Some nice space pictures (to color) for you today.  Coloring books may be one of the ultimate forms of ephemera. There were meant to be used, admired? and then thrown away. Yet many children owned them and there were at least 40 issued between 1950 and 1970 on space themes. If pictures are a universal communication then these children got a lot of input about what their future in space would look like. This particular one is full of futuristic dreams of what space flight might be from the viewpoint of the beginning of our men into space programs. Rockets and Space Coloring Book. New York: Treasure Books. (51 p.) 1960.  This first batch seems to be copied from older 50's space images This image on the right above seems a little odd. It can't be on the Moon since there is a helicopter.  What is the palm tree doing in the loading of the lunar ship? Does it leave from the tropics? Does it launch "single stage direct?" This image above also needs more explanation. Is this a Russian launch system? I don't remember it. "Ready for take-off" to aim at targets on Earth? That spaceship has a really big window

Tiberius Caesar had the unenviable task of succeeding his stepfather Augustus. He would always be a pale shadow of the charismatic founder of the Roman Empire. Tiberius’s time in power was also scarred by the influence of Sejanus, the prefect of the emperor’s Praetorian Guard. Sejanus used Tiberius’s insecurity and reticence to rule and […]

At the Musée d’Orsay, Paris, you can see these sculptured portraits of celebrities by French artist Honoré Daumier (February 26, 1808 – February 10 or 11, 1879). Created between 1832 and 1835, Les Célébrités du Juste-Milieu (The Celebrities of the Golden Mean) terracotta look remarkably modern, an impression enhanced by some of the faces … Continue reading "Honoré Daumier, Portraits des Célébrités du Juste-Milieu" The post Honoré Daumier, Portraits des Célébrités du Juste-Milieu appeared first on Flashbak.

Greece, one of the world’s oldest civilizations, traces its history back to at least 7000 BCE, when Neolithic settlements emerged across the region. By 3000 BCE, the Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean civilizations flourished, setting the stage for Greece’s cultural and intellectual dominance. The Minoans of Crete (2700–1100 BCE) built Europe’s first known advanced society, […]

Belgian painter René Magritte (21 November 1898 – 15 August 1967) is best known for his Surrealist art. But before he relocated from Brussels to Paris in 1927 and began hanging out with André Breton (19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) and other Surrealists, Magritte worked as a commercial artist. Typically of … Continue reading "René Magritte’s Art Deco Posters and Music Covers" The post René Magritte’s Art Deco Posters and Music Covers appeared first on Flashbak.