Liu Yiqian sipping from his famous tea cup/ Photo: Sotheby’s
Recent links of note:
Keep Calm and Carry Buckets, Britain’s Parliament is Leaking
Jenny Gross, The Wall Street Journal
This week, in the annals of state buildings falling apart, we offer a notice from old Blighty. Britain’s Parliament is leaking, having not been renovated since the middle of the nineteenth century. That’s a long time to go without repairs and the total bill has been estimated at between $4.5 and $10.8 billion. The sum is not insignificant, especially in a country with a prized austerity program. Perhaps they should just let the leaks continue, especially if the drops fall mostly on Comrade Corbyn’s head.
Paradise Lost
Annika Hernroth-Rothstein, City Journal
There’s a certain class of myopic limousine liberal who trumpets the wonders of “Scandinavian-style social democracy,” as a cure to America’s ills. This type of government—called what it really is, socialism—has undergone a rebranding and subsequent revival in America, as evidenced by the continued presence of Bernie Sanders in the presidential race. So how are things actually going in Scandinavia? According to Swedish national Annika Hernroth-Rothstein, not so well. Sweden is beset with social ills owing to an influx of migrants; these social issues beget economic ones as the Swedish federal government is forced to provide lavish services to all those who find themselves within its borders, regardless of immigration status. We’ve been warned.
Liu Yiqian’s notable acquisitions
Gabriella Angeleti, The Art Newspaper
You may, by now, have heard of the record price realized by the sale of a Modigliani this week. Though the price is staggering, it should not be surprising. Liu Yiqian is a major collector with intentions to display his burgeoning cache of works in a public museum in China. To round out the picture of the man who sips tea from a $36 million cup The Art Newspaper details a few of his other notable purchases.
Books of the Year: the best and most overrated of 2015
The Spectator
Hard as it may be to believe, with temperatures in New York hovering near sixty degrees Fahrenheit, the holiday season is nearly here. And with the season come gift lists. You could do worse, on that front, than to survey The Spectator’s list of the best and worst books of the past year. With selections from Ferdinand Mount, Paul Johnson, and other regular reviewers, there’s sure to be something suitable for your best friend or worst enemy.
From our pages:
Gallery chronicle
James Panero
On recent New York shows.