The geography of the Ukivok island is particular for an inhabited island. It’s 1.6km long and is mainly made up of steep rocky coasts and cliffs, without a beach, which makes landing difficult. The island has few natural resources, the animals are mainly birds, and the high vegetation is almost absent. Therefore it seems almost impossible to live there year-round, but for several decades Inupiat people lived on the island in unique houses on stilts.
Outlines of Botanical Geography
The Outlines of Botanical Geography is a complete survey of the plants distribution in the world. It presents a world map showing the geographical distribution of plants, a graphic document representing plants distribution in a few mountain ranges, but also some graphical statistics and some plants drawings.
Magritte, Day and Night
Magritte was a Belgian surrealist artist playing with preconceived perceptions of reality. His works often present two graphic interpretations, by painting the visible and the invisible, a duality that makes all the richness of his work. This duality was explored when he put the day into perspective with the night in his paintings.
Another look at Orientalism in German painting
In its painting production, German Orientalism did not escape the European trend and its accumulation of clichés. However, some artists were able to propose paintings representing an orient without fantasized exoticism.
The Shore of Oblivion, Eugen Bracht
Eugene Bracht was a German painter known for his romantic landscape paintings. As Böcklin did with the Isle of the Dead, he painted several versions of his iconic painting, The Shore of Oblivion.
La Description de l’Égypte: Antiquités, Volume IV
La Description de l’Egypte (The Description of Egypt), is the first encyclopedia devoted exclusively to Egypt. It is a work from Bonaparte’s Egyptian campaign, recounting the discoveries made during this scientific voyage. The fourth book of plates is La Description de l’Égypte: Antiquités, Volume IV. It describes the most recent sites along the Nile.
Centraal Beheer Office Building, Dutch Structuralism
Herman Hertzberger is a Dutch architect born in 1932 in Amsterdam. As a disciple of Aldo van Eyck, he was one of the main influences behind the Dutch structuralism movement. The project considered to be one of the most inspiring examples of the movement is the Centraal Beheer office building in Apeldoorn. It was designed as a sixty cubes workspace forming a single articulated unit.
Yu Ji Tu, an example of traditional Chinese cartography
The Yu Ji Tu is a map made by an unknow Chinese mapmaker under the Song dynasty (907-1276). It was carved in stone and employs the Ji Li Hua Fang, a rectilinear grid system well ahead of its time.The stele was made in honor of Yu, and represents with an exceptional precision the rivers and the coastline of China.
Velsertunnel Ventilation Building
The Velsertunnel ventilation building is an iconic building of the period of reconstruction in Netherlands. It is primarly recognized for its ventilation shafts, made of square concrete tubes, forming an alveoli structure. It was built by Dirk Roosenburg, a renowned architect also known to be Rem Koolhaas’s grandfather.
The Total Theater of Bauhaus
Among the many Bauhaus workshops, one of them stands out for being at first glance unsuitable for the school’s teaching. The Bauhaus theater workshop is not a craft workshop and does not aim to create utilitarian objects. However, it is a perfect example of the synthesis of the arts.