Getty’s new research portal set to revolutionize the academic world

Elisabetta Marabotto of Saffronart on the Getty Research Institute’s latest offering

The Getty Research Portal

Last month the Getty Research Institute launched a new project which promises to be an immense benefit for the international academic community. The Getty Research Portal is an online facility for art history, architecture and related subjects. So far 20,000 books have been digitalized and are now available online. Most of them were drawn from the Getty Research Institute’s own holdings, and from the libraries of eight international institutions. The portal is available to everyone and the texts can be downloaded free of charge.

This new portal will significantly benefit art historians’ research, making rare books, international periodicals and other important texts available across the globe. The Getty Research Portal will also be useful for students and art historians who don’t have access to major libraries at their home institutions.

Currently, the emphasis of the material available on the portal is mainly on western art, with a few texts on Asian art in Asian languages. However, Murtha Baca, the director of the Getty Research Institute’s program in digital art history, promises that this area is something they are concentrating on, and will continue to develop their collection over the following months and years.

More information about the Research Portal can be found on Getty’s website and on this article.

Torn between the vintages?

Shivajirao Gaekwar shares a link about wine collecting tips

Mumbai: Approximately US$ 478 million worth fine wine was traded in 2011; for Oenophiles, investors, and point-chasers, only two types of wines exist, the Bordeaux and the Bourgognes – both have sold for astonishing sums in the past. While many of the revered names such as Latour, Margaux, Haut Brion, Lafite Rothschild, and Mouton Rothschild may be out of reach for many first-time collectors, there are a number of lesser Chateaux one can consider adding to one’s collection. For those who want to begin, deciding on one’s purchases can be difficult. Heather Irwin’s ’10 Tips for Budding Wine Collectors’ might be a good place to start.

Will we ever be Able to Mark Enough?

Elisabetta Marabotto of Saffronart on Shilpa Gupta’s thought-provoking exhibition in Belgium

Shilpa Gupta, Cage, 2010

Shilpa Gupta, Cage, 2010
Image credits: http://www.mmkarnhem.nl/ENG/agenda/tentoonstellinge
n/shilpa-gupta

Bruges: The Cultuurcentrum of Bruges, Belgium, is hosting Shilpa Gupta’s solo exhibition until 15 July, 2012. Gupta’s work explores global politics and economics, which are part of our everyday life, but also examines issues related to the intercommunication between different cultures and crossing borders, literally and figuratively, which sometimes creates anxiety in our globalized world. The artist believes “…fear has to give way to dialogue – this leads to the altering of structures, perceptions, hierarchies”.

In the present exhibition the spectators become the main subject of the show, becoming personally involved in various artworks on display, which challenge us to consider things like the overlap between the intimate and public spheres of life, and interrogate our ideas of authority and terror.

In this exhibition, Shilpa Gupta gave form to her thoughts and concepts using different media including video projection, mixed media installations and large scale photography.

Shilpa Gupta, Threat, 2009

Shilpa Gupta, Threat, 2009
Image credits: http://www.mmkarnhem.nl/ENG/agenda/tentoonstellinge
n/shilpa-gupta

NIVIM Goa: Goa’s first certified ‘Green’ house

Shivajirao Gaekwar shares the latest update about this spectacular home

New York: Nivim Goa is slated to be the first certified green home in Goa aiming for the ‘Gold’ level certification. The green home certification is administered by the Indian Green Building Council, an Indian counterpart to the US Green Building Council.

The green homes certification provides a comprehensive list of strategies to be employed while building a residence where the goal is to reduce the impact of the construction activity and building occupancy on the environment.

 An important criteria at Nivim was to employ green practices without sacrificing the luxury lifestyle for its occupants and architectural design of the house. Read about some of Nivim’s notable green features.

Green building practices today are a combination of common sense traditional wisdom as well as new innovations in technology, material and building construction practices. At Nivim Goa, sustainability was a criteria from day one of design and construction and a factor considered at all stages of decision making.

 Impact on the environment was a key factor while designing the house. During construction, Nivim Goa minimized use of energy and resources by using local materials and materials with high recycled content while also minimizing waste. During operations, the house will consume less energy and water, use solar energy, recycle and resuse rain water and grey water on-site while providing a healthy environment for occupants.

But ‘Why build green’ in the first place? “For Nivim, the decision was easy – to preserve the special character of Goa and to retain it in the pristine condition that brought us here in the first place”, says Anjali.

Below are reasons on ‘why building green’ is critical to eco-sensitive environments such as Goa:

– Buildings consume large amounts of energy and resources during construction and generate waste

– Building continue to consume energy, water and other resources during their lifetime along with continualy generating waste (domestic waste, solid waste and water waste), all leading to burdening existing infrastructure

– A building on a previously vacant greenfield site changes the land and its relationship to the environment:

– buildings change the natural landscape of the site by reducing existing vegetation, changing natural topography, and water patterns

– create concrete barriers to absorbtion of water back into the earth thus increasing storm water runoff (leading to flooding, water logging) and fall in underground water table (due to reduced recharge)

– buildings absorb more heat and impact the micro-climate of the place

– result in loss of habitat for animal and bird life

This property is featured in Saffronart’s Prime Properties Monsoon 2012 Catalogue.

Read our entire coverage of Nivim Goa.

 * Please note that NIVIM Goa is under-construction and is expected to be completed by August 2012. The images on this blog show the work-in-progress and not final finished product.

 For more information on this house, write to [email protected].

‘Gandhi’s Three