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This summer, the world’s eyes will turn to London for the 2012 Summer Olympics, which take over the capital from July 25 through August 15. Whether you plan on watching from home, or joining the 380,000 international visitors expected in London during the Games, Chronicles of Old London offers a fun and interesting way to discover Britain’s capital city.This new book introduces London through 30 dramatic true stories spanning 2,000 years of British history—from the bloody rebellion of Boudica to the modern monarchy, and from Shakespeare to the Sex Pistols. In addition, author and London native Kevin Jackson has created 9 walking tours that visit major tourist attracts as well as lesser-known historic sites throughout the city.
Get an early start on your tour of London with Chronicles of Old London, available now as a travel-friendly eBook for iPad and Kindle, or pick it up at your favorite bookstore on June 1. Let the Games begin! ]]>
In the 1963 photographer William John Kennedy came to New York to shoot two of Pop’s biggest stars—Andy Warhol and Robert Indiana. Now, 50 years later, Warhol and Indiana are among modern art history’s most celebrated and the 81-year-old Kennedy is returning to New York for an exhibition of photographs on the Lower East Side, some shot just blocks away from the gallery. Along with recently unveiled images of Andy Warhol and Robert Indiana from the photographer’s personal archives, the exhibition will include screenings of Full Circle: Before They Were Famous, a short documentary that chronicles the journey of Kennedy’s images as they were made public, featuring a candid Robert Indiana in his Vinalhaven studio, along with Warhol superstars Ultra Violet and Taylor Mead. This rare glimpse into the early days of two legendary artsits runs through May 29 at Site/109.
Before They Were Famous
April 19–May 29
Site/109
109 Norfolk Street
Photos:
top: Andy Warhol with Birmingham Race Riot mounted on homemade sandwich board at the Factory fire escape door
bottom: Andy Warhol with his assistant Gerard Malanga filming Taylor Mead for Warhol’s Taylor Mead’s Ass at the Factory
Copyright 2010 William John Kennedy, courtesy of Kiwi Arts Group
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Paper...or plastic?
Museyon has jumped into the digital age with this week’s release of our Chronicles series for Kindle and iPad. The first four books in our guides to the world’s greatest cities—New York, Vegas, Paris and Boston—are now available for download. All that great content for half the price of the paperback. Even better, the eBooks include our signature maps and tons of photographs making it even easier than ever to explore the history of your favorite cities — even on the go!
Stay tuned for more titles and more formats coming soon! ]]>
Our Chronicles of Old Boston may be brand new, but the city itself has a long and colorful history. And April 12, 2012, marks the 100th anniversary of one of the city’s most famous legends: Fenway Park.
Baseball’s oldest — and most legendary — working baseball park has seen thousands of games over the years, including the Red Sox’s curse-breaking 2004 season. The “Crimson Hose” are marking the anniversary by battling the same team they played 100 years ago today, the New York Yankees. Mayor John F. Fitzgerald (JFK’s grandfather) threw out the first pitch and the Sox went on to defeat the New York Highlanders (renamed the Yankees the next year), 7-6. One hundred years later the two foes face off again, to another at-capacity crowd of 38,805. ]]>
Museyon’s much-anticipated new release Chronicles of Old Boston has made its way to a bookstore near you. This exciting new book from author Charles Bahne tells the story of “The Hub of the Universe” through 29 drama-filled chapters spanning 400 years of Boston history: including John Winthrop and the landing on the Arabella, Paul Revere’s Ride, the Great Molasses Flood of 1919, Isabella Stewart Gardner’s art collection and its famous theft, the origin of the Curse of the Bambino, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s time at Boston University, the Kennedy clan and much, much more. Then 8 detailed walking show you the places where history happened, stopping off at local landmarks like Faneuil Hall, Union Oyster House, scenic Beacon Hill, and the Harvard campus in Cambridge. Pick up your copy today and stay tuned to the blog for new sneak peeks and previews from inside the Chronicles Series!
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To celebrate the new Chronicles of Old Las Vegas, Museyon author James Roman will be making a special appearance at the Clark County Library this Saturday, April 5, for the Spring Fling Book Fair. The FREE event starts 11 a.m., and Jim will kick things off with a seminar in the library’s Jewel Box Theater. Stop by to learn tips and hear tales from this veteran writer, then stop by his table where he’ll be signing books from 2-4 p.m.
12:45pm-1:30pm Researching Las Vegas with James Roman
Museyon Guides author James Roman will discuss his experiences doing research for newest book, Chronicles Of Old Las Vegas- Exposing Sin City’s High Stakes History. James will also share some tips and techniques when gathering research for your own writing projects.
Las Vegas – Clarke County Library
1401 E.Flamingo Rd
Las Vegas, NV
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Calling all history buffs! Want to learn while laughing? This Wednesday, April 4, Boston landmark the Old South Meeting House hosts its seventh annual Fife is Right. This hilarious quiz show pits two teams of history experts–including our own Chronicles of Old New York author Charlie Bahne–against each other in a fun-filled trivia contest. This year’s theme, “Underground Boston,” features tough questions on the terrifying tunnels, creepy crypts, scandalous speakeasies, clandestine clubs, subterranean stations, enticing excavations, and much more. Come watch the fun and maybe even be a “lifeline” if your favorite team is in trouble.
