The folks at The Romance Reviews (“TRR”)have asked me to let readers know that
has been nominated by TRR reviewers for Best in Historical Romance for 2010.
If you'd like to vote,
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Last Night's Scandal nominated
Spring portraits
One never knows how or when inspiration will strike, but visiting museums usually brings on some kind of creative fit. Here are a few that promise a visual feast, and perhaps inspiration for a character or two:
If you happen to be in Western Massachusetts this month, you may want to stop by one of my favorite art museums, the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, in Williamstown.
It’s a beautiful museum in a beautiful setting, whose permanent collection I never get tired of looking at. But their exhibitions are quite fine, too. Until 27 March, they’re showing Eye to Eye: European Portraits 1450-1850. You can read a review in the Wall Street Journal.
A little further east, the Worcester Art Museum has organized an exhibition of portrait miniatures.
Dandies runs through May 2011. Then it’s on to the women—French women, to be exact.
Leisure, Pleasure, and the Birth of the Modern French Woman runs 14 May-11 September.
Illustration: Portrait miniature of Lt-Col. Stephen Peacocke painted by George Chinnery around late 1779/1800, courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
The delights of skating
Though we had a teasing spate of warm (er) weather, it wasn't enough to deter the ice fishermen, we noticed. Since this may, though, be the last hurrah for skating, it seemed a good time to do an accompaniment to my ice skating blog over at Two Nerdy History Girls. This quotation is from a half century later.
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The good tidings that the ice on St. James’s water or on the Serpentine is strong enough to bear (its safety is another matter) circulates far and wide, and the scene becomes ere long as animated as any that London has to display. Groups of warmly clad ladies and children are gradually drawn to the scenes of action to watch the sport, and by their presence and encouragement to add gaiety to the scene. The less confident aspirants are encouraged to essay a venture for the sake of the bright eyes that look on; and the heroes of the day redouble their exertions to astonish and gratify the spectators, by vigorous efforts and intrepid feats of skill. Some few are to be seen, so well instructed by art, or gifted by nature, as to tread the slippery floor with as much decision and grace as would be exhibited by the most finished dancer in a drawing-room, and would half inspire the believe that they had never trodden rougher ground in their lives, or had been shod otherwise than with the narrow strip of steel which now supports them. Skating has one advantage over many other amusements, that it is free alike to the rich and poor.
—The Illustrated London Almanack, 1853, as quoted in The London Miscellany: A Nineteenth Century Scrapbook, compiled by Robert Harling, 1938.
Illustration: Out of door sports—the Caledonian and Thistle clubs playing the Scottish national game of curling upon the frozen pond in the Central Park, New York / from a sketch by our own artist, (from Frank Leslie's illustrated newspaper), 1860, Courtesy Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.