, I would write for 10-11 hours a day, sometimes 2-3 hours a day, but I prayed every time, before I began writing. I even prayed for patience," Valson explained.

Once finished, the Bible was unveiled at the parish Mass by Father Finosh Keettikka, the pastor, and has been kept in the church so people can view it.

On July 31, Keettikka took Valson -- together with his wife and mother -- to meet Archbishop Andrews Thazhath and Auxiliary Bishop Tony Neelankavil of Thrissur.


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Rejin Valson presents his handwritten Bible to Archbishop Andrews Thazhath and Auxiliary Bishop Tony Neelankavil of Thrissur. (Credit: Courtesy to Crux.)


"We presented the Bible to the archbishop, and His Grace gave us his blessings and said I was a model for all," Valson recalled.

Keettikka told Crux Valson comes from a very devout family, and his Bible-writing project was an act of devotion.

"Rejin and told me that his intention to handwrite the Holy Bible was for Graces for his married life, and the wellbeing and good health of their unborn baby," the priest said.

[...]


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Pandemic hobby: Washington man designs Lego basilica replica
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John Davisson poses for a photo with a Lego replica of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. (Credit: CNS photo/courtesy Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception via Catholic Standard)


WASHINGTON, D.C. -- For John Davisson, the past few months of the pandemic in Washington gave him more time to return to a hobby that began during his childhood: Making Lego designs.

He started with a few pre-made kits but decided to dip into his own creations -- first a replication of his home and then a model of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Davisson and his wife, Amanda Erickson, live near the basilica, so the building has a special place in Davisson's life.

"I've always thought it was a really remarkable building," he said. "When you come over the horizon of a hill in D.C., you see the basilica. Especially at night, it's a really cool sight."

Fascinated with the building, Davisson said the idea to replicate the Basilica with Legos quickly came to fruition when he realized what an interesting project it would be.

"There's so much detail in the building; it's such a remarkable structure," he told the Catholic Standard, archdiocesan newspaper of Washington.

In April, Davisson took several pictures of the exterior of the basilica and used a 3D tour on the basilica's website to plan as much detail as possible. He used a Lego design software program, Studio, which includes a "full catalog of all the bricks and all of the colors that Lego has ever produced and you can use that as you would architectural design software to come up with the designs and order the pieces," he said.

[...]

The Lego creation is modular, so the roof can be removed to view an interior replication.

"You can separate it into individual segments," Davisson said. "Part of the challenge was making sure that would all work out."

The dome of the basilica presented challenges in itself as well, mostly because of its shape in contrast with the average Lego shape.

"The dome was especially hard because Lego is mostly a rectangular medium, and when you're building an odd shape, that presents a lot of challenges," he said. "That took several days of work off and on."

But even though the dome was one of the most difficult parts, Davisson said it ended up being one of his favorites.

"The dome was really complicated," he said. "The rose windows in particular also took quite a while to puzzle through and were delicate to assemble because they use strange connections to position Lego pieces in a radial fashion, but I think they came out really well, and they look really good in the final project."

Davisson, who is a full-time attorney, said that he welcomed the project as a good creative outlet during a time when the social aspect of life was much quieter.

"I recommend Lego design to anyone looking for a hobby these days," he said. "I enjoy the fact that it is a medium that has rules and limitations, and you have to work within those rules and limitations but also within that universe, there are endless creative possibilities."
Last edited by Wosbald on Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:53 am, edited 1 time in total.


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Joaquim Campa @JoaquimCampa | Twitter
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1. The Royal Portuguese Cabinet of Reading , Rio De Janeiro
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2. Public Library of Stuttgart
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3. Trinity College Library, Dublin
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4. The Tianjin Binhai Library of Tianjin, China
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5. The Girolamini Library, Naples
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6. Palace Of Mafra Library, Mafra, Portugal
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7. Vasconcelos Library, Mexico City
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8. Royal Library of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain
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9. Lello (Bookstore), Porto
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10. The Abbey Library of Saint Gall, St. Gallen, Switzerland
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11. Library of Parliament, Ottawa, Canada
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12. El Ateneo Grand Splendid, Buenos Aires
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13. Zhongshuge (Bookstore),Chongqing, China
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14. Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris
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15. Library of Congress, Washington DC
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16. Baroque Library of Metten Abbey, Germany
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17. The Vennesla Library, Norway
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18. State Law Library of Iowa, US
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19. Austrian National Library, Vienna
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20. Bodleian Library Oxford, UK
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21. National Library of China, Beijing
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22. Public Library of Fermo, Italy
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23. State Library of South Australia, Adelaide
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24. Wiblingen Monastery Library, Ulm, Germany
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25. The Library of Seitenstetten, Austria
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26. Library of Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona
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27. Copenhagen University Library, Denmark
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28. Joanine Library of the University of Coimbra, Portugal
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29. The Philological Library of Berlin
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30. Rijksmuseum Research Library. Amsterdam
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31. The Vatican Library
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Michigan parishioners build ‘chapel of divine chill’ for icy special Mass
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Students and parishioners of Divine Child Parish in Dearborn, Mich., prepare a makeshift snow chapel for Mass Feb. 21, 2021. (Credit: Valaurian Waller/Detroit Catholic via CNS)


DEARBORN, Michigan — Over 300 parishioners and students gathered around an altar sculpted from ice and snow for a unique Mass at Divine Child Elementary School in Dearborn.

Temperatures dipped into the single digits for the Feb. 21 liturgy, but by shuffling side to side and listening attentively to Father David Pellican, associate pastor of Church of the Divine Child, pray the words of consecration, the faithful had the chance to thank God for all of creation, including the ice and snow that has come in abundance this winter.

The parish’s “chapel of divine chill” took its inspiration from a similar project at Michigan Tech University in Houghton, where students and clergy annually construct a chapel of ice and snow during the school’s winter carnival.

It was the afternoon of Feb. 15, with a snowstorm in the forecast, when Pellican began discussing the snow chapel with Father Bob McCabe, pastor.

“It was Monday night, right before the snowstorm, and Father Bob and I got in the work van and drove to Home Depot,” said Pellican, who happens to know Father Tom Merkel, associate pastor of St. Albert the Great University Parish in Houghton. “We built the forms on Tuesday, started work on the chapel itself Wednesday afternoon, and finished it Saturday.”

[…]

Pellican said he was outside admiring the work on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17, when a passerby offered 50 candles for the project, which were placed in niches carved into the snow.

“The reaction has been very positive; everyone in the neighborhood is talking about it,” McCabe said. “People drive by and feel inspired. Someone asked if we needed a large crucifix and that came (Sunday) morning. We were looking for statuary and had this one of St. Joseph. Someone overheard our conversation and said, ‘Oh, I have the Blessed Virgin Mother.’

