Albert Weale

The Windmill at Wijk bij Duurstede c. 1670, by Jacob van Ruisdael, preeminent Dutch Golden Age landscape artist (1628-1682); master of dramatic river and coastal views, with large skies and brooding clouds; inspired Constable, Turner and Van Gogh.
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

“…Even if they are able to clean up his mess … elect a supremely sane president next, America will NEVER again be a trusted partner. Because there are enough Americans who would vote for him … (again).

I couldn't even say anything. She was right. The damage this has done is endless…”

On the spot watercolour drawing of Green Street, Cambridge (with Indian ink using a dip pen). I loved the extravagant shop signs but wasn't so keen on my rendering of the Halifax Building Society sign and I don't think I ever exhibited this one. However, on digging it out of a storage portfolio I decided I liked it after all. Cambridge was a nicer place then with more character. Many much loved shops have disappeared, replaced by eateries.

One of many Cambridge street watercolours I did 30-40 years ago. Working on the spot uniquely preserves memories and feelings. The shop signs at that time in Green St were extravagantly beautiful and the passers by were sketched in quickly. Still have this one.
#fineart ##pleinair #Cambridge

La Méditerranée, 1905, bronze sculpture by Aristide Maillol, influential 20th Century French sculptor, painter & printmaker, born OTD 1861; his restrained, monumental sculptures of the female form inspired Henry Moore, Picasso and Matisse.
Le Jardin des Tuileries, Paris

Dutch artist Dirck Jacobsz cleverly creates a double memorial portrait of his deceased mother and father by depicting his artist father painting a portrait of Dirck’s mother. Both parents now gaze at us (1550) Toledo Museum of Art

It's certainly six letters long and starts with an "R", but I'm not sure it's "reason"

Crypto’s rocky year [FREE TO READ] The industry was hugely optimistic when Donald Trump returned to the White House. But bitcoin has fallen by a quarter in two months

One of the things about crypto is the sheer waste of human time, talent and computing power, let alone the money. Imagine if this level of energy had gone into something socially useful instead. as.ft.com/r/1cd4200c-b...

Another rough night for the people of Ukraine, who again faced a mass Russian missile and drone attack on civilian homes and infrastructure.

They will endure and reject any so-called "peace" that rewards the aggressor and leaves Ukraine exposed to future aggression.

Europe must #StandWithUkraine

"Seek to humble yourselves in all things. Do not glory in yourselves. Do not rejoice inwardly or exalt yourselves for the good words and works, or indeed any good that God sometimes says or does or works in your or through you." #SaintFrancisOfAssisi #BeHumble

A botanical drawing in pencil, brush and bodycolors of two pears on a stem with leaves, tied at the top with a salmon-pink ribbon. The artwork also depicts red cherries, and Physalis alkekengi (3 closed, 1 open), and a purple flower, as well as butterflies, a beetle and a dragonfly.

Twig with Two Pears, n.d., by #DorotheaStormKreps (Dutch, 1734-72). Held by Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, www.boijmans.nl/en/collectio... #hernaturalhistory #artherstory #womenartists #WorldPearDay

It's self-evident that leaving the European Union badly damaged our economy, took us out of an important marketplace and created serious friction. That untruths were being peddled by those that thought exiting the European Union would be a good thing, and it's why every single day that I was Foreign Secretary, I returned to the subject of our relationship with the European Union. David Lammy MP, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Rejoining the Single Market and Customs Union would reconnect Britain with the most significant marketplace it has ever been part of, one that once powered jobs, growth and investment across the country.

The Nobel Prize committee should announce the World Cup winner tomorrow

Dowództwo Operacyjne RSZ & @D....1h X • Translated from Polish Show original ! Attention. Due to the activity of the Russian Federation's long-range aviation, which is carrying out strikes on the territory of Ukraine, military aviation operations have commenced in Polish airspace. In accordance with the applicable procedures, the Operational Command of the Armed Forces has activated the necessary forces and resources at its disposal. Fighter jets have been scrambled, and ground-based air defense systems as well as radar reconnaissance systems have reached a state of readiness. These actions are of a preventive nature and are aimed at securing the airspace and its protection, especially in areas adjacent to the threatened regions. The Operational Command of the Armed Forces is monitoring the current situation, and the subordinate forces and resources remain ready for immediate response. #PolaczeniDlaBezpieczenstwar

Polish jets scrambled as Russia bombs Ukraine.

