Trying to sleep through a sizzling summer night isnt easy merely thinking cool thoughts doesnt cut it. Many of us have undersized air conditioners that arent used to running day in and day out as they have been lately. Trying to stay comfortable in heat waves takes a concerted effort, one that may need to be multifaceted.

Window air conditioning units and portable air conditioners are options worth considering. Window units can often be plugged into a standard outlet as long as the circuit is not shared by another major appliance. If the required amperage is over 7 amps, it is best the unit is on its own dedicated circuit.

Portable units are perfect for a garage or rental where a more permanent solution isnt available. If there is another way to cool, however, use it portable units are the loudest and least efficient way to cool.

Ideally, a portable or window a/c unit should be placed close enough to an outlet to allow the cord to reach, but if you need immediate relief, you can use a short, extra heavy-duty 12-gauge extension cord specifically designed for major appliances (not an extension cord you pick up from the local drug store). Even the right extension cord is only to be used for a few hours at a time and is designed for temporary use only.

Portable air conditioner units are perfect for a garage or rental where a more permanent solution isnt available.

Remember the old ceiling fans wobbly and noisy, lying under them at night praying they dont fall on you? Todays ceiling fans are different theyre sturdy and quiet and come in trendy styles, such as propeller blades and painted drum shades, and an array of materials, from traditional wood to brushed aluminum. Not only that, but ceiling fans are one of the few appliances whose installation will save you money upwards of 15 percent off your energy costs.

When it comes to ceiling fans, the more blades the better, right? Wrong. In fact, ceiling fans with fewer blades create less drag on the motor, allowing it to spin faster and move air more efficiently. The downside of fewer blades is it might create more ambient noise.

Whats most important in a ceiling fan is the strength of its motor. Ceiling fan motors range from 1/60 to 1/3 horsepower. A higher-power motor will meet the demands of the resisting blades and be less prone to overheating.

Want to climb out of the box completely? Opt for a bladeless ceiling fan. Because of its innovative design, a bladeless ceiling fan can produce stronger and more even airflow while consuming less electricity than a typical ceiling fan. These fans are especially good for rooms with low ceilings.

Whole house fans are another energy efficient cooling option that are perfect for areas where the nights cool down. These fans run at night, pulling cool air through a few open windows and venting hot air out through the attic.

Swapping a light for a ceiling fan wont have much of an electrical impact but installing a central air conditioning system or even a window unit might. Any time you add a major appliance, like a hot tub or an air conditioner, you need to make sure your electrical system can handle the increased load.

If you employ a fair amount of power strips and extension cords in your home, you are probably using more electricity than your panel was designed to offer. Lights dimming or flickering, breakers tripping, buzzing and crackling noises coming from your electrical panel, or your panel feeling warm to the touch are all signs your electrical system is maxed out.

Your electrical service and panel are key to your cooling options. Your electrical service is the strength of the electrical current fed into your panel from the citys grid. Your electrical panel then disperses this electricity through your home via circuits protected by breakers. Todays homes use a lot more electricity than they did even 20 years ago, so the service and panel of an older home may need to be replaced if youre considering adding new air conditioning appliances.

Jeff Stock is the owner of Elk Ridge Electric in Billings.

Jeff Stock is the owner of Elk Ridge Electric.

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Keeping your cool: Ways to beat the heat indoors this summer - KPVI News 6

A key to numerous architectural projects, whether residential, commercial, public or industrial, high-tech ceramic is widely appreciated for a number of reasons, both technical and aesthetic.Technical qualities include resistance, easy cleaning, safety and inalterability over the years, a set of qualities that make these materials perfect for large and small outdoor areas as well as major renovation projects.Their aesthetic performance includes the many effects, colours and perfect reproductions of the principal natural materials, as will be apparent in the gallery of brandsin the Iris Ceramica Group, world leaders in the field of Italian designed and made ceramics.

The Iris Ceramica Groups innovation and technical development include not only design but production and distribution of top quality ceramic products and customised accessories.In addition to aesthetic and technical aspects, beginning with careful selection of raw materials and continuing throughout the entire production process, special attention has been paid in recent years to development of different slab sizes.In the past the choice was limited to the traditional tile sizes which are still in use and available on the market. But the evolution of architecture and of demand for public and private construction projects demanded a range of different sizes in addition to the traditional ones, relaunching the sector and offering new potential for architects.

FMG Maxfine slabs measure up to 320x160 cm, with a reduced thickness of only 6 mm, permitting original continuity among spaces, a drastic reduction of visual obstacles and interruptions, easier cleaning and brighter spaces.

These factors add to a number of known and certified qualities of FMG porcelain, compactness, homogeneity, impermeability, as well as resistance to wear, temperature excursions, build-up and stains.

The Maxfine catalogue offers 87 different colours and types of surface to meet all the requirements of everyday living.

H270: the new Maxfine FMG sizes

FMG and Iris Ceramica Group technology continues to travel the path of technical innovation, exploring the new sizes presented in the gallery here.