“This project has been a combination of faith, prayer and teamwork. The creativity has been a lot of fun. It’s been a blessing,” he said.

Volunteers kept sculpting the altar with car brushes until just before the 6 p.m. Mass. Those working on the chapel weren’t sure what the final product would look like, but were taken aback with the result.

“This is even better than I expected,” Myers said. “I knew at the beginning it was going to be really cool. Every single day we worked on it, it kept getting better and better. This is one of the highlights of my senior year, I think. Who else can say in their high school senior year, they got to build a snow chapel?”

Pellican said the makeshift chapel is dedicated to St. Joseph the Worker and Our Lady of the Snows during a homily in which he promised the chilled assembly he “wouldn’t be saving his two-hour homily for this moment.”

He likened the dedication of the snow chapel volunteers to that of the immigrants who scraped what little money they had to build the gorgeous churches that adorn the Detroit Archdiocese. He also mentioned St. Francis of Assisi, tasked by Jesus to rebuild his church, both physically and spiritually, just as the ice chapel brought the Divine Child community together for one frigid night.

“One of the things we really saw in this project was it showed people, in no uncertain terms, that there is no opposition between being religious and having a good time,” Pellican said. “When you are following Jesus, it’s an adventure, and you can have a ton of fun doing it.”


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Aquinas in Appalachia: Bluegrass-picking priest explains genre’s appeal
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Dominican Father Thomas Joseph White, co-founder of the U.S.-based bluegrass band "The Hillbilly Thomists," is pictured in Rome March 13, 2021. (Credit: Robert Duncan/CNS)


ROME — Rome’s baroque churches, street-side shrines to the Virgin Mary and regular cycle of papal liturgies conjure fitting sentiments for a priest living and teaching theology in the Eternal City.

When U.S.-born, Dominican Father Thomas Joseph White gets out his National Reso-Phonic guitar, however, his heart is thousands of miles away — in rural Appalachia.

“I play this guitar most days in my office looking out at the Roman Forum that’s 2,700 years-old,” White wrote in a letter to the National Guitar Company. “I really appreciate Italian culture and it’s amazing heritage, but then I’m also really proud to come from a culture that created a guitar like this.”

White, 49, who teaches at Rome’s Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, is a founding member of the Dominican priest-led bluegrass band “The Hillbilly Thomists,” whose first album performed competitively on the Billboard charts for the genre when it was released in 2017.

“Living for the Other Side,” the groups’ second album, was released in December 2020.

Featuring many original compositions, several written by White, the new album regularly references sin, death and salvation in Jesus. Yet, the Georgia-born singer and songwriter doesn’t think of his contribution as Christian music.

“As soon as you say something (is) ‘Christian music,’ to be honest, I have a kind of negative reaction. I just think about good music,” White said, rebuffing the idea that he views the new CD as primarily an extension of the Dominicans’ — or Order of Preachers’ — preaching ministry.

“I don’t think that we are very calculative about it; I think we try to just play music that maybe expresses our ordinary life,” White said.

For a friar who has taken a vow of poverty, though, that ordinary life is expressed in the album’s lyrics in verses such as: “All possessions eventually rust,” “Truth is the very best medicine,” and “My soul’s alright but my body complains.”

“I think probably the goal is not really to worry about being a good Christian when you do something artistic, it’s about worrying about doing something artistically well,” White said. “And if you have a deep Christian grounding, it’s going to come out and probably your own questions or your complicated way of being a Christian is going to come out a little bit.”

“Part of the advantage we have is that because we’re Catholic religious, we sort of live in the field of religious ideas all the time, (we) live in liturgy all the time. So, in a way, music is not our act of piety,” White explained. “This kind of music, it’s more our act of rest. It’s a kind of informal way of being.”

The band, made up of nine friars from the Dominican Province of St. Joseph in the eastern United States, has negotiated a niche identity by embracing a musical form long used devotionally by Baptists and Methodists and appropriating it for the Catholic Church.

“Of course, if I sing old time bluegrass confessional songs, I do believe most of the things,” explained White, who specializes systemic theology and Thomistic metaphysics, “but I think we understand that we’re not proposing it in the same time, place and way.”

“We’re actually appreciating their faith. But we’re also looking at it as people who have a different theological take on things often in continuity, but also with some differences,” he said.

For example, White pointed out, there are both joyful and sorrowful mysteries in the recitation of the rosary.

“I think one of the lessons from that is that love of God is beyond the distinction between joy and sorrow,” he said. “I mean, if we can love God at all, we’re going to love God in joy and in sorrow because both are part of life.”

“And so, because bluegrass music kind of humbly expresses the ordinariness of life, there’s a lot of joy in it and a lot of sorrow. And that’s kind of perfect for Catholic sensibilities, because it’s kind of the acceptance of everything human,” White said.

[…]


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5 Postmodernist Buildings That Capture the Movement’s Playful Side [In-Depth]
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From Left to Right: Piazza d'Italia Closeup, Piazza d'Italia, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall Closeup, Portland Municipal Services Building Statue, Portland Municipal Services Building, Binoculars Building, Museum of Pop Art


In this article, we break down some of the best examples of Postmodern architecture and the characteristics that define the style.


Postmodernism is one of those architectural styles that, at first, may seem hard to describe. Does anything after modernism count as Postmodernism? The answer is that this architectural style is a direct response to the incredibly popular and utopian ideas of modernism. While modernism preached international design that would solve social problems and create a more unified world, Postmodernists were not so sure that architecture had the power to create such dramatic and widespread change.

Some architects and designers saw the increasing number of modern buildings as taking away from the character of a city. They believed that this international style often took the place of architecture that was a part of local heritage and culture. Many others believed that it was simply boring. This push against the boring can especially be seen in works by renowned Postmodernists like Robert Venturi, Denise Scott Brown, and Steve Izenour. Venturi once said “less is a bore� in response to Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe’s famous “less is more.�

In Contradiction and Complexity in Architecture, Venturi describes what he hoped architecture would become. Most of his hopes were realized as Postmodernists responded to the earlier style. “I speak of a complex and contradictory architecture based on the richness and ambiguity of modern experience, including that experience which is inherent in art,� says Venturi “I welcome the problems and exploit the uncertainties … I am for messy vitality over obvious unity … An architecture of complexity and contradiction must embody the difficult unity of inclusion rather than the easy unity of exclusion.�

Characteristics of Postmodern Architecture

Some believe that Postmodernism is the architecture of pop culture. It is sometimes flashy and it is not considered “timeless� in the way that modernists wanted their buildings to never go out of style. Postmodern buildings were playful and colorful. Some of the words used to describe Postmodern architecture in this list of characteristics were described by leaders of the style like Venturi and Scott Brown. An easy way to remember Postmodern characteristics is that they are often in complete opposition to the ideals of modernism.

