The Catholic Bloggosphere has offended Aunti Austen's delicate clericalist sensibilities

Austen Ivereigh attacks Smeaton.

(Turn about is fair play, Austen).

I thought this was amusing.

And while his organisation, SPUC, does some useful research, its policies of refusing to engage with attempts by Parliament to reduce the numbers of abortions are at odds with the very clear and stated policy of the Catholic bishops of England and Wales...

Well, what I really thought was amusing was the thought that popped into my head when I'd read it: "There's a difference between 'getting engaged' and 'getting into bed with'.

But then, I'm a terrible, wicked, hidebound Taliban Catholic who blogs and criticises our keepers bishops. Pass me my shapeless plaid jumper and sneakers. Where's my mantilla?

But Austen has inserted a bit of unwittingly good news. It seems it's not just the UK bishops who want to shut down the bloggers. The bishops around the world are feeling the pinch:

Last June the bishop who chairs the US bishops' conference's communications committee gave a talk on what it means to be a faithful Catholic media organisation. During his talk Bishop Gabino Zavala noted:

As I talked with brother bishops in preparation for this presentation, there was consistent agreement that one aspect that is most alarming to us about media is when it becomes unchristian and hurtful to individuals. For example, we are particularly concerned about blogs that engage in attacks and hurtful, judgmental language. We are very troubled by blogs and other elements of media that assume the role of Magisterium and judge others in the Church. Such actions shatter the communion of the Church that we hold so precious.

Or perhaps I should say, feeling the heat as the Catholic bloggers hold their collective feet to the fire.

Isn't it funny. It seems like just last week that the liberal establishment was droning on and on about more lay participation in the Church. Didn't we hear from someone like Gumbleton or some other aging member of the tie-dye and Birkenstock club that the future of the Church doesn't lie in the hands of the clergy? Isn't this the time of the laity?

typical of the 'Taliban' mentality of many in the blogosphere [sic] who call for the banning of people they regard as "heretical", even when there has been no such call or declaration by those whom the Church's own law entrusts with the authority to do so. Catholic Voices considers this attitude unacceptable in a Catholic organisation, which is why it excluded those who shared it from being part of the project.

Wah! He won't let us play in his sandbox. That'll show us!

Funny how pre-Vatican II clericalism just keeps bouncing back...Ooo the irony!

Taliban Catholic bloggers unite! Throw off your chains of reactionary clericalist oppression!

Update:

Apparently, in Austen's World, not only can the UK Catholic hierarchy do no wrong, there is no anti-Catholic bias in the media.

Nope. None whatever.

It's all probably just part of the vicious imaginations of the Taliban Catholics.

How do I get to where Austen lives? It sounds like a wonderful world.



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It's objectively true that there's no objective truth...

I laff...

Nope, no double standard under here...

My first Life Class

This was the result, after six three hour sessions drawing from the live model.


Before the values were put in during the last session yesterday.
(Sorry about the poor picture quality. The light in the room is deliberately diffused so it's a bit hard to take pictures, and the flash is useless.)


It took me a long long time, and cost me a few more gray hairs, to get the foreshortened foot on the right.


With the first set of values put in. It was also incredibly difficult to see where the shadow shapes were and which were the half-tones.


I was particularly pleased with the hand, which I got on the first go with no trouble.


Not great, but not terrible for a first go.

The real fun, of course, is doing it with other people.


The wonderful Laura, the model. She's also a singer and actress and reportedly once worked in a circus. She was incredible. I never knew it was possible to stand in exactly the same spot for so long.



Fellow students Danielle and Luigi, both much more advanced than I. They completed a whole painting each in the time it took me to do my little drawing.



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How to do a Bargue by Sight Size

This is the first step in the Bargue Cours de dessin, the course of learning to draw by the classical method.

The steps are pretty straightforward.

You start with one of Charles Bargue's lithographs. These can be purchased in a big folio.

You stick one of them up on the easel at eye level. You stick a piece of paper next to it. You draw some guidelines, one on the edge and the other down the middle of the drawing so that about an even amount of information is on either side of the line.

Using a plumb line, you measure and mark the most significant points along the contour edge of the drawing, starting with the one the furthest away from your side guideline. This would be the tip of her nose, in this case. Then you join up the dots, going around the curves not with curved lines, but with a whole bunch of little straight lines. This way you can get the curves more accurately. Curves in nature are never even like a ball, but are always slightly lopsided, with the apex of a curve being closer to one end or the other, and little "hidden" straight bits that aren't immediately evident. You can soften the straight-line curves later.


Then you plot the significant points inside the contour line, and join those up.


Then you shade in the "values," (that's shadows in non-artfart speak) doing them all evenly with a light touch on your first pass. Don't try to darken in the darker bits right away. Just do them all the same for now.

When the values are in, it becomes easier to see where the faults are in placement of the stuff inside the contour edge, and the places where the contour edge is a little off.

Then you put in the deeper shadows, darkening the values progressively, being careful not to focus on one part of the drawing at a time, but doing the whole thing evenly all over.

Then you spend three weeks fiddling with it to make it perfect.

And Voy-Lah: Art!

Easy.



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Why I don't like Italy

Because this is where I'm from





Any more questions?

Yeah, actually. I have a question.

Just what the hell am I doing here, living on Planet Freakjob anyway?

And how do I get home?

(H/T to Vic for the pic.)



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Why I will never live in Australia

Guess who's coming to dinner?

Via "Snail's Eye View" one of my favourite Natural History blogs from downunder.



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Finished another one

Been working on this. It's a detail from a Ghirlandaio painting of the Visitation (with extra saints).


You've seen this.


Finished it last night.


Here they are as they were on my easel. Look closely and you will see all the wonkey bits.

It's a funny thing though. The more I do it, the more I want to do it. And there are times, like last night, when it's going especially well, that I find it very difficult to stop. Even when my eyes are getting all sandy. And the urge to start another one immediately is extremely strong when you've finished one. I had to stop myself from putting up the next project last night at 12:30.

Go to bed! You can't draw when your eyes are all sandy anyway.

I don't wanna go to bed. I'll just finish this one little bit...

It's like living with a kid in your brain.



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Moabites

We interrupt this Shatnerfest to bring you this important archaeology news bulletin.

They've found something cool in the desert.

3000 year-old Iron Age temple.

with a trove of figurines of ancient deities and circular clay vessels used for religious rituals.

Jordanian Antiquities Department, Ziad al-Saad, said the sanctuary dates to the eighth century B.C. and was discovered at Khirbat 'Ataroz near the town of Mabada, some 20 miles (32 kilometers) southwest of the capital Amman.

He said the complex boasts a main room that measures 388 square feet (36 square meters), as well as two antechambers and an open courtyard.

The sanctuary and its artifacts -- hewn from limestone and basalt or molded from clay and bronze -- show the complex religious rituals of Jordan's ancient biblical Moabite kingdom, according to al-Saad.

"Today we have the material evidence, the archaeological proof of the level of advancement of technology and civilization at that period of time," he said.

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Because he's just so darned awesome

I think we've had enough serious for a while. So I've decided we're having a Shatner Day here at the Picnic.

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...and I'll bet you never knew he could speak Italian either!

With everything the way it is in the world these days,

do you ever wonder if we've accidentally slipped into the Evil Spock universe?




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