Conflict ... A Part of Human Nature

Art History has its conflicts. Through history people have been unable to agree completely about style. Art from the academy was considered superior to some while others preferred a less formulaic style. Those that followed Poussin favored classicism and the academies while those who followed Rubens preferred color and emotion to formulas.

Other conflicts, or style contrasts, existed in Art History. A familiar era, the Renaissance, saw the contrast between Michelangelo and Leonardo DaVinci. Michelangelo was more sculpturesque in style while DaVinci was interested more in emotional expression.

An interesting story was published by Top 10 Online Universities, Throwing Down the Gauntlet: History's 7 Most Famous Duels. The article describes 7 personal conflicts that impacted history. None of the conflicts are art related, but each shows how personal conflicts can change the course of one's life...and that of the lives of those around them. Conflicts can challenge a person to achieve as they can push one continue to strive for excellence. Conflicts can also challenge a person's character...to make the right moral decision when pushed up against a wall.

Read the article to learn more about Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Decatur, Charles Dickinson and more!

The Devil in the White City

is a fantastic novel about the CHICAGO architects behind the 1893 World's Fair (the buildings were constructed white, thus the title "The White City"). This non-fiction story was written in 2003 by Erik Larson (the film rights have been purchased...perhaps it will be on the big screen one day).

Reading this novel allows the reader to get to know the personalities behind Chicago's premier architects Burnham, Root, and Sullivan as well as understand the interconnectedness between architects all around the world. The competition among architects and cooperation between them in order to complete a project was a delight to read. It made me wonder if competitors would reach out to one another in this era in order to turn out the best product possible.

A side story is developed in the novel as well. The devil is a doctor that finds elaborate ways to lure people, mainly female, into his confidence and eventually kill them. The story of the building of a crematorium in his home was disturbing!