� Unique Materials


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Photo: Stock Photos from Klod/Shutterstock


In addition to the minimalistic materiality of modernism, Postmodernists were unlimited in their range of materials and their applications. Postmodernist Frank Gehry is well known for his unusually bent metal sheets. Though he was not as vocal about the ideals of the style, he is well known for both using traditional materials in unusual ways and using unexpected and unique materials for architectural applications.

� Bright Colors


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Photo: Stock Photos from Ritu Manoj Jethani/Shutterstock


Part of the playfulness of Postmodernism lies in the bright colors that adorn these buildings. Modernists often designed white and glass boxes that were meant to fit any location and any person. Postmodernists instead used colors to breathe life and variation into their work and to make their buildings one-of-a-kind experiences that were specifically designed for the cities they were built in.

� Collaged Building Elements


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Photo: Stock Photos from Daniel Bartos/Shutterstock


Postmodern architecture is often characterized by playful design. This translates to buildings that reimagine traditional elements and break the rule of form following function. Instead, some buildings are designed simply for novelty — like a larger building in the shape of a stack of little houses.

� Duck or Decorated Shed?


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Photo: Stock Photos from Fotos593/Shutterstock


Simply put, a duck is a building that is designed to look like an object. The term “duck� comes from Learning from Las Vegas, the book by Venturi, Scott Brown, and Izenour that outlined many Postmodernist ideas. Ducks were buildings literally in the shape of a symbol, just like the duck-shaped building in Flanders, New York. The decorated shed is simply a building-shaped building that uses signage or decoration to accomplish the same symbolism that the ducks accomplish through its shape.

Examples of Postmodern Architecture

� M2 Building


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Photo: A post shared by Arsin et Bieuville (@arsin_et_bieuville)


Kengo Kuma is not known as a Postmodern architect. In fact, the M2 Building is unusual compared to the other projects in his portfolio. Despite it not being similar to Kuma’s other projects, it is the perfect example of the collage style of design sometimes found in Postmodern architecture. It also works as a great example of a duck.

The M2 Building was designed as a Mazda showroom in Tokyo, Japan, and was Kuma’s first major commission. It now acts as a funeral hall.

� Walt Disney Music Hall


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Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, California (Photo: Stock Photos from f11photo/Shutterstock)


Frank Gehry is an important Postmodern architect with a portfolio full of incredible examples of the style. His work is recognizable even to people not very interested in architecture, and his buildings function as cultural icons for the city they are designed in. The Walt Disney Concert Hall is the home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra and the Los Angeles Master Chorale and is inspired by the architect’s love of sailing. The organic forms are meant to look like billowing sails frozen in time.

The massive building — and its many metal sails — is clad in more than 12,000 stainless steel panels that cover an area of over 49 miles. Aside from its truly unique design aesthetic, the building is also known for its acoustics. Yasuhisa Toyota, an acoustic designer, consulted on the project to create the hall’s concert areas to perfectly deal with sound while designing curved interiors that matched the unusual metal skin of the building.


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Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, California (Photo: Stock Photos from Nattapon Klinsuwan/Shutterstock)


� Portland Municipal Services Building


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Portland Municipal Services Building in Portland, Oregon, U.S. (Photo: Stock Photos from Tada Images/Shutterstock)


The Portland Municipal Services Building is one of the most popular examples of Postmodern architecture. It was designed by Michael Graves as a result of a design competition where Portland Mayor Frank Ivancie demanded postmodern design. He believed that modernists were making downtowns “boring� and that this new project should become a distinctive building for the city.

The colors, along with the geometric shapes on the façade, are playful and bright. This building does not follow set rules of universal design but instead has its own character which makes it a recognizable and obvious addition to the skyline. The triangular façade breaks the rule of “form follows function� since it is not related to the internal program or function of the building. The outer design is there because it is fun and that is enough for Postmodernists!


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Portland Municipal Services Building in Portland, Oregon, U.S. (Photo: Stock Photos from ARTYOORAN/Shutterstock)


� Piazza d'Italia


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Piazza d’Italia in New Orleans, Louisianna (Photo: Stock Photos from William A. Morgan/Shutterstock)


Piazza d’Italia is a playful rendition of the traditional Italian Piazza located in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was designed by Charles Moore with Perez Architects as an example of Moore’s belief in inclusive architecture which would be open and accessible to everyone. While modernists attempted to find a universal language of architecture that can be used anywhere, the Piazza d’Italia was designed to be relevant to the site and acted as a monument to the city’s Italian influence.

Some Postmodernists used the classical icons of columns and arcades to taunt Modernists, but Moore took a less cynical approach. His brightly colored classical architecture was a genuine celebration of Italian innovation in architecture. Such a bold design was sure to inspire divided opinions. Some people questioned the project purely for its design, but many others agreed that it failed when nearby developments fell through, causing Piazza d’Italia to become a “Postmodern ruin.� The project was eventually restored and generally has a much better reputation now. Whether you love it or hate it, the Piazza d’Italia is certainly a unique and fun public space.


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Piazza d’Italia in New Orleans, Louisianna (Photo: Stock Photos from Shawn Kashou/Shutterstock)


� Kindergarten Die Katze


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Photo: A post shared by My Modern Met (@mymodernmet)


Kindergarten Die Katze is a kindergarten in the shape of a giant cat. If you remember the characteristics of Postmodern architecture, you may have caught that this cat is actually a duck! Or at least, it is a duck in the Venturi, Scott Brown, and Izenour idea that buildings are either shaped like objects (ducks) or shaped like buildings and adorned with decoration (decorated sheds).

Designed by artist Tomi Ungerer and architect Ayla-Suzan Yöndel, Kindergarten Die Katze is a playful school that encourages children to learn — even if they may not know they are doing so — in a great example of Postmodern architecture. The main space of the school is full of natural light from the circular windows that act as the cat’s eyes. The cat's tail acts as a fun slide at the back of the school.


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Tabasco bottle ‘urban myth’ turns out to be true
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A bottle of Tabasco Sauce is on the table In a circular painting of “The Last Supper� in St. Joseph Catholic Church in Parks, La. (Special to the American Press)


Shane Bernard kept hearing a persistent rumor. For almost two years the historian and curator at the McIlhenny Company, makers of Tabasco Brand Products, had been told there was a Catholic church in Parks, La. that housed a painting depicting The Last Supper. In this painting, on a table in front of Jesus and his disciples, was a bottle of Tabasco Sauce, he was told.

