Tag Archives: potemkin village

catherine: utopia and voyage of the slandered

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Dave

Catherine the Great and her triumphal tour to the far reaches of her realm in 1787. The European guests were impressed, though some less than others. A Potemkin village? … …The little towns viewed from a safe distance of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion | Tagged Catherine the Great, Dmitry Levitzky paintings, Friedrich Melchior Grimm, General Potemkin, Helbig envoy Saxony, Levitsky Smolyanki series, Madame Pickwick, madame pickwick art blog, Marquis de Custine, potemkin village, Robert K. Massie, Sergei Vasilyevich Ivanov paintings, Virginia Rounding | Leave a comment

catherine: boating party

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Dave

Catherine the Great’s boat ride. The Empress was showing off the wonders of her realm, and they were many indeed. But were they real or fake? The year was 1787, at the dawn of modernism, and Potemkin, as impressario and … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion | Tagged Friedrich Melchior Grimm, General Potemkin, Joseph II of Austria, Madame Pickwick, madame pickwick art blog, potemkin village, Robert K. Massie, Russian painting eighteenth century, Virginia Rounding, Vladimir Borovikovsky | Leave a comment

luxury cruise: Catherine in first class

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Dave

Catherine the Great and her triumphal Crimean tour in 1787. The legend of the Potemkin village. A reality or stab at the Russians. Only Potemkin knew for sure and he never said… …At Kaidek Catherine was joined by her powerful … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion | Tagged Catherine the Great, Ermolay Kamezhenkov, Friedrich Melchior Grimm, General Potemkin, Ivan Fyodorov, Lomonosov Russian, potemkin village, Robert K. Massie, Virginia Rounding, Vladimir Borovikovsky | Leave a comment

catherine on cruise control

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Dave

The year was 1787 and it was Catherine’s boat ride. The Empress, Catherine the Great was showing off the wonders of her realm to the beau monde of Europe. The question was, whether these wonders were real or fake. Only … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion | Tagged Catherine the Great Russia, Friedrich Melchior Grimm, General Potemkin, Madame Pickwick, madame pickwick art blog, Mamonov Catherine the Great lover, potemkin village, Prince de Ligne, Robert K. Massie, Vigilius Eriksen, Virginia Rounding | Leave a comment

catherine: her and thou

Posted on December 16, 2012 by Dave

The occasion was Catherine the Great’s triumphal tour of the Crimea, the longest, most lavish, most expensive boating party in world history. The Empress showed off the wonders of her realm, and they were many indeed. But were they real … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion, Madame Pickwick Weekend | Tagged Antoine-Jean Gros, Comte de Segur, General Potemkin, James Gillray, Louise Dresser, Madame Pickwick, Mamanov Catherine the Great Lover, potemkin village, Prince de Ligne, Robert K. Massie, rudolph valentino, Vilma Banky, Virginia Rounding | Leave a comment

catherine: nothing exceeds like excess

Posted on December 16, 2012 by Dave

Catherine the Great’s boat ride of 1787. The splendors of the Russian empire or hastily erected Potemkin villages with throngs of cheering serfs…… …But the limited, exacting existence of the court had not suited Potemkin’s violent and feverish energies. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion | Tagged Catherine the Great, Catherine the Great Russia, Fyodor Rokotov, Fyodor Rokotov painter, General Potemkin, georg christoph grooth, Johann Georg de Mayr, Madame Pickwick, madame pickwick art blog, potemkin village, Robert K. Massie, Virginia Rounding | Leave a comment

catherine: search for golden pheasants

Posted on December 16, 2012 by Dave

Catherine’s boat ride. It was 1787 and the Empress was showing off the wonders of her realm, which were many indeed. Question was, were they real,or fake? Only General Potemkin, the one-eyed giant, knew for sure. And he wasn’t saying… … Continue reading →

Posted in Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion, Madame Pickwick Weekend | Tagged Catherine the Great, Czar Peter III, Diderot in Russia, Friedrich Melchior Grimm, General Potemkin, Madame Pickwick, madame pickwick art blog, Mae West, peter woditsch, potemkin village, Taurian Palace, Virginia Rounding, Voltaire | Leave a comment

boat ride: catherine’s pleasure cruise

Posted on December 13, 2012 by Dave

Catherine,s boat ride. The Empress was showing off the wonders of her realm, and they were many indeed. But were they real or were they fake? Only Potemkin, the one-eyed giant, knew for sure- and he never said… The year … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History/Antiquity/Anthropology, Feature Article, Ideas/Opinion | Tagged Catherine the Great, Czar Peter III, Diderot in Russia, Elisabeth Bergner, Frederick of Prussia, Friedrich Melchior Grimm, General Potemkin, Madame Pickwick, madame pickwick art blog, potemkin village, Robert K. Massie | Leave a comment

release from moderation

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Dave

Nothing exceeds like excess. It colors a somber Russian landscape and its offshoot eccentricities perhaps aided and abetted by the extreme and often inhospitable climate. For Russia whether Czarist, Communist and new Czarist appears to have no middle ground, only … Continue reading →