The H270 programme includes the two new 270x120 and 120x120 cm sizes: "created to simplify installation, they areeasy to handle,can be transported to upper floors on stairwaysand areeasily and effortlessly installed", and thats not all!The 270x120 cm size is a new shape responding to the requirements of liveability, perfect for covering walls and all kinds of other applications, and recommended for renovation projects.All this in order to "simplify the refurbishment of floors and walls with no need to remove existing materials" and make the material "perfect forinstalling up to the ceilingas it eliminates cutting and waste by corresponding to standard room height which is 270cm", while the 120x120 cm size complies with the standard measurements of shower trays.

In line with the Iris Ceramica Groups vision, the H270 system is particularly sustainable as the new measurements do away with cut-off scrap and waste on the work site.

Aesthetically, as we have seen, H270 ceramic slabs reproduce the look of marbles, stones and Venetian terrazzo flooring.

Elegant, highly expressive surfaces, the White Calacatta, Bianco Venato Extra, Calacatta Grey and dark Black Marquina, Sahara Noir varieties of marble, along with the deep green of Aosta Green Marble, show off the refined elegance of the worlds most popular marbles. This timeless material is perfect for the areas in the home associated with hospitality, the kitchen and living room, as well as the private spaces of bedrooms and bathrooms, adding a prestigious touch of luxury and optimising light levels.

The classic handcrafting tradition is kept alive in Venice Zinc and Venice Ivory, featuring all the colours and dynamism of Venetian terrazzo flooring with its delicate inclusions.

Marco Privato

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FMG Maxfine H270: new ceramic slab sizes and the utmost flexibility - Floornature.com

Dublin, Aug. 06, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Kitchen Hood Market Outlook, 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

A kitchen hood, exhaust hood, or range hood is a device containing a mechanical fan that hangs above the stove or cooktop in the kitchen. It removes airborne grease, combustion products, fumes, smoke, heat, and steam from the air by evacuation of the air and filtration. Although largely overlooked, a range hood is one of the most important appliances in the kitchen. They are designed to remove odors, heat, and smoke that can occur while cooking. The Global Kitchen Hood Market Outlook, 2026 report beings from an overview of industry structure, and analyses market size and forecast of the market by product, region, sales channel, and company. In addition, this report introduces the market competition situation among the vendors and company profile, besides, market price analysis and value chain features are covered in this report. The trend growth to keep the kitchen well-managed, clean, and elegant looking space is to allow the market to grow over an anticipated CGAR of 4.9%.

Based on product type the range hood market is classified into wall mount hood, under cabinet type hood, ceiling mount, and others like island mount hood, downdraft ventilation hoods, ventilator power pack hoods, and others. The wall mount product segment is anticipated to expand at over 5.6% CAGR through 2026. The range hoods with their ability to be placed in the walls with needing extra space in the kitchen cabinets is the major factor for the market growth. These systems assist in getting rid of smoke and lingering smell completely as they are installed directly above the cooking range in commercial and residential kitchens. While the under cabinet segment is likely to show a decline in the forecasted period, others are expected to have an incline in the market share. Kitchen hoods are steadily replacing exhaust fans as they are more effective in the ventilation process. Hence, the need to effectively reduce the excess heat in the kitchen and demand for advanced home appliances that support efficient and convenient cooking habits is increasing the installation as they are capable of smoke and odor through baffle and mesh filters.

First, the concentration degree of the Kitchen Hood industry is not high, with North America leading with a market share of 33.93% in the year 2020. There are more than a hundred manufacturers in the world, and high-end products mainly from Germany, America, Italy, and China. Italy has a long history and unshakable statuses in this industry, like Elica and Faber (though it is a part of FRANKE now), both have the perfect design. As to Germany, the Bosch Group has become a global leader, which has two main brands (Bosch and Siemens), and several special brands, such as Thermador. The import and export percent of this industry is high. Chinese products mainly export to Oceania, Europe, Middle East, and Africa, and take a big market share of underdevelopment regions market, like Vietnam, Brazil, and Pakistan. Hong Kong is the biggest export market of China, more than 80% of kitchen hoods are from China mainland. On the developed market, like America, Canada, Germany, and France, Italy is the empire. Mexico also has a large number of exports due to its geographic advantage. By the end of the forecasted period, Latin America along with Middle East & Africa regions together is likely to cross over a market share of 12%.

Market leaders are introducing new models of wall mount range hoods in various sizes and shapes to cater to the growing demand. For instance, in January 2019, Elica launched its new Varna Black Vent Hood with enhanced aesthetic appeal and a black stainless steel finish. The system includes multifunctional and intuitive electronic touch controls that enhance user convenience. The hood is integrated with an advanced HUSH Sound Suppression System that ensures low noise and provides a quiet working environment in the kitchen. Stringent regulations by various regional governments regarding the cleanliness and hygiene in restaurants and food chains have mandated the installation of range hoods, which is also boosting the market growth. Moreover, these devices offer added advantages, such as heat reduction, maintenance of air quality, and increased safety. On the other hand, high maintenance costs and availability of substitutes, such as exhaust, are anticipated to hamper the growth of the market.