“Every time I drove through Parks, I would stop by St. Joseph Catholic Church to check it out, but the church was always locked,� said Bernard in a phone interview with the American Press. “So I wrote a letter to the priest there, Father Nicholas DuPré, back in February, and asked him about it,� said Bernard.

How does one respectfully ask a priest if there is a Tabasco bottle in a painting in his church?

In his letter, Bernard did it like this:
I have stopped by your church building on the rare occasions I pass through Parks, but have never been fortunate enough to go inside.

I stopped in order to look into what may very well be an “urban myth,� which I have heard from more than one person, and which is: that a mischievous painter, when creating a mural inside the church depicting the last supper, included a bottle of our Tabasco Brand Pepper Sauce on the table in the image. Can you tell me if this is true? I suspect it is not, given the seriousness of the location, but one never knows!
Turns out, it’s true.

In May, Bernard heard back from the Rev. DuPré. He called Bernard and told him he had climbed up on a ladder to verify it because the painting in question was 20 feet up in the air, mounted to an arch near the cry room. If there was a Tabasco bottle in the painting, it wasn’t a big one, because the priest couldn’t really make it out from the ground.

But once up on the ladder, he saw it. While there is no inscription on it, a tiny red and green Tabasco-like bottle is indeed set in front of a disciple on the far left.


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Detail showing Tabasco bottle. (Source: 97.3 FM The Dawg; Townsquare Media, Inc.)


The painting was created in 2005 when the Rev. Bryce Sibley was pastor of the church, said Rev. DuPré. Supposedly it was Rev. Sibley who had the idea to have the Tabasco-like bottle added to the painting, Bernard was told.

Rev. Dupre took photos of the painting and shared them with Bernard, while also sharing it on social media.

With the rumor confirmed, Bernard said he created a digital file of the information to save for posterity, and then it was back to work.

Bernard has served in his current position with the McIlhenny Company for 29 years. In 1993, he was hired for what was supposed to be only a three-to-six-month gig for the company’s 125th anniversary, but the position morphed into a full-time job and he has been there ever since.

Parks is a village in St. Martin Parish, east of Lafayette. In 2020, the population was 696. St. Joseph Catholic Church is located at 1034 Bridge St. The church is part of the Diocese of Lafayette.
Last edited by Wosbald on Fri Jan 20, 2023 6:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.


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See 100 years of the Lincoln Memorial in photos
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The Lincoln Memorial, shown here under construction, sometime before 1920, was designed by architect Henry Bacon in the neoclassical style. Work began in 1914, and the completed memorial was dedicated on May 30, 1922. | PHOTOGRAPH BY HARRIS & EWING, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS


A backdrop for historic events, a treasured snapshot for travelers—the monument to America’s 16th president has been an iconic presence through the decades.


Since it was unveiled to the public on Memorial Day in 1922, the Lincoln Memorial has become one of the world’s best-known monuments to the 16th U.S. president and a key stop for millions of annual visitors to Washington, D.C.

Now celebrating its centennial, the memorial on the west end of the National Mall frames Henry Bacon’s Greek Revival temple to frame Daniel Chester French’s 175-ton Lincoln sculpted from Georgia marble. “Four score and seven� (87) steps take visitors from the Reflecting Pool to the statue, a number referencing the Great Emancipator’s famed Gettysburg Address.

That speech—etched into the temple’s wall, along with the Second Inaugural Address—offers a message that resonates today: a determination to end conflict and unite the country under one banner for all.

The memorial isn’t just an iconic tribute to a fallen president. It’s a significant work of art, representing a realist style rarely seen in the 1920s. French’s 19-by-19-foot Lincoln is seated, an unusual position for commemorations then, and wears a solemn expression on his face. One hand is clenched, the other relaxed.

Experts aren’t sure what French was aiming for when he sculpted his Lincoln from plaster molds and photographs. French left his work to interpretation, saying: “A statue has to speak for itself, and it seems useless to explain to everyone what it means. I have no doubt that people will read into my statue of Lincoln a great deal I did not consciously think. Whether it will be for good or ill, who can say?�

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Over the decades, the memorial has meant many things to many people. It has served as a powerful backdrop for major moments in history, a symbol of resilience and resolve in difficult times, and an iconic image in treasured travel memories. These archival photos capture the Lincoln Memorial through the years.


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A worker stands on a scaffold within the Lincoln Memorial in 1928. Although the memorial was completed by 1922, additional work to shore up settling issues were ongoing. | PHOTOGRAPH BY UNDERWOOD & UNDERWOOD, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS


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In this 1925 photo, sculptor Daniel Chester French poses with models of the Lincoln statue in his Chesterwood studio, in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. These early versions show Lincoln looking down, with his hands in different positions. | PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY CHESTERWOOD


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This March 25, 1920, photo shows excavation work for the Reflecting Pool, referred to then as “the big mirror lake.� It was completed in 1923. | PHOTOGRAPH BY BETTMANN ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES


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Crowds gather at the official dedication of the Lincoln Memorial on May 30, 1922. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Howard Taft officiated the ceremony, which included President Warren G. Harding and Lincoln’s only surviving son, Robert Todd Lincoln, who was 78 years old at the time. | PHOTOGRAPH BY NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES


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A woman skates with a hockey stick on the Reflecting Pool in the 1920s, on a rare occasion when ice-skating was allowed. Over the years, various proposals to turn the pool into an ice-skating rink in the winter have been denied due to safety concerns. | PHOTOGRAPH BY HARRIS & EWING, GETTY IMAGES


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In this undated photo of cherry trees lining the Tidal Basin, the Lincoln Memorial rises in the distance. The monument was constructed using marble from different states to symbolize unity after a divisive Civil War. | PHOTOGRAPH BY ERNEST L. CRANDALL, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION


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A Ford Motor Company Lincoln coupe pauses in front of the Lincoln Memorial in 1925. | PHOTOGRAPH BY ALAMY STOCK PHOTO


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A woman and two girls gaze up at the Lincoln statue, year unknown. From the base of the plinth, the statue rises to 30 feet. | PHOTOGRAPH BY EDIE ADAMS AND ERNIE KOVACS ESTATE, GETTY IMAGES


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Two men strum guitars beside the Lincoln statue, in this undated photo. | PHOTOGRAPH BY THREE LIONS, GETTY IMAGES


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The March on Washington to protest race discrimination on August 28, 1963, is one of many historic events that have taken place at the Lincoln Memorial. On this day, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famed “I Have a Dream� speech from the steps of the memorial. | PHOTOGRAPH BY BETTMANN ARCHIVE, GETTY IMAGES


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Asa Philip Randolph, a labor leader and director of the March on Washington, looks out at the crowds assembled in front of the memorial on August 28, 1963. | PHOTOGRAPH BY BETTMANN ARCHIVE, GETTY IMAGES


