First Night Design | Joseph Grimaldi, Clown 1778–1837 | First Night Design

Reblogged to commemorate Grimaldi’s death on this day, 31st May, 1837. Click through to buy the greeting card or postcard and to get the joke!

Joseph Grimaldi, Clown 1778-1837 © First Night Design

A story is told that in 1806 a man goes to visit a doctor who is acclaimed for his ability to treat melancholia. “I can’t eat, I can’t sleep,” says the man. “I feel constantly miserable.  Please help me, doctor.”

“Laughter is the best medicine, my friend,” says the doctor. “Take yourself off to Covent Garden Theatre* where you will find The Great Grimaldi performing in Harlequin and Mother Goose; or the Golden Egg. It is exquisitely funny and will cure you of all your ills without…

via First Night Design | Joseph Grimaldi, Clown 1778–1837 | First Night Design

William Blake’s Home – London, England – Atlas Obscura

The London townhouse where the poet created some of his most influential work has been preserved in tribute.

Source: William Blake’s Home – London, England – Atlas Obscura

Punch & Judy Story Plate I Greeting Card | Zazzle

Vision and Bite Update; No great fall-out from the removal of the wisdom (apart from the actual tooth) but my left eye is not as good as it was over the weekend. Hey, diddle diddle! Onwards, upwards.

Size: Greeting Card

Birthdays or holidays, good days or bad days, Zazzle’s customized greeting cards are the perfect way to convey your well-wishes and salutations on any occasion. Add a photo or pick a design and brighten someone’s day with a simple “hi”!

• Dimensions: 5″l x 7″w (portrait) or 7″l x 5″w (landscape)
• Printed on 110 lb, 12.5 point thick, semi-gloss paper
• Matte finish inside for smudge-free writing
• Add photos and text to all sides of this folded card at no extra charge
• Printable area on the back of the card is 3″l x 4″w (portrait) or 4″l x 3″w (landscape)
• Standard white envelopes included

Source: Punch & Judy Story Plate I Greeting Card | Zazzle

Take care and keep laughing!

Aspinall’s Enamel Postcard | Zazzle #Sold!

Sight Update: Anyone confused by what’s happening in the way of ophthalmology appointments (and who wouldn’t be, not to mention bored), rest assured I still have the original 6th January appointment to look forward to. Ah, life.

Orientation: Postcard

Create your own vacation-worthy postcards right here. Any view you’ve seen, any monument you’ve fallen in love with, can all be added to our postcards with our personalization tool. Craft touching, hand-written correspondence while on your next road trip!

• Dimensions: 4.25″l x 5.6″w (portrait) or 5.6″l x 4.25″w (landscape)
• Printed on 110 lb, 12.5 point thick, semi-gloss paper
• Postage rate: $0.34

Source: Aspinall’s Enamel Postcard | Zazzle

Take care and keep laughing!

On this day: the publication of Black Beauty | In Times Gone By…

1877 first edition cover.

Black Beauty, a novel by English author Anna Sewell, was first published on the 24th of November, 1877. Considered to be a story about animal rights, the book is about t…

Source: On this day: the publication of Black Beauty | In Times Gone By…

The Strange Secret Behind the Tragic Deaths of Oscar Wilde’s Half-Sisters | Atlas Obscura

Thousands of women died because of the highly flammable nature of crinoline skirts. (Photo: WELLCOME LIBRARY, LONDON/CC BY 4.0)

As a literary genius and master of wit, Oscar Wilde has fascinated the world since he first started writing. There is one area of his life, however, which remained in obscurity until the 1940s, and which continues to be a mystery: The horrifying death of his half-sisters.

The existence of Emily and Mary Wilde, the illegitimate daughters of Sir William Wilde, was kept hidden from…

Source: The Strange Secret Behind the Tragic Deaths of Oscar Wilde’s Half-Sisters | Atlas Obscura

English Utopia in the Art of Helen Allingham | A R T L▼R K

On the 28th of September 1926, Victorian water-colourist and illustrator Helen Allingham, born Helen M. E. Paterson, died in Haslemere, Surrey, England. Her career “was circumscribed by, relied upo…

Source: English Utopia in the Art of Helen Allingham | A R T L▼R K

Sir John Gilbert & Shakespeare – The View From Sari’s World

Poor mad Ophelia

Sir John Gilbert (1817-1897) the famous English painter and illustrator, is now remembered for his woodcut illustrations for the works of Shakespeare though in his lifetime he preferred his medieva…

Source: Sir John Gilbert & Shakespeare – The View From Sari’s World

How a Portuguese-to-English Phrasebook Became a Cult Comedy Sensation | Atlas Obscura