This report forecasts revenue growth at regional and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2015 to 2026. For this study, the publisher has segmented the Global Kitchen Hood Market report based on product, distribution channel, and region:

Key Topics Covered:

1. Executive Summary

2. Report Methodology

3. Global Kitchen Hood Market Outlook3.1. Market Size by Value3.2. Market Share3.2.1. By Product Type3.2.2. By Sales Channel3.2.3. By Region3.2.4. By Country3.2.5. By Company

4. North America Kitchen Hood Market Outlook4.1. Market Size by Value4.2. Market Share4.2.1. By Product Type4.2.2. By Sales Channel4.2.3. By Country4.3. US Kitchen Hood Market Outlook4.3.1. Market Size by Value4.3.2. Market Share by Product Type4.4. Canada Kitchen Hood Market Outlook4.4.1. Market Size by Value4.4.2. Market Share by Product Type4.5. Mexico Kitchen Hood Market Outlook4.5.1. Market Size by Value4.5.2. Market Share by Product Type

5. Europe Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.1. Market Size by Value5.2. Market Share5.2.1. By Product Type5.2.2. By Sales Channel5.2.3. By Country5.3. Germany Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.3.1. Market Size by Value5.3.2. Market Share by Product Type5.4. UK Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.4.1. Market Size by Value5.4.2. Market Share by Product Type5.5. France Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.5.1. Market Size by Value5.5.2. Market Share by Product Type5.6. Spain Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.6.1. Market Size by Value5.6.2. Market Share by Product Type5.7. Italy Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.7.1. Market Size by Value5.7.2. Market Share by Product Type5.8. Russia Kitchen Hood Market Outlook5.8.1. Market Size by Value5.8.2. Market Share by Product Type

6. Asia-Pacific Kitchen Hood Market Outlook6.1. Market Size by Value6.2. Market Share6.2.1. By Product Type6.2.2. By Sales Channel6.2.3. By Country6.3. China Kitchen Hood Market Outlook6.3.1. Market Size by Value6.3.2. Market Share by Product Type6.4. Japan Kitchen Hood Market Outlook6.4.1. Market Size by Value6.4.2. Market Share by Product Type6.5. India Kitchen Hood Market Outlook6.5.1. Market Size by Value6.5.2. Market Share by Product Type6.6. Australia Kitchen Hood Market Outlook6.6.1. Market Size by Value6.6.2. Market Share by Product Type

7. Latin America Kitchen Hood Market Outlook7.1. Market Size by Value7.2. Market Share7.2.1. By Product Type7.2.2. By Sales Channel7.2.3. By Country7.3. Brazil Kitchen Hood Market Outlook7.3.1. Market Size by Value7.3.2. Market Share by Product Type7.4. Argentina Kitchen Hood Market Outlook7.4.1. Market Size by Value7.4.2. Market Share by Product Type7.5. Columbia Kitchen Hood Market Outlook7.5.1. Market Size by Value7.5.2. Market Share by Product Type

8. Middle East & Africa Kitchen Hood Market Outlook8.1. Market Size by Value8.2. Market Share8.2.1. By Product Type8.2.2. By Sales Channel8.2.3. By Country8.3. UAE Kitchen Hood Market Outlook8.3.1. Market Size by Value8.3.2. Market Share by Product Type8.4. Saudi Arabia Kitchen Hood Market Outlook8.4.1. Market Size by Value8.4.2. Market Share by Product Type8.5. Qatar Kitchen Hood Market Outlook8.5.1. Market Size by Value8.5.2. Market Share By Product Type8.6. South Africa Kitchen Hood Market Outlook8.6.1. Market Size by Value8.6.2. Market Share by Product Type

9. Market Dynamics9.1. Key Drivers9.2. Key Challenges

10. Market Trends and Developments10.1. Artificial Intelligence10.2. Alarm Feature10.3. Dishwasher-Safe Baffle Filters10.4. Environmental Variability11. Company Profiles11.1. Asko Appliances11.2. Broan Inc11.3. BSH Home Appliances11.4. Elica S.P.A11.5. Faber S.P.A11.6. Falmec S.P.A

12. Strategic Recommendations

13. Disclaimer

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/xc3e9v

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Global Kitchen Hood Market (2020 to 2026) - Key Drivers and - GlobeNewswire

An ambient soundscape drones through hidden speakers, the composition akin to the pleasant hums of a sound bath. Whooshing. Rhythmless. Meditative.

The tour guide, in this case Allison Wall, proceeds by clicking a pocket flashlight, which beams an unobtrusive red light.

Watch your step walking up, she says, raising her voice to speak slightly louder. The resonant soundtrack projects at a volume that would be overbearing were it any other genre.

Youre led down a dark hallway. The clad-wood floor creaks with every step, as if one were walking on an old ship deck punished for decades by sun and sea. Combined with the music, one might imagine theyre walking through a portal to an ancient, faraway temple.

The auditory illusion is charming, considering the floor and the conjoining installation yet to be seen were only recently constructed by artist Glenn Kaino.

You turn left into an open room, brighter than the hallway but still dimly lit. The walls are covered from the floor to the structural ceiling beams in the same wood cladding you were treading moments before. But that observation comes later, as your head immediately swivels left, eyes trained on two transparent boxes that appear to be glowing.

Scrunching down to eye level with the bright, rectangular beacons, you seesalt? Or what looks like the granules, but holographic, without substance. They seem to be falling, some more steadily like misty rain but disrupted by darting grainy streams whizzing aimlessly in the confines, disappearing split seconds after appearing over and over.