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This aerial photo shows the Lincoln Memorial from the northeast, framed by the Potomac River. The memorial sits on the west end of the National Mall, with the U.S. Capitol building on the east end and the Washington Monument between. | PHOTOGRAPH BY JACK BOUCHER, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS


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Two people in silhouette share a quiet moment on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. The monument is a popular tourist spot and a beloved landmark for many locals. | PHOTOGRAPH BY RAUL TOUZON, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION


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Sacred Modernity: An Exploration of the Modernist Movement in Mid-Century Holy Architecture [Retrospective]
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Church of the Holy Cross, Vienna, Austria - Hannes Lintl - 1975. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


If one were asked to picture a Catholic Church, the first image to come to mind would probably resemble a medieval gothic cathedral with buttresses, pointed arches, and a spire pointing toward the sky. On second thought, many more styles could easily be identified as catholic architecture: the simple yet grandiose structures of the Romanesque or maybe the ornate styles of Baroque and Rococo. An image more difficult to associate with sacred architecture is that of Modernism. The Roman Catholic Church is a particularly conservative establishment. Modernism, on the other hand, is revolutionary; it is rational, functional, and technical; it rejects ornaments and embraces innovation. Surprisingly, in the years after the end of the Second World War, places of worship defied expectations. Blocks of concrete, raw materials, angular shapes, and exposed structures have all been employed to break from tradition and create churches that barely resemble a church. This article will explore Modernist mid-century Church architecture with the support of images from Jamie McGregor Smith.

During the 1950s, modern architecture had become generally accepted across Europe. The shift is partly due to the urgent building needs after the war and the constraints of limited access to materials. Modernism was particularly adept at responding to these constraints. The establishment of modernism in church architecture was, however, slower. Church architecture was predominantly eclectic during the first half of the century, favoring historicist styles like Gothic, Romanesque revival, or the uncontroversial modern style typical of the 1930s. New ideas were permitted only when tempered by tradition and when remaining recognizably sacred. This mentality was challenged during the post-war years.

The underlying motive behind the Church’s acceptance of modernism was anxiety to show the modern world a socially acceptable face, that the Church belonged in the modern world and was relevant to it, according to Robert Proctor in his book, Building the Modern Church: Roman Catholic Church Architecture in Britain. The movement was initially supported by local priests and bishops, who favored a contemporary image that reflected the age in which the church was built.


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Metropolitan Cathedral Liverpool - England - Sir Frederick Gibberd - 1967. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


The Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King in Liverpool, UK, represented a turning point in endorsing modernist styles. In 1960, the commission was given to Sir Frederick Gibberd, a well-established non-Catholic modern architect, following a worldwide design competition. Traditional architects had previously lost the commission on the grounds of costs. The building was finalized in 1967, just five years after construction began.

The encouragement to develop an appropriate language of modern architecture for the Church was also underlined by financial constraints. Even though by the 1950s, there was an easing of post-war austerity measures, the moral of austerity remained an important consideration. A reassuring image of simplicity, almost poverty, was desired by both clergy and the people. Modern architects could use simple materials, new building technologies, and an absence of ornament to meet financial constraints without aesthetic compromise.


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Council Memorial Church - Vienna, Austria - Joseph Lackner - 1968. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


The Wotruba Church in Vienna, Austria, is an exercise in constraint in terms of costs and a performance in terms of expressivity. Comprised of 152 asymmetrically arranged concrete blocks, it has no intentional front side. The use of concrete was generally preferred due to its availability and the formal freedom it granted architects. The church, formally known as the Church of the Most Holy Trinity, was built between 1974 and 1976 on the basis of a model by Friz Wotruba, a sculptor. Architect Fritz Gerhard Mayer drew the plans for this striking building.
I wanted to design something that shows that poverty does not have to be ugly, that renunciation can be in an environment that, in spite of its simplicity, is both beautiful and happy.

    — Fritz Wotruba, designer of Church of the Most Holy Trinity, also known as Wotruba Church

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Wotruba Kirche - Vienna, Austria - Fritz Wotruba - 1976. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


Financial difficulties delayed the construction of Clifton Cathedral, in Bristol, UK, led by architect Ronald Weeks. After much delay, a dialogue was set up between priests, lay people, and architects, and the building was finalized in 1973. The design brief was also adapted to respond to an important event in the Roman Catholic world. In 1965 the Second Council of the Vatican adopted official documents that redefined the relationship between the Catholic Church and the modern world. As a result, the liturgical act became more open to the congregation and the public at large. Clifton Cathedral embodies the new liturgical rituals and confronts visitors with spaces that accentuate movement and meaning. An ample sanctuary with broad altars was desired, surrounded by seats for 1000 people. The absence of decoration made the occupants focus their attention on the sanctuary and the rituals performed.


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Clifton Cathedral - Bristol, England - Ron Weeks - 1973. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


At first glance, the interior spaces of modernist churches may seem like exercises in pure form. While the church program does not have many functional constraints, Clifton Cathedral is an example of collaboration in which functionality played a central role. During the preliminary discussions, the cathedral committee began educating their architects about the liturgy. Architects searched to embody the gestures, movements and pauses within the architecture.

The Church of Santa Maria Immacolata in Longarone, Italy, consecrated in 1983, also shows a strong adherence to the guidelines established by the Second Vatican Council. Its structure is composed of two superimposed theaters, one inside and one on the terrace above, overlooking the valley of Vajont. According to architect Giovanni Michelucci, the elliptical spiral that defines the structure is a commemorative gesture, reminiscent of the wave of mud, earth, and water that swept away the town of Longarone and the neighboring villages in 1963.


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Church of Santa Maria Immacolata - Longarone, Italy. Giovanni Michelucci - 1963-1982. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


The expressive gestures of these buildings have been met with mixed responses from the larger public. The case of the Easter Church in Oberwart, Austria, finalized in 1969, was so well received by the local community, that it has surprised even the architects, Günther Domenig and Eilfried Huth. Other Churches, like the Wotruba Church, have been delayed due to the objections from residents.


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Easter Church, Oberwart, Austria - Günther Domenig and Eilfried Huth - 1969. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


The new language of sanctity is diverse and at times surprising. Ecclesiastical architecture of the high modern years takes many forms: brutalist, “concrete Baroque�, structural expressionism, and even what Robert Proctor calls Municipal Modernism. The expression of these buildings still retains some characteristics of Gothic architecture: they are spaces that inspire awe, grandiose in scale, often with their structures clearly exposed and their building materials left uncovered. Regardless of their architectural language, these are spaces that inspire contemplation, meditation, and introspection.


