Escorted to Heaven: The dead and the angels...

This Post is all about the belief that you're not going alone to heaven.

I've seen some fine examples at the Staglieno in Genoa and here's a seletion of the finest ones.

The first two photographs show one of my absolute favourite sculpture. It's the Monument Rocco Piaggo by Sculptur Fabiani. The level of detailling is absolutely astonishing: Just note the draping...

Odd and slightly scary: Cimitero Monumentale Milano

This is another post that isn't about beauty but strangeness. At the Cimitero Monumentale in Milano were not only beautiful sculptures and not everything was about grieving and mourning.

These examples here left me gaping and quite speechless since i didn't (and still don't) work out what they exactly mean. And they left me astonished because they are -even if they appear to be ugly, scary or even downright mental- fine pieces of art. At least in my view.

Two famished blokes.

This piece of modern art appears to be leathal if accidently bumped in. However it's a bit bonkers to have it on your grave, isn't it?

The last example however is the oddest of them all. As far as i understand it' the grave of an aircraft pilot. But that still doesn't explain the Medusa. 

Bad Picture. I've cut off the foot. Again.

This one's slightly better. At least the foot is complete.

Here's a wideshot of that incredible grave. 

Detail of the Medusa. This is genuinely scary.

Veiled Beauties

To celebrate the beginning of Spring i'd like to treat you with some pictures i've made over the last years. They have one theme in common: Veiled faces.

These sculptures are quite rare but they are often very beautiful and stunning pieces of art. They were however quite popular in France and Italy in the mid-19th century and the artists regarded it as a challenge to do it as realistic as possible.

But see for yourself:

Cemetery Prazeres, Lisboa, 2009. 

Cimitero Monumentale, Milano, 2010

Cimitero Staglieno, Genoa, 2010. Note also the world in her right hand and the snake in her left. 

Cimitero Staglieno, Genoa, 2010. Detail of the sculpture above. 

Cimitero Monumentale, Milano, 2010. Not excactly a beauty but at least veiled. It is a tiny miniature (about  2-3 inches tall) and it was sheer luck to spot her.

Cimitero Staglieno, Genoa, 2010. One of my favourites at Staglieno. And again my headline is a bit misleading here. The beauty on the picture isn't veiled. And the veiled bloke isn't that handsome. Still, at least veiled and beauty fits. In a way.

One last sentence to my introduction. After proofreading this entry i've found nothing even remotely about spring. Nothing whatsoever. Sorry.