The cloud chambers are scientific devices that are designed to let you see air particles that we normally cant see with the naked eye, explains Wall, Compounds exhibition coordinator.

Scientists from NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory assisted Kaino in crafting the cloud chambers, sculptures that are emblematic of the LA-based multimedia artists fascination for science and obsession with illusion, the latter a skill he studied for over a decade that awarded him a membership at the exclusive Magic Castle.

The base of the cloud chamber is charged with a layer of frozen isopropyl alcohol. When immersed in the evaporating mist, onlookers can see the grain-like manifestations of the neurons, protons, muons and alpha particles swirling inside.

Its mesmerizing, said Hiroko Kusano, Compounds Chief Operation Officer.

Wall directs your attention left, toward a wall-hung 3D art composition encased behind glass.

Shiny bits of golden-colored metal deconstructed from model car kits explode around a spiky sea urchin placed in the center; Kaino calls it Tidepools.

Tidepools is also the name of the entire immersive art installation currently on display inside Compounds Laboratory room. Every four to five months the art venue and wellness center will commission an artist to take over the 1,900 square-foot warehouse and transform the space into something wholly unique.

Glenn Kaino was commissioned for the venues inaugural show, which formally opened its doors July 15 after not one, but two COVID-19 related setbacks.

The Laboratory is meant to be experimental, Kusano said and awards the artist absolute creative freedom. A second, more traditional-style gallery is inside the venues main building, titled Radical Empathy.

Reservations are required to see Tidepools, and only groups from the same household may enter together, masked while indoors. Guests are encouraged to roam Compounds main complex and sculpture garden freely as a text notification will alert guests for their turn.

The Tidepools tour is about 10 minutes long and consists of two phases. The cloud chamber is the first, the second is the bioluminescent wishing well. The ambient soundtrack by musicians Nosaj Thing and Jacques Green is considered the third component of the installation, but only the first two are participatory.

A wood cladding partition separates the cloud chamber from the wishing well. Rounding a corner, you spy six slim strips of red light emanating from the wood floor. The lines stop at each point of a transparent hexagonal container about three feet tall that slants upward at the top, creating a smaller six-sided opening.

This is the wishing well, Wallsays. Step forward and you can make a wish and drop it in the well. The water illuminates the path of your wish and itll rest on the foundation of all the other wishes.

Youll have to sanitize your hands momentarily. Wall will hand you a ceramic coin, a white palm-sized oval disk thats smooth to the touch. You take a few steps to approach the well and suddenly the red lights go out. After a moment you notice the wishing wells beckoning subtle blue hue.

The water erupts upon contact with the disk into a bright, glittery aquamarine ripple. As it descends in the water the blue path is traced in a shimmery neon stream that lingers momentarily.

The water, its got bioluminescent flagellatesits a type of plankton, Wall says. Any disturbance in the water and they will light up.

This micro replication of the red tides, a natural phenomenon that sporadically occurs in Southern California beaches, including Long Beach shores, is another scientific collaboration, this time with the Scripps Institute.

In the artists press release Kaino explains that his desire to create these magical, ethereal moments of visibility is a vehicle for empathy.

Theyre intended to create moments of visibility for things that are invisible around us. Most people dont feel seen, understood. Making things visible is a form of empathy, he said. And the glowing trail you can actually visualize your wish!

The experience ends when youre back at the dark reception room. This time though, Wall points out a projection of a 3D printed seashell dangling in front of the red spotlight. No one notices it when they first enter because their eyes are still adjusting, Wall explains.

The Tidepools exhibition will be up until end of the year, organizers said. Entrance and exhibitions are free, however RSVP is strongly encouraged, click here. Compound is open from noon to 7 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

Compound is at 1395 Coronado Ave.

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Inside the ethereal dreamscape of immersive art exhibition, 'Tidepools' the Hi-lo - Long Beach Post

Titled Masses and Movements, Mark Bradfords exhibition inaugurates Hauser & Wirths latest addition to its globe-spanning gallery empire, in the outbuildings of a former 18th-century hospital on Illa del Rei, an islet in the port of Ma, the diminutive capital of the island of Menorca. Yet, the new outposts somewhat unlikely remote location belies the dynamics of power, conquest and influence that have flowed for centuries around Menorcas strategically advantageous pin on the Mediterraneans naval map. Consisting of 16 intricately textured works on canvas, an installation of globes and a two-part mural, Bradford fittingly deals both literally and metaphorically with expansion into uncharted waters.

Mark Bradford, Masses and Movements, 2021, installation view, Hauser & Wirth, Menorca. Courtesy: the artist and Hauser & Wirth, Menorca; photography: Stefan Altenburger

The exhibitions central motif is the 1507 Waldseemller world map, the first to depict a landmass in the far reaches of the Atlantic and to name it America. Lines of latitude and longitude drawn with caulk arc across the scarified canvases made using Bradfords characteristic technique of gouging out and sanding away encrusted layers of glued paper at times recalling the boundaries of African nations, riverbeds, roads or windrose lines, the web-like networks of early navigational charts. Bones and Their Makers (all works 2021) is a brooding nocturne of leaden greys, caustic blacks and fragments of crooked continents formed by two panels originally intended as individual horizontal works. Jammed together to make a diptych, its central joint reads like a tectonic plate boundary, or a fold in a strange, stratified atlas of ashes and scrimshaw whale teeth decoratively etched by sailors in the 1800s.