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Santuario Monte Grisa - Ing. Kramreiter - Trieste, Italy - 1958. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


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St Theresia Kirche - Linz, Austria - Rudolf Schwarz - 1962. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


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Eglise Saint-Nicolas - Heremence, Switzerland, Walter Maria Förderer - 1971. | Image © Jamie McGregor Smith


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The unconventional yet powerful examples of 20th-century religious architecture are further explored in the upcoming book Sacred Modernity by British photographer Jamie McGregor Smith. The book is the result of a photographic journey exploring little-known Modernist and Brutalist churches in Europe. It also features essays by renowned architecture critics Jonathan Meades and Ivica Brnic. Fans of 20th-century architecture can support this project by donating to a crowdfunding campaign that will secure them a signed first edition of Sacred Modernity.
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Meet the Dorothy Day, the latest addition to New York’s Staten Island Ferry fleet
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The Dorothy Day Staten Island Ferry arrives in New York for final preparation before her first commuter run on Nov. 8, the Catholic Worker co-founder’s 125th birthday. (Credit: Kevin Clarke)


The latest addition to New York’s Staten Island Ferry fleet, the Dorothy Day, passed under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge on Sept. 16, delighting members of New York’s Catholic Worker community and supporters who had come out to welcome Dorothy back to New York. The new ferry boat was on its way to a mooring at Caddell Dry Dock and Repair on Staten Island, where testing and final work preparing the Dorothy Day for commuter service between Staten Island and Manhattan will continue over the next few weeks.

The new ferry should be ready for passenger service on the 125th celebration of Day’s birth, Nov. 8, according to Anthony Donovan, a longtime supporter of the Catholic Worker movement who called in a favor at McAllister Towing to arrange harbor transport for the ferry’s welcoming committee. Mr. Donovan’s cousin Bucky McAllister was kind enough to lend out the Ellen McAllister, a sturdy working tug, and her crew to take the delegation out to greet the vessel.

“To me this is like a birthing. This is a beautiful, kind of a sacred day,� Mr. Donovan said as the tug approached the ferry, just then appearing on the horizon on a brilliant late summer morning in New York. “I know it’s all symbolic,� he said with a wry smile. “Dorothy is not a ship; Dorothy is in our hearts.� But today, he marveled as the ferry neared Staten Island for the first time, “her message is being carried into the tides of New York harbor.�

Dorothy Day famously never wanted to be called a saint; how might she have responded to the idea of having a Staten Island ferry named after her?


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Passing under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. (Credit: Kevin Clarke)


“If it helps awaken consciences and gives a platform for the poor and for an alternative way of life than what we’re living right now, I think she would be very proud and happy,� Deborah Sucich, a Catholic Worker who joined the group on the Ellen McAllister, said.

“Given her deep, deep love for Staten Island and wanting to build bridges between different boroughs in New York City, I think this connector [vessel] — especially since it’s free — would be something she would probably be very happy with,� Kevin Ahern said. Mr. Ahern is an associate professor of religious studies at Manhattan College, where a Dorothy Day Center for the Study of Social Catholicism is planned, and a member of the coordinating committee for the Dorothy Day Guild, which has been managing her canonization process. (Mr. Ahern is also a former board member of America.)

That effort is in a waiting mode, he said, with all materials supporting Day’s canonization delivered to Rome. The arrival of the new ferry, he said, offers a unique opportunity to bring her life to the public’s attention and “build momentum� toward her canonization.

[…]

Ms. Sucich was happy to see Day remembered in this unique way. “I feel like she is one of our spiritual mothers and friends that are guiding us along this path,� she said. Ms. Sucich is among a group of Catholic Workers who hope to open a house of hospitality on Staten Island, where the movement has historic ties but has not had a presence in many years.

“Now with her canonization coming up, we feel that Staten Island — along with the rest of the world — is much in need of the Catholic Worker movement,� Ms. Sucich said.

Is the new ferry’s arrival a sign? Definitely, she said. In the coming months, she pointed out, in addition to celebrating Day’s 125th birthday, the Catholic Worker newspaper will reach its 90th year of publishing in New York.

“When they launch this boat, we have the perfect opportunity to educate Staten Islanders about Dorothy Day,� said Ms. Sucich. “That would be the least we could do for her cause and [the Catholic Worker] movement, and I’m hoping that the support will be so great that within a year or two we can open a house of hospitality on Staten Island.�

Though the Dorothy Day in the traditional orange and blue of the Staten Island ferry service will surely appear familiar to regulars of the daily crossing to Manhattan, her builders assure she is equipped with the latest technological and safety advances and built for comfort. The ferry includes an upper-deck promenade that will function as an outdoor walking track for exercise-minded commuters.

According to the Eastern Shipbuilding Group, which built and launched the Dorothy Day from Panama City, Fla., the double-ended 4,500-passenger ferry includes “the latest in marine technology for energy efficiency and environmental friendliness.� The city’s experience on 9/11 contributed to the design — like two other ferries recently launched by Eastern, the Dorothy Day "can be connected to the New York fire vessels … to support evacuations and rescue.�

“It has been an honor for our company to build the three Ollis Class Staten Island Ferries for the citizens of New York City, marking a bold new chapter in the Staten Island Ferry’s 200-year-old legacy of public transportation,� Joey D’Isernia, president of Eastern Shipbuilding Group, said. “These cutting-edge ferries are now the premier vessels of the world’s busiest passenger-only ferry system that has reliably served the people of New York, New Jersey and the millions of tourists New York City welcomes each year.�

The ferry naming, which began as a petition campaign in 2016 submitted to the de Blasio administration, contributes to recent efforts in New York to find new ways to honor notable women and people from communities overlooked in the past. The same could be said for the church’s canonization process, Mr. Ahern pointed out. “Dorothy Day as a laywoman, as a New Yorker, as a mother — we need more voices like that, more experiences like that formally recognized as saints,� he said.

“My students are always looking for exemplars of great New Yorkers,� Mr. Ahern added. Noting her connections to Staten Island, where as a young mother she lived in a beach bungalow, “I can’t think of a better place to memorialize her legacy in the public space of New York City,� he said.

Mr. Ahern recalled Pope Francis’ warning that Catholics like Dorothy Day not be memorialized like “a mummy in a museum.� That is surely not true of the tribute paid to her memory by this “ginormous ferry,� he said. If this “piece of public art� could lead people “to hear about the Gospel in a new way, then there’s something miraculous there,� he said.

Watching the Dorothy Day approach, Mr. Donovan remembered his years supporting the Catholic Worker’s efforts against war-making and nuclear weapons manufacture. “Dorothy has always been inspiring me,� he said, lamenting the latest European conflict in Ukraine and the continuing scandal of war-making in a world full of need.