In the middle of the 19th century, a relatively unknown author named Pedro Carolino rapidly gained intercontinental popularity over a small Portuguese-to-English phrasebook. English as She Is Spoke (or O novo guia da conversação em portuguez e inglez) was originally intended to help Portuguese speakers dabble in the English tongue, but was penned by a man who spoke little to no English himself. And, instead of helping Portuguese speakers learn a second language, it became a cult classic for…

Source: How a Portuguese-to-English Phrasebook Became a Cult Comedy Sensation | Atlas Obscura

24 arrestingly beautiful portraits from the turn of the 20th century

These remarkably contemporary-looking portraits, taken more than a century ago, are the work of F. Holland Day, the son of a wealthy Boston merchant. Day cofounded the publishing firm of Copeland and Day in 1893, and was a significant patron of artists and collector of…

Source: 24 arrestingly beautiful portraits from the turn of the 20th century

Angelica Kauffman (1741-1807): the artist as businesswoman | Romantic Illustration Network

A self-portrait In the Traditional Costume of the Bregenz Forest (1781)

Reblogged on WordPress.com

‘All I possess has been attained by my work and industry … ‘ (from Angelica Goddden’s Miss Angel, Kauffman)

Friends and readers,

I return to my series of blogs on women artists. Thus far in this second round, we’ve looked at Giovanna Garzoni (1600-70), Strange and magnificent still lifes; Sofonsiba and Lucia Anguissola (1535/6-1625; 1546/8-1565), Sober, contemplative and self-aware portraits; and Mary Beale(1633-99), An unknown famous Restoration painter. As in the first series I can’t ignore altogether those women artists whose work has been paid a great deal of attention to, at least at times, and if not uniformly respectfully. So we come to Angelica Kauffman, one of two women to help found…

Source: Angelica Kauffman (1741-1807): the artist as businesswoman | Romantic Illustration Network

The Peacock in Myth, Legend, and 19th Century History

In his 1836 book On the Mental Illumination and Moral Improvement of Mankind, Reverend Thomas Dick calls the peacock “the most beautiful bird in the world.”  There are few that would dispute this d…

Source: The Peacock in Myth, Legend, and 19th Century History

Audubon Made Up At Least 28 Fake Species To Prank A Rival

Not real. (Image: Smithsonian Institution Archives/SIA2012-6095)

Pranks are meant to be discovered—what’s the point in fooling someone if they never notice they’ve been fooled? But one 19th century prank, sprung by John James Audubon on another naturalist, was so extensive and so well executed that its full scope is only now coming to light.

The prank began when the French naturalist Constantine Rafinesque sought on Audubon…

Source: Audubon Made Up At Least 28 Fake Species To Prank A Rival

A Victorian Halloween Party

Snap-Apple Night by Daniel Maclise, 1833

Despite their reputation for straight-laced sobriety, the Victorians celebrated Halloween with great enthusiasm – and often with outright abandon.  Victorian Halloween parties were filled with fun, games, and spooky rituals, some of which still feature at Halloween parties today.  Many of the games had origins in pagan religion or medieval superstition.  Others were merely a means of making merry with one’s friends.  Regardless, Halloween parties of the 19^th century were an occasion for indulging in what author Hugh Miller describes in his 1876 book Scenes and Legends of the North of Scotland as:

“….a multitude of wild mischievous games which were tolerated at no other season.”

For an example of a Victorian Halloween party, we need look no further than Queen Victoria herself.  In 1876, the queen, along with Princess Beatrice and the Marchioness of Ely, celebrated Halloween at Balmoral Castle on a grand scale.  Preparations took place for…

Source: A Victorian Halloween Party

First Night Design | Theatrical Attitude #Art

Theatrical Attitude © Sarah Vernon

This enchantress  was the famous late 19th and early 20th century actress and singer Miss Marie Tempest [1864-1942], who is referred to in the description on the back of my original print as ‘the prima donna of the English stage’ and possessing ‘a very beautiful voice which has had the training it deserves’.

I imagined a faded portrait in a frame that has suffered neglect and fire damage with a hint of gold breaking through. Naturally, I imagined no such thing but this is what came out when I faffed around in Photoshop with a couple of textures from 2 Lil’ Owls: 2LO Confetti 6 (Normal), 2LO – Crackle 11 (Multiply).

Theatrical aficionados might be interested to learn that the actress was the original Judith Bliss in Noël Coward’s Hay Fever. She was made a Dame in  1937.

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“Hitler has taken nearly everything from me but my life, but you can’t live on regret. You’ve got to live for the present and future, not the past.”
She was forced to sell her art collection after losing her home in a German air raid during WWII. IMDb

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Available at the following galleries:
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Take care and keep laughing!