Mark Bradford, Spatial Equity, 2021 mixed media installation, dimensions variable.Courtesy: the artist and Hauser & Wirth; photo: Stefan Altenburger

With an understated trail of clues laid by their titles, Bradfords paintings span from the European discovery of the New World, settler colonialism and the trade of enslaved peoples to the American Civil War and racialized urban zoning. Four works are named after chapters of a biography of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, a man born into slavery in 1762 in present-day Haiti who rose to become a swashbuckling general in the French army. With fragments of comics appearing among their masses of dcollage, The Bottom of the Revolution and Sugar Factory seem to work over the same detail of the Waldseemller map or else one emulates the other, as if a bootleg copy. In contrast, The Price of Disaster appears to zoom far out, giving the impression of a planet moored in inky space. Its cacophony of colours recalls infrared satellite images used to monitor habitat loss and climate change, while its title points to W.E.B. Du Boiss analysis, in Black Reconstruction in America (1935), of Americas failure to take account of the legacies of slavery.

Hanging in a row from the ceiling, Spatial Equity comprises seven black-and-gold paper globes of increasing size, as if Bradford were compelled to repeatedly create an ever bigger picture of world affairs. Yet, an untitled mural in an adjacent gallery is a cosmic retort to purely terrestrial paradigms. Painted on and scratched out of the walls, it juxtaposes the attenuated form of America on the 1507 map with a phrase that summarizes the then-impending revolution in astronomy: IN THE CENTER RESTS THE SUN, a reference to Nicolaus Copernicuss realization that the sun, not the Earth, was the centre of the universe.

Mark Bradford, Masses and Movements, 2021, installation view, Hauser & Wirth, Menorca. Courtesy: the artist and Hauser & Wirth, Menorca; photography: Stefan Altenburger

Paintings are only details, the artist remarked at the exhibitions preview, while connecting the curfews following the 1992 Los Angeles uprising to the uncanny sense of being outside during COVID-19 lockdowns, and how it might have felt to navigate into unknown seas in the 16th century. In his 2010 essay Amsterdam Is Standing on Norway, the environmental historian Jason W. Moore draws on a nautical metaphor to evoke the manoeuvres needed to unravel the epochal transformations of the early-modern world and how it shaped our own without becoming mired in particularisms: dialectical tacking. Likewise, Bradfords Masses and Movements manages to sail into the wind of expansive and enduring questions while literally only scratching the surface.

Mark Bradford's Masses and Movements is on view at Hauser & Wirth Menorca until 31 October 2021.

Main Image: Untitled(detail), 2021 mixed media installation, dimensions variable.Courtesy: the artist and Hauser & Wirth; photo: Stefan Altenburger

Original post:
Mark Bradford Puts Menorca on the Map - frieze.com

San Francisco

Approaching the Beaux-Arts building of the Asian Museum from Civic Center Plaza across the street, you might think that nothing has changed for almost six years, despite over $ 100 million in expansion and upgrade projects. Hmm. Completed in 2020, we are currently opening a new exhibition space. However, when I go to the entrance from a nearby shop behind the museum, the three murals declare that it is not. From the floor-to-ceiling window, you can see the line drawing of Chanel Millers Know My Name: AMemoir. Jennifer K. Woffords colorful pattern recognition fills the wall at the street level. Then, around the corner, the blue and pink Do nt Mess With Me woman from Jas Charanjiba looks down from the terrace and raises one hand with the thumb of a brass knuckle. For a museum with a collection of about 6000 years, welcoming us with contemporary Asian works, the Asian diaspora is equivalent to shouting, Asian art is a phenomenon of the past, not the past.

The museum has pointed out this point for a long time. The curator incorporated modern and contemporary paintings, pottery and other small and medium-sized works into some galleries of the collection, and exhibited a large installation in the lobby area on the ground floor. However, these often felt like isolated additions. Today, contemporary art has a larger and more integrated presence. The new 8,500-square-foot state-of-the-art gallery for special exhibitions allows one of the existing ground floor galleries to be dedicated to modern consignment and acquisition. In designing this extension, Los Angeles-based architect Kulapat Yantrasast added a rooftop art terrace that will open later this month or early September.

Two pieces of glittering glass beads have already been prepared: Dont Mess With Me, Ai Weiweis 2007 Fountain of Light, and Vladimir Tatlins spiral 1919-20 Monument to the Third International. It has been. These include Ala Ebtekahs Luminous Ground. This is a 55-foot-long handmade tile in which the artist printed an image from the Hubble Telescope using a blueprint, an early photographic process in Prussian blue tones. From the terrace, visitors can enter the collection galleries on the 2nd and 3rd floors, where they can enter the world as diverse, dynamic and global as the world in which the artist currently works.

Here, the layout has changed little, with a selection from the museums nearly 18,000 collections organized within a geographical section with both chronological and thematic groups. For example, a dark-walled room filled with Indonesian gold jewels or Chinese jade sculptures. Each section also selects one or two masterpieces with more eye-catching and informative presentations.

