My Mother was born in 1916, & that was before women had the right to vote here in the States. I hope to see a woman President this November. The Equal Rights Amendment, first proposed in 1923, would guarantee equal legal rights to all American citizens regardless of sex. It has never passed in Congress. That speaks volumes.
I always enjoy & learn from your photos and writings. Thank you for sharing.
It started out with memories of September 2022 when I was in The Hague visiting the Mauritshuis and passed the spot you took a picture from; then it triggered a memory of an exhibit on the slave trade in Paris - a part of French history that I never really thought about and don't remember hearing about in school; and on to van Gogh and other artists with van Gogh playing a big role in me starting to paint. I will now pay more attention to trees in paintings.
I love how your brain wanders so effortlessly.
Oh and I smiled at "It wasn't until 1919 that women gained the right to vote in the Netherlands." because it was so much later in Switzerland. We're talking the 1970s on a national level and 1990 in the very last canton. So embarrassing - yet, our democracy is now pretty stable and based on coalitions and compromise.
Yes embarrassing for a democracy that is in many ways more democratic than anywhere else. A strange paradox that’s hard to understand for any non-Swiss (and likely for a few Swiss citizens too)
I was born after that historic vote in 1971 but yes, difficult to understand.
There's a movie called The Divine Order (should be on Netflix) that explains the situation really well. Still - completely ridiculous it took this long. And think about who voted on this ...
In many areas of life this is entire situation is still apparent. Like the fact that most towns don't have all day schools. Kids come home for lunch. Mom is expected to stay home - things like that.
Scrutinizing our history takes a bit of courage and often results in painful realizations.
As one whose roots are in the southern US states, the history of slavery is deep and still present. There are still reminders of the struggles and horrors of not so many decades ago when African Americans were owned by Caucasians. To this day there are those who feel they are superior to those of a different race. It’s sometimes subtle, sometimes not. The presidential candidate of one political party is often less than subtle. But his desire to assert superiority isn’t confined to only race as we’ve seen. This week has given new hope to pushing him into the dustpan of shameful history.
Your tutelage of art is far more pleasant and it’s always a pleasure to be your student, especially when Van Gogh is the subject. I find Vincent’s interpretation of the Flowering Plum Tree to be much more appealing with its intense colors than the other two. The Grey Tree is rather depressing.
Thank you for another great article and sharing thoughts that always give me something to ponder.
Mooie post Alex. Kleine aanvulling: alleen de gebouwen die links van de boom staan zullen oude Hagenaars bekend voorkomen. Wat rechts van de boom staat, dateert uit de late negentiende eeuw. Het is op het Binnenhof net als in Brugge: dat is goeddeels een negentiende-eeuwse reconstructie van wat men toen dacht hoe de Middeleeuwen eruitzagen.
Grappig. Net als sommige Amerikaanse Ivy-league universiteiten. Die gaan nog een stap verder en hebben een Harry Potter sfeertje gebouwd met een niet historisch te verantwoorden nostalgische architektuur stijl.
Such a magnificent lesson in history, the Netherlands, and gorgeous art works by you and others. Democracy and slavery; how they developed across the world and their uncertain future unless we fight to retain Democracy and eliminate all racism, the extension of slavery. The Perspectives of the Hague are beautifully done. The art work is exceptional. I confess the Van Gogh interpretation is my favorite. I do love these types of posts. Thank you! 😊
Thank you, Judith. In Substack, I officially in the climate change category; but I don’t think that’s where these kinds of articles belong. Nor do I know under which header the should be categorized instead.
My Mother was born in 1916, & that was before women had the right to vote here in the States. I hope to see a woman President this November. The Equal Rights Amendment, first proposed in 1923, would guarantee equal legal rights to all American citizens regardless of sex. It has never passed in Congress. That speaks volumes.
I always enjoy & learn from your photos and writings. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Jean. I hope so too!
Historical context. History and art lesson. Democracy. Brilliant 🌻
What Rena said ⬆️⬆️
What a journey! Thank you.
It started out with memories of September 2022 when I was in The Hague visiting the Mauritshuis and passed the spot you took a picture from; then it triggered a memory of an exhibit on the slave trade in Paris - a part of French history that I never really thought about and don't remember hearing about in school; and on to van Gogh and other artists with van Gogh playing a big role in me starting to paint. I will now pay more attention to trees in paintings.