Get your ticket here!
If you can’t make it, pick up a copy of Chronicles of Old Boston to learn all about the city’s hidden history!
Old South Meeting House
310 Washington Street, Boston
617-482-6439
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image: Julie Sterling Williams, www.juliesterlingphoto.com ]]>
A controversial genius and one of the most famous American artists in the past century, Andy Warhol’s name is synonymous with modern art and ingenuity. Born in 1928 in Pittsburgh to Slovakian immigrants, Andy Warhol would rise to become the leading figure in the artistic movement Pop Art. His artistic career began while a student of commercial art at the School of Fine Arts at Carnegie Institute of Technology, which ultimately led him to New York City, landing a job in illustration for a magazine. Yet, office life was no place for a man such as Warhol, bursting with new ideas and unique views of objects that any “ordinary” individual would consider typical and boring. It was his obsession with commercial products, however, that would propel Warhol to international fame. With his interpretation of these consumer products as combining commercial and art, Warhol would further complicate the ongoing question that continues to baffle not only art critics, but viewers and artists alike: What, exactly, is art?
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Working out of a studio dubbed The Factory, this former magazine illustrator had his first solo show in New York in 1962, where he exhibited the famous 100 Soup Cans and 100 Coke Bottles. As he moved deeper into the ‘60s, Warhol’s works began revealing themes synonymous with midcentury America, not only popular consumer products such as Campbell’s and Coke, but individuals as well, including Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, and Elizabeth Taylor. Though critics began slamming Warhol as glorifying America’s habit of consumerism, in 1968, Warhol participated in the New York exhibit, The American Supermarket, where the setting was a traditional American grocery store, the only difference that its products were created by Warhol and other similar artists.
During this successful period, Warhol groomed his “Superstars”—eccentric nonconformists handpicked by the artist—but also experienced the rage of one of his peers and suffered a bullet wound. Though he would recover, but not fully, Warhol would go on to paint another one of his iconic portraits, this time of Michael Jackson. A splash of neon color in a room of black and white, Andy Warhol’s work is now on display in The Andy Warhol museum in his hometown of Pittsburgh. This museum includes Warhol’s working materials and source materials— photographs, newspapers and magazines—his personal collection of works, along with diaries and correspondence. Film screenings, live music, lectures, and workshops are also offered. — Nicole Ellul
The Andy Warhol Museum
117 Sandusky Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
412-237-8300
www.warhol.org
image: The Andy Warhol Museum – front facade, 1994, photo by Paul Rocheleau. Courtesy of The Andy Warhol Museum
]]>Here at Museyon we’re super-excited for the launch of Chronicles of Old Boston, the new history book hitting store shelves next month. Boston expert Charles Bahne reveals some of the city’s most shocking moments including a murder mystery on the Harvard campus to the mistake that sent 2 million gallons of molasses pouring down Commerce Street. Then he’ll show you how to walk in the footsteps of Paul Revere, John Hancock, Babe Ruth, Martin Luther King, Jr., John F. Kennedy and more as you explore “the city on the hill.” Check out the video for a sneak peak.
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In the beginnings of the 20th century, an American family gravitated to the center of the artistic movement in Paris, France. Though these individuals were not the usual “masters” of art that impacted the artistic world previously, these famous siblings did more for avant-garde Paris than perhaps even Pablo Picasso himself.
Upon first arriving in Paris, the Stein siblings, Leo, Gertrude, and Michael–along with his wife Sarah–were furious collectors and enthusiastic admirers of the aesthetic, purchasing anything they could afford. What they could afford at first, however, were unusual, modern oil paintings created by unknown artists with names such as Henri Matisse and Picasso. Attracted to such works of absolute color, Leo quickly acquired these paintings with his siblings following suit. Together, the siblings built an impressive collection of art to make even the Louvre jealous, and word had spread all over Paris. Yet, the siblings’ approach to artistic acquisition and collection was of a more untraditional one compared to the classic Paris museums. Leo, Gertrude, and Michael all had close friendships with the artists whose works hung boastfully on the walls of the siblings’ apartments, especially Matisse and Picasso, and were strong supporters of their new talented friends. Overwhelmed with requests to see the family’s apartments, the siblings decided to open their precious collection to the world and only to those who brought with them references upon entering. They came from Europe, from Russia and across the ocean from America to see what treasures lay hidden in Leo and Michael’s apartment. Discussion, debates, and kind friendly banter from groups of artists and guests echoed throughout the Stein apartments, transforming it into the popular salons and cafés of Paris where artistic people convened. These visitors took with them the names of Paris’ evolving avant-garde.
Lovers of art, or more appropriately, visionaries able to see the talent in what some might dismiss as the obscure, the Stein siblings literally introduced the world to avant-garde, and Paris has never been the same. Paying tribute to the Stein siblings and their appreciation for art, along with the undeniable impact they had to the artistic community, The Metropolitan Museum of Art is displaying what is left of the Stein collection. The exhibition The Steins Collect runs through June 3. — Nicole Ellul
image: Portrait of Gertrude Stein, by Pablo Picasso, 1906
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