Museum of Asia: Full of art from the past, not the past

Source link Museum of Asia: Full of art from the past, not the past

Originally posted here:
Museum of Asia: Full of art from the past, not the past - Illinoisnewstoday.com

Mark Philben -- Globe Correspondent

August 4, 2021 11:53 am

Q. My son just bought a home in Northern California and wants to convert the two-car garage into office space, but the concrete slab/foundation is pitched for water runoff. He was told it was approximately -inch per running foot, and the garage is 14 by 20 feet. He thinks the change in height is about 4 inches from front to back. The floor is in excellent condition overall, according to the foundation inspector who recently evaluated it. The floor has a thin underlayment material with vinyl plank flooring on top, but the garage isnt usable because of the tilt. My son told me a chair on wheels would drift downhill, so hes looking for a reasonably priced solution to level it off. Do you have a recommendation? Hes looking for a permanent fix that will not raise the overall flooring height much more than needed because the ceiling is already low. A contractor suggested using high-compression cement. Is that a reasonable suggestion in your experience? I read about leveling compounds, but think 4 inches may be asking too much.

I.F.

A. Rather than go with a masonry solution (which could crack in the thin areas), you may want to consider the following: Cut 2-by-4-inch pressure-treated stock on edge into tapered pieces from the widest part down to 0 on the other end. Use them 12 inches on center, then apply a -inch underlayment and, over that, a -inch laminate wood floor. You would lose 1 inch in ceiling height at the high end but have a sturdy, good-looking, and level floor.

Q. Our house was built in 1808. It has its original chimney stack, three flues, and three hearths. For safety, I want to line the chimney, preferably with flexible steel flue liners. The chimney expert told me that is not possible without making the fireboxes smaller. I do not want to remodel the hearths/fireboxes; they are original to the house. Can you recommend a solution?

M.S., Vineyard Haven

A. Working with old chimneys and fireboxes is always a challenge. We used to have a chimney division where I work, and we would never advocate for the installation of a metal liner in a wood-burning fireplace. The two best options are masonry: a cast-in-place chimney lining or a sprayed-in-place relining. The cast-in-place option will probably require you to make a choice and sacrifice one of the fireplaces in order to maintain a large enough flue. The relining process doesnt take up as much room in the existing flues and could work well. There are code issues relating to hearth size, so either way you go, consult several qualified installers.

Mark Philben is the project development manager atCharlie AllenRenovationsin Cambridge. Send your questions to[emailprotected]. Questions are subject to editing. Subscribe to our free real estate newsletter atpages.email.bostonglobe.com/AddressSignUp.Follow us onFacebook,LinkedIn,Instagram,and Twitter@globehomes.

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Ask the Remodeler: How to level a garage and convert it - Boston.com

It's something of a thrill these days to stay at a hotel and eat in a restaurant, even more so when my twin teen daughters want to join. While I wasn't sure if a Maine staycation would capture their interest, they agreed to give the new Canopy by Hilton in Portland a chance. Certainly, the fact that guests get priority seating at Luna, the hotel's popular new harborview, rooftop restaurant, helped seal the deal.

With its classic brick buildings and cobble streets, active waterfront and celebrated restaurants, Portland's Commercial Street has seen a boom in hotel construction of late, culminating with the Canopy this July. Having visited the first Canopy, opened in Reykjavik, Iceland, in 2016, I was curious to see how the latest edition of Hilton's boutique lifestyle brand, the first in New England, would interpret the local experience and culture of my own backyard.

A City View Guestroom, with Canopy by Hilton's signature Canopy Bed. All bed linens at the hotel are by Cuddledown, and the throw is by Evangeline. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Fathom Companies

We were happily delighted. My daughters and a friend arrived on a ferry from visiting a nearby island and walked from the dock to the hotel where I was in a work meeting on Zoom. The room design elicited a "wow!" from the teens for the blonde wood floors; signature Canopy beds with local Cuddledown bedding and Evangeline spreads; and sliding barn doors lending privacy to the sizable washroom. While I finished up my workday, the teens made use of the Peloton bikes and weights in the 24-hour workout room down the hall. We then dressed early for dinner and set out to explore the hotel decor orchestrated by Ealain Studios, a Portland-based interior design firm.

The first floor of the 135-room hotel boasts a well-appointed reception lobby with a lovely moss-lined installation that was created by Plantwerks and Matt Hutton, a local design artist and professor at the Maine College of Art. Add to that, there's 3,000 square feet of event space, a glass-walled library with large conference table and the Salt Yard Cafe + Bar, currently serving breakfast and lunch and eventually dinner, with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out on bustling Commercial Street.

Works by Portland artists curated by Erin Hutton Projects include nautical photography by Nicole Wolf in the lobby, custom prints of Jenny McGee Dougherty in conference rooms and a striking ash wood wall installation in the Salt Yard by Karina Steele. Bookshelves are filled with Maine authors, and staff uniforms feature items by L.L.Bean and iconic AngelRox/Sugar clothing designer Roxi Sugar, who has a retail space next door in the historical E. Swasey Pottery building.