“It’s beautiful that we have Dorothy’s energy and her spirit and her wisdom entering the harbor at this really difficult time of another war rising and the real threat of a nuclear exchange,� he said. “Her words and her example are very prescient right now.�


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Post by Damelon »

Taking the Staten Island Ferry gives the best views of the Statue of Liberty_ Except for the last time when my wife and I visited New York. We went in the boarding line and they shuffled everyone out the exit without loading anyone on the ferry. Turns out someone left a bag in the line and they had to send in the bomb squad.
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NAB 3 Parramatta Square & NAB 2 Carrington St. Offices / Woods Bagot
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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


A Tale of Two NABs: In Sydney, there’s a red staircase that connects two workplaces located 24 kilometers apart. NAB 3 Parramatta Square (3PS) and NAB 2 Carrington St (2CS) are Woods Bagot’s fraternal twin workplace tenancies. Known by NAB as their “Sydney campus�, together these buildings accommodate over 6,000 desks, providing a rare opportunity to boldly transform the bank’s workplace experience in locations highly connected to both its established and emerging customer base.


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


“It was a two-hand approach — with both tenancies designed and delivered in parallel, leveraging intelligence from the transformational NAB 700 Bourke Street project in Melbourne,� says Amanda Stanaway, Woods Bagot’s global workplace leader. “We first had to distill NAB’s DNA and carry it across both sites, whilst also defining the identity for each, influenced by their unique locational attributes and demographic.�


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


The design response for the NAB 3PS project was informed by an ‘emerging’ project persona, with the project becoming a keystone for the establishment of Parramatta as Sydney’s Central City. In contrast, the heritage surrounding and well-tread CDB business hub at NAB 2CS brought forth an ‘established’ persona. These conceptual approaches informed all aspects of workplace design, including the programmatic arrangement of space, geometry, movement, connectivity, and materiality.


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


Emerging Persona: NAB 3PS is a 13-level, 35,000sqm adaptable workplace located in the heart of greater Sydney, central to one of Australia's largest urban renewal projects, the Parramatta Square precinct. The project’s ‘emerging’ theme focused on creating a raw, surprising, authentic aesthetic, representative of the greater Sydney context and a culturally diverse demographic. Movement, spatial distribution, and forms within the interior create a bold and interactive experience by intersecting and layering space. The lower levels of the building encourage engagement with the public realm, deliberately 'lifting the curtain' on the inner workings of the bank by drawing the customer and community inward and providing a range of immersive spaces to enable connection and co-creation, as well as an accessible amenity for staff.


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


Established Persona: At NAB 2CS, an ‘established’ notion of identity is translated into a refined aesthetic. The 12-level, 29,000 sqm adaptable workplace occupies all commercial levels of the heritage-listed Shell House, as well as a new commercial tower adjacent, with a central atrium connecting the two. Overlooking Wynyard Park, this rare park side address is harnessed with framed pockets of views across the treetops and down Wynyard Lane.


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


The workplace is designed as a highly flexible extension of this public realm, with the first four levels publicly accessible, incorporating a Micro Branch & Café. A sculptural entry ribbon forms a centerpiece, launching the circulation journey through the building, and transporting customers and colleagues to an elevated concierge experience. On the upper levels, the workplace design evolves the existing NAB workplace strategy by providing a diversified suite of spaces for connection and collaboration, including an amphitheater, two outdoor terraces, and a vast dealing floor, all punctuated with a superior level of amenity for the bank's support staff.


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


“A unified experience is created across 3PS and 2CS, both physically and visually, through the introduction of meaningful interventions to the base building,� says Woods Bagot Principal Ian Lomas. “An innovative stair and void strategy are woven across both tenancies. The ‘red-thread' stair not only creates movement and connection across the tenancy, but is also a key mechanism for the translation of brand to the environment, and unifies the spirit of the two locations.� The two tenancies are the culmination of over a decade of collaboration between NAB and Woods Bagot, offering a new vitality to the workplace at a time when its value has never been more in question.


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


“It’s a relationship that’s had time to evolve,� says Stanaway. ‘We’re as close to NAB’s DNA as we’ve ever been, its aspirations for the future of its workplace environments, and existing brand and design identity established by landmark projects such as 700 Bourke Street in Melbourne.� “Our collaboration has resulted in some of the most progressive workplace design solutions delivered by our team.� For one workplace to achieve this success, a uniquely reciprocal conversation between the client and the design team is needed. Two delivered concurrently can only be the result of a sustained, collaborative partnership — a dynamic that’s of rarefied air.


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 3 Parramatta Square. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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NAB 2 Carrington Street. (Credit: Nicole England, Trevor Mein)


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Laudato Si' / Integral Ecology

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Ecological Materials: Towards a New Economy
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© Toa Heftiba


The world’s most primitive building materials are being used to create the most advanced buildings. In light of an environmental crisis, architects have shifted their efforts to better design built environments for people and the planet. The results may often seem ‘greenwashed’, failing to address the root of ecological distress. Environmentally responsible architecture must aim not to reverse the effects of the ecological crisis, but instigate a revolution in buildings and how we inhabit them. Essays from the book The Art of Earth Architecture: Past, Present, Future envision a shift that will be a philosophical, moral, technological and political leap into a future of environmental resilience.

The construction industry appears to have its head in the past, the effects of the industrial revolution still playing out. Often under the pretext of rationality, industrialized building materials continue to be used excessively, inching society towards climate change. The manufacturing of industrial materials is an agent of environmental pollution. Some materials, even if marketed as sustainable, require lots of energy to create or maintain them. Waste production may also vary among building materials, the environmental impact of which can be substantial.


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© Haiting Sun


Public health is also threatened by industrial materials and their manufacturing processes. Even “natural� materials may inherently be unsafe to use. Asbestos, a naturally occurring mineral and an identified carcinogen, is responsible for deaths of thousands across the world. Building materials impact health during various phases of the Building Life Cycle — from manufacturing and occupation to demolition and disposal. Unfortunately, most building products with harmful chemicals are cheap, flexible and easy to apply and maintain. The industry is heavily subsidized, thus sustaining the use of such materials.

Carbon tax imposed on the building sector aims to financially persuade builders to move away from the use of harmful conventional materials. While there are merits to this approach, there remains an urgent need to promote more natural and ecological building materials, rather than materials that cause the worst pollution and affect public health. What the construction industry — and society at large — requires is a social and economical shift that puts the planet first.


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© Enrique Castro-Mendivil


In his book, Eco-Economy: Building an Economy for the Earth, environmental analyst Lester R. Brown highlights the necessity to design ‘a new materials economy’ using existing technologies on natural materials like earth, thatch, bamboo and wood. “Socialism collapsed because it did not allow prices to tell the economic truth. Capitalism may collapse because it doesn't not allow prices to tell the ecological truth�, he states.