I love how your brain wanders so effortlessly.
Oh and I smiled at "It wasn't until 1919 that women gained the right to vote in the Netherlands." because it was so much later in Switzerland. We're talking the 1970s on a national level and 1990 in the very last canton. So embarrassing - yet, our democracy is now pretty stable and based on coalitions and compromise.
Yes embarrassing for a democracy that is in many ways more democratic than anywhere else. A strange paradox that’s hard to understand for any non-Swiss (and likely for a few Swiss citizens too)
I was born after that historic vote in 1971 but yes, difficult to understand.
There's a movie called The Divine Order (should be on Netflix) that explains the situation really well. Still - completely ridiculous it took this long. And think about who voted on this ...
In many areas of life this is entire situation is still apparent. Like the fact that most towns don't have all day schools. Kids come home for lunch. Mom is expected to stay home - things like that.
I love reading your articles.
I am so happy with my subscription and glad to be here.
I look forward to each new post. This one is really interesting.
This article gives a lot to think about.
History that’s always fascinating but, on closer look, uncomfortable to contemplate.
I was unaware the evils of slavery were also a part of Dutch history.
Democracy can’t be taken for granted anywhere now. After the victories of WWII, we became complacent in the safety it offered. Not so, any longer.
I love your photo and how it’s altered for a different perspective. And your lesson in art is beautiful.
Thank you.
Thanks, Lucy
Scrutinizing our history takes a bit of courage and often results in painful realizations.
As one whose roots are in the southern US states, the history of slavery is deep and still present. There are still reminders of the struggles and horrors of not so many decades ago when African Americans were owned by Caucasians. To this day there are those who feel they are superior to those of a different race. It’s sometimes subtle, sometimes not. The presidential candidate of one political party is often less than subtle. But his desire to assert superiority isn’t confined to only race as we’ve seen. This week has given new hope to pushing him into the dustpan of shameful history.
Your tutelage of art is far more pleasant and it’s always a pleasure to be your student, especially when Van Gogh is the subject. I find Vincent’s interpretation of the Flowering Plum Tree to be much more appealing with its intense colors than the other two. The Grey Tree is rather depressing.
Thank you for another great article and sharing thoughts that always give me something to ponder.
I like Vincent’s version too. He kept copying other masters until the very end; never being convinced of hos own mastery.
https://x.com/dutchmfa/status/1827016060949705212?s=61&t=A8DAgbbL8FCudHop73l9aw
This makes your article of yesterday even more timely and relevant.
Worthy of deep reflection of shameful past history.
But you probably knew that when you wrote it. Always mindful of the details.
Mooie post Alex. Kleine aanvulling: alleen de gebouwen die links van de boom staan zullen oude Hagenaars bekend voorkomen. Wat rechts van de boom staat, dateert uit de late negentiende eeuw. Het is op het Binnenhof net als in Brugge: dat is goeddeels een negentiende-eeuwse reconstructie van wat men toen dacht hoe de Middeleeuwen eruitzagen.
Grappig. Net als sommige Amerikaanse Ivy-league universiteiten. Die gaan nog een stap verder en hebben een Harry Potter sfeertje gebouwd met een niet historisch te verantwoorden nostalgische architektuur stijl.
Such a magnificent lesson in history, the Netherlands, and gorgeous art works by you and others. Democracy and slavery; how they developed across the world and their uncertain future unless we fight to retain Democracy and eliminate all racism, the extension of slavery. The Perspectives of the Hague are beautifully done. The art work is exceptional. I confess the Van Gogh interpretation is my favorite. I do love these types of posts. Thank you! 😊
Thank you, Judith. In Substack, I officially in the climate change category; but I don’t think that’s where these kinds of articles belong. Nor do I know under which header the should be categorized instead.
Very interesting!
I like your article a lot, Alex … and definitively, The Hague is one of my favorite places … with nice memories !
Thanks much for your share !👌🙌👏
A top site I always recommend in The Hague is Panorama Mesdag. If you missed it last time, add it on your list for a next visit.