Our status as hotel guests assured us a table for dinner at the Luna Rooftop Bar, even though it's seen long waits for locals and tourists alike since opening. The chic indoor and outdoor spaces feature views of the Portland waterfront; cozy tables and sofas; a menu of small plates, including raw bar items; and cocktails with astronomically themed names like Andromeda and Persephone. The teens gave the creative takes on corn dogs and cheese dip a big thumbs up, and I thoroughly enjoyed a selection of local Maine oysters and a unique peanut butter hummus for dessert. After that, we ventured out to explore the Portland evening on complimentary orange cruiser bikes parked at the hotel entrance.

The reception and lobby area features a moss-lined installation created by Plantwerks and Matt Hutton, a design artist based in Portland. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Fathom Companies

In the morning, we breakfasted at Salt Yard Cafe + Bar on a selection of homemade pastries and croissants, fruit bowls and a delicious roasted sweet potato and vegetable hash plus full coffee bar. We would have stayed for lunch, too, but couldn't resist sampling Portland's cornucopia of eateries, including Mami for Japanese street food and ice cream from Gelato Fiasco. Besides, we all agreed we want to return to enjoy Salt Yard and Luna as locals again very soon.

Nightly rates at the Canopy by Hilton start at $399, including Hilton Honors benefits and discounts. See canopybyhilton.com for details.

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New Canopy by Hilton Portand captures the essence of Maine - Travel Weekly

It had been almost exactly 30 years since Id seen my favorite gorgon. Id left him where he lived, on the wall of the Sistine Chapel, in the bottom half of Michelangelos The Last Judgment. His name is Charon, and he is charged with herding damned souls across the Styxwith a snarl thats the stuff of nightmares. Charon, a monstrous embodiment of an Old Testament afterlife, has haunted me since I visited the Sistine Chapel in 1991.

I never imagined the Ferryman and I would next meet in the husk of an abandoned Sears deep in western suburbia. But there he (?), was, horrific as ever, part of an immersive exhibit that allows visitors to see both Michelangelos The Last Judgment and the magnificent frescoes of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, all from a vantage point thats nearly impossible to achieve if you visit the art in their Vatican home.

At the Vatican, you have to elbow and push like a linebacker to get within eyeshot of Charon. In the old Sears, you can see him in all his otherworldly context. Hes one of some 400 characters in the massive painting; some being swept up into heaven and others cast down into Hell. All are depicted in SEE Global Entertainments pragmatically titled Michelangelos Sistine Chapel, an exhibit large enough to fill a big-box store.

Among abandoned mannequin plinths and forgotten dressing room mirrors, youll find The Last Judgment as well as frescoes from the chapel ceiling transformed into walls of tapestry-sized, high-resolution images. An audio guide provides insight and context to the art. A word about religion: far from pandering to his audience, Michelangelo embedded his paintings with the 16th-century version of Easter eggs. Portraits of those who antagonized him and those he loved can be spotted throughout his art. And while the frescoes show a cinematic visual depiction of various tales of the Old Testament, there are also the sibyls: images of the female divine, oracles from ancient Greece.

"Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel"Through 8/15: ticketed viewing sessions Wed-Sun, times vary. Oakbrook Center, 2000 Oakbrook Center, Oak Brook, sistinechapelexhibit.com

Viewers wandering the cavernous space will encounter a gallery of biblical terrors. (Judith beheading Holofernes is deeply satisfying and The Flood will give you nightmares, especially given recent events in Germany and China.) But there are wonders too: God literally shows His ass in The Creation of the Sun, Moon, and Plants and the Delphic Sibyl originates the art of the side-eye when her oracle reading is interrupted.

The touring installation (there are other iterations of the show currently on display in San Antonio, Charlottesville, and Charleston) is the brainchild of Martin Biallas, who had a less-than-optimal experience trying to see the Sistine Chapel.

It was unpleasant, he recalls. Long lines. And once youre finally in after a six-hour wait, youre rushed through. Youre surrounded by 2,000 other people. Theres 50 guards looking at you like if youre even thinking about taking a picture, theyre going to tackle you. And the viewits almost like looking at a stamp, youre so far away.

He continues, I wanted to make it all more accessible. I wanted this to look like you were walking right under the ceiling.

Spectacle has captivated Biallas since 1975, when he arrived in the United States from West Germany as a student, just in time for this countrys Bicentennial fever. It was just everywhere, the red, white, and blue, everyone was celebrating, he says of the year positively drenched in showily performative patriotism.

More than 40 years later, Biallass rsum is littered with outsized endeavors: He created Star TrekThe Tour, a 30th-anniversary international touring exhibition for Paramount; brought Egyptian sacred relics to the world via Tutankhamun: His Tomb and His Treasures; and created the Titanic Official Movie Tour, which opened at Wembley Stadium in 1999. Hes got designs on bringing a massive Banksy exhibit to life, and wants to do something with American history, eventually.

But back to (hello darkness) my old friend Charon. You can practically smell the sulfur as he raises his paddle to smash the skull of any lost soul who might try to escape. Michelangelo painted The Last Judgment between 1535 and 1541; the ceiling came much earlier, with the artist actually living in the scaffolding while he labored over it from 1508 to 1512.

He was very secretive, kept things covered up, Biallas says before telling an apocryphal story: The Pope tried to get in to see it a few times, and Michelangelo would throw pieces of scaffolding at his head to make him leave.

Visitors tend to initially gravitate toward the (arguably) most recognizable fresco, Biallas said.

Of course the first thing people will try to spot is The Creation of Adam, he says of the iconic image of a white-haired, buff, Old Testament God pointing toward Adam, their outstretched fingers sparking the creation of mankind.

Its a stunning, iconic image, but I was always more fascinated by The Last Judgment, he continues. Its a perfect representation of our constant temptation, the battle between doing good and not. My dad was a Lutheran minister, so I learned a lot about the church and the bible growing up. But the painting was much more personal to me. I thought the message was timeless: so many things are not good for us or our world, yet we do them anyway, he says.

The Last Judgment is also the only place where Michelangelo put his self-portrait. He was like an early Hitchcock, giving himself this cameo. (You can find the artists self-portrait in the flayed skin of St. Bartholomew.)

Among the ceiling frescoes, Biallas has his favorites.

The image of God creating the sun and the planets. Theres one guy who is showing his rear end to everyone in that fresco and thats God. Seriously. Thats a message, he said.

Biallas is intent on figuring out a U.S. history installation, . . . something that could take people from 1776 to today. Its a concept the Hannover native has been mulling since he experienced Bicentennial fever as an undergrad at the University of Michigan.

When we were being raised (in Germany), we were raised without that kind of patriotism, because of Hitler and what he did in the name of nationalism. We couldnt really be proud to be a German. So to me, it was fascinating how enthusiastic and devoted U.S. citizens were, he says. When I got my first car here, a Ford, I got a special Bicentennial license plate with it. It made me fall in love with this country.

As for the gorgon, I pity him more than fear him. Of all the terrible jobs in the world, pushing people into a fiery pit has to be among the most terrible. Ill have to come back in another 30 years to see if he has changed, again.v

Continued here:
God: now at the mall | Art Review - Chicago Reader

Year built 1960/renovated 2014

Taxes $3,300 (2021 estimate)

Sitting on a corner lot in downtown Nantucket (an island and town of the same name), this single-family is encased in cedar shingles, has a driveway and pathways of brick, and grounds graced by hydrangeas, rose of Sharon, and salvia.

Inside, there is the requisite amount of Nantucket bead board, of course.

At the entrance, a green door with bulls-eye glass fills the foyer with natural light. To the right, one finds the living area and kitchen seamlessly connected with aqua paint, bead-board wainscoting, and hardwood flooring. No support columns interfere with the progression. The living area has three windows.

In the kitchen, an island installed perpendicularly provides physical and visual separation from the living area. Topped with granite, the island offers seating for at least six. The raised-panel cabinets are white, the appliances are stainless steel, and the backsplash is a white subway tile. A door opens to the Barnabas Lane side of the house.

A hallway off the kitchen leads to the dining area and the family room, which are connected with hardwood flooring and a light-aqua paint color. There is no bead-board wainscoting in this space. The dining area sits next to a slider to a cedar deck and underneath a chandelier of shaded lights. The family room (as does much of the house) has recessed lighting augmented by a plethora of windows.

The full bath is the final stop on this floor. It has a shower with its walls and ceiling clad in subway tile with a sandy-colored grout and a pebblestone floor, as well as a single vanity topped with granite. The flooring in the bath is tile.

The upper level of the expanded and renovated home contains the owner suite, a full bath, and two bedrooms.

The owners suite has a drum shade light, hardwood flooring, and three large windows, one of which is nestled into an alcove that can accommodate a desk. One passes a line of closets before entering the en-suite bath, which comes with a wide single vanity. The vanity, floor, and shower are clad in marble, and the space has shiplap wainscoting.

The larger of the secondary bedrooms comes with a closet behind a pair of bifold doors and two windows, including one in an alcove with a bench. The other bedroom offers a closet behind a single bifold door, a drum shade light, and two windows.

Nantucket bead-board wainscoting graces the walls of the shared bath. It also has a floating white single vanity topped with marble, a ceramic hexagon tile floor, and a shower clad in subway tile in a brick stack installation.

The lower level is furnished with pops of blue that remind guests they are by the sea. This level contains the final bedroom, the laundry room, utility space, and a game room large enough for a Ping-Pong table and a gathering spot created by a pair of couches. The space has recessed lighting, shiplap walls, and two windows. The biggest opens into a window well with a ladder. The bedroom is a bunk room with a window that opens into a window well with a ladder.

Outside the home, there is an enclosed shower.

The homeowners association comprises three units, according to the owner. The condo featured here covers about half of the shared lot. The other two units, located in a duplex, share 25 percent, and the rest is held in common.

Nonie Slavitz of William Raveis Nantucket has the listing.

See more photos of the property below:

Follow John R. Ellement on Twitter@JREbosglobe.Send listings to[emailprotected].Please note: We do not feature unfurnished homes and will not respond to submissions we wont pursue. Subscribe to our newsletter atpages.email.bostonglobe.com/AddressSignUp.Follow us onFacebook,LinkedIn,Instagram,and Twitter@globehomes.

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Home of the Week: A move-in ready 4-bedroom in heart of Nantucket - Boston.com