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© Petr Polák


Towards Green Capitalism

Green capitalism, or eco-capitalism, recognizes that capital and profits are equally dependent on environmental protection and sustainability. The construction industry can pave the way for green capitalism by adopting models that put people and the planet alongside profit. The use of ecological materials has a ripple effect on the design of buildings and cities, tackling environmental issues at the unit scale. Achieving all the benefits of green architecture along with functionality and profitability however, requires a strong level of design integration.

Green materials also have a crucial role to play in the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) mission of reducing global CO2 emissions. Naturally sourced materials do not require energy-intensive manufacturing methods, unlike industrially produced ones. Their negligible carbon footprints help control energy consumption, develop renewable energies and build local circular economies.


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© Jeevan Jyot


For a shift towards green capitalism, a deep understanding of natural materials is required, especially in their local contexts. New materials are being supplemented by rediscovering ancient ones like rammed earth, straw bales, bamboo, and stone — all non-toxic, safe, durable and versatile. Alongside, the ancestral skill of generations of builders needs to be re-examined to provide a foundation for an appraisal of vernacular building practices.


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Courtesy of WASP


Towards a Circular Economy

Circular building is a trendy word — every material producer nowadays claims to be circular. However, in practice recycling rates worldwide are below 9%, with nowhere near enough secondary material to meet demand. A circular economy redefines the way the world consumes and produces goods and services. It’s an economic, but also a societal framework that seeks a shift from the consumption of finite resources and looks to eliminate waste and pollution. A transition to natural architecture has taken center stage in design conversations, emphasizing the reuse, repair and recycling of materials.

Environmental challenges are prompting research into the use of resources gathered locally and sustainability to encourage the reuse and recycling of materials. The inherent energy saving and respectful practices of natural architecture may also be hybridized using technology to optimize material properties. The potential of the latest generation of bio-based building materials will fuel transition to a carbon neutral, healthy and circular built environment.


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© Iwan Baan


Societies need to preserve and strengthen local architectural cultures, and promote a diverse range of building solutions that can be used in multiple contexts and scales. This requires an overhaul of our economic and social model, revising the relationship between humans and their environment. Natural materials not only demand an ecological way of building but also a new way of living.


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© Pedro Bravo, Sofia Hernández, Francisco Martínez


Towards a Social Paradigm Shift

The present-day ethos of ‘green’ architecture is narrow, manifesting as technological attempts to enhance a building's energy efficiency. This social paradigm, especially in architecture, seems fixated on the modernist movement that built decontextualized structures detached from the environment. The bygone harmony between humans and nature remains a relic of the past, when it could navigate a societal shift into an ecologically balanced world.

A coherent vision for the future of civilization guides thinkers like earth architect Romain Anger, and green architecture plays a strong role in it. Anger stresses a need to return to our older worldviews of humans as an integrated whole of the biosphere. “Buildings of the future must be alive, made from earth — the product of a circular economy, consuming its own waste and refuse just like any living ecosystem�, he writes.


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© Kashef Chowdhury


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© Hasan Çalışlar, PAAF, Metin Çavuş, Dilara Demiralp, Aram Tufan


The role of architecture in the fight against climate change goes beyond controlling building emissions or using sustainable materials. As Winston Churchill famously quoted, ‘We shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us’. Architecture forms a framework around how we live, our actions, our health and our social relationships. To stimulate a shift in societal values, it becomes vital to change the architecture that determines our everyday behavior.

The green revolution will see a change in economic and social structures, and thereby influence the built environment. Ecological architecture is not a single miracle, but one element in a broad range of strategies. A truly green form of architecture can and must contribute to the upcoming paradigm of environmental transition.
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Mondrian Artwork Has Been Hanging Upside Down For 75 Years
A famous 1941 work by Dutch abstract artist Piet Mondrian has been hanging upside down for the last 75 years, an art historian has discovered.
But the work, “New York City I� — which features bright lines of red, yellow, black and blue tape on a white background — will likely continue to be displayed the wrong way, because to change it now could damage it.

“The adhesive tapes are already extremely loose and hanging by a thread,� art historian and German museum curator Susanne Meyer-Büser told The Guardian. “If you were to turn it upside down now, gravity would pull it into another direction. And it’s now part of the work’s story.�
The work was first publicly displayed in New York’s Museum of Modern Art in 1945. Since 1980, it’s been part of the art collection of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Düsseldorf.
Meyer-Büser discovered the error while researching a new show for the Düsseldorf art collection. She noted that the lines were thicker in the lower portion of the Mondrian work, rather than at the top ― the way she says they were intended by the artist.
“The thickening of the grid should be at the top, like a dark sky,� Meyer-Büser explained. “Once I pointed it out to the other curators, we realized it was very obvious. I am 100% certain the picture is the wrong way around.�

A photograph of Mondrian’s studio, taken a few days after the artist’s death and published in Town & Country magazine in June 1944, shows the same work sitting on an easel the right way up, with the thicker lines up top, the BBC noted.
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Skyweir
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Post by Skyweir »

:LOL:
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keep smiling 😊 :D 😊

'Smoke me a kipper .. I'll be back for breakfast!'
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Damelon
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Post by Damelon »

Someone’s been taking The Iliad to heart.

Giant cardboard Trojan horse breaks Guinness World Record in England



Nov. 3 (UPI) -- A giant cardboard sculpture of the Trojan horse from Homer's The Odyssey broke the Guinness World Record for the world's largest cardboard sculpture.

The Animated Objects Theatre Company, which specializes in live performances as well as community events and workshops, assembled a Trojan horse measuring 23 feet and 3 inches wide, 55 feet and 3.39 inches long and 25 feet and 7.5 inches tall at Bridlington Spa in East Riding of Yorkshire, England.

The cardboard horse is part of the theater group's current project, The Odyssey -- An Epic Adventure on the Yorkshire Coast.

The project is supported by the Yorkshire Coast Business Improvement District.
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Damelon
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Post by Damelon »

Woman finds two pythons mating behind her microwave

Those snake morals down under.
Nov. 4 (UPI) -- A reptile wrangler was summoned to an Australian home where a resident discovered the cause of a moving microwave was a pair of mating pythons.

A video posted to Facebook shows Stuart McKenzie of Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers responding to a home in Buderim where a woman discovered two carpet pythons in the throes of passion in her kitchen.…
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Fist and Faith
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Post by Fist and Faith »

Yeah, that's a strange news story!

Sad that she apparently needs bars on her front door.
All lies and jest
Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest
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