MASSIVE attack on Ukraine right now

Baldassare Castiglione, Italian diplomat, scholar & humanist, painted by Raphael c.1515; born #OTD 1478; known for his influential Book of the Courtier, set in Ducal Palace of Urbino, published by Aldine Press 1528.
Musée du Louvre | Palazzo Ducale di Urbino | UCL Special Collections

When two artists paint each other: Frédéric Bazille, French Impressionist artist, born #OTD 1841; part of close circle of artists & writers including Renoir, Manet, Monet & Zola. In 1867 he was painted at his easel by Renoir; in the same year, he painted an informal portrait of Renoir.
Musée d’Orsay

Trump's national security strategy puts great emphasis on "competence and merit" and "civilizational advantage". This administration personifies the opposites.

“And if thou wilt, remember,
And if thou wilt, forget.”
Christina Rossetti, English poet, born #OTD 1830.
Portrait drawing by her brother Dante Gabriel Rossetti, coloured chalk on blue-grey paper, dated September 1866, & signed with artist’s monogram.
Andrew Lloyd-Webber Collection

Madame Récamier, Parisian beauty and salonnière of Directoire & early Consulate periods, born #OTD 1777; admired by Châteaubriand, friend of Mme de Staël, painted à la Grecque by Jacques-Louis David in 1800, reclining upon a form of chaise-longue which became known as a Récamier.
Musée du Louvre

Great man of history: Thomas Carlyle, Scottish historian, Sage of Chelsea, instigated foundation of The London Library; born #OTD 1795.
Portrait of the Carlyles at home in Chelsea painted in 1857 by Robert Scott Tait.
Carlyle’s House Chelsea, National Trust

„Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?“
Duineser Elegien, by Rainer Maria Rilke, influential Austrian poet, born #OTD 1875. Inspired by Duino Castle near Trieste, the work was pub. in 1923 (1st English trans. Hogarth Press 1931), influenced Bloomsbury group, and WH Auden.

Bal du Moulin de la Galette, 1876: Sunday afternoon in Montmartre, Impressionist masterpiece, ‘monument précieux de la vie parisienne’, by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, died #OTD 1919; admired for its fluid brushstrokes & dappled light, the painting was owned by Gustave Caillebotte.
@museeorsay.bsky.social

I wonder if it's time to retire the role of "political editor" altogether

Return most of the coverage to the Economics Editor, the Health Editor, the Home Affairs team & so on.

Leave the "who-said-what-to-whom" & "what-does-it-mean-for-the-polls" to others. The BBC doesn't need to foreground this.

News Wrap: White House says Trump's MRI was focused on heart and abdomen In our news wrap Monday, the White House says that a recent MRI performed on President Trump was a preventative screening focused on both his heart and abdomen, a federal appeals court ruled that Alin...

Nonsense. He doesn't have a heart.

www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...

Nova Scotia to sell last of U.S. booze pulled from shelves, giving profits to charity | Globalnews.ca The premier says Nova Scotia is 'committed to a Team Canada approach to tariffs and trade' and will not order any more alcohol from the United States once this inventory is gone.

Nova Scotia looks to get rid of its remaining inventory of U.S. alcohol worth $14 million before it expires; all proceeds go to charity. New Brunswick is also selling its remaining $3.4 million worth of U.S. alcohol in storage at discounted prices. Quebec donated it.
globalnews.ca/news/1154636...

Un dimanche après-midi à l'Île de la Grande Jatte
Neo-Impressionist masterpiece: monumental work painted 1884-86 by Georges Seurat, leader of pointillism, born #OTD 1859.
Art Institute of Chicago

Jean Eve (French 1900–1968) Nature morte aux huîtres, 1941

Vaughan Williams writes on how folk music is knitted into culture, making its influence unavoidable.

The month of December
Boar Hunt in the forest, with a view of the towers and central keep of Château de Vincennes
Tempera on vellum, c.1440, attributed to painter Barthélemy d’Eyck
Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry
Musée Condé, Château de Chantilly

c. 1930 vintage French advertising poster for L’Eau du Marabout, a mineral/table water produced in Constantine, Algeria, during the period when Algeria was part of French North Africa. The poster reads: ‘Ultraviolet rays sterilize Marabout Water — the best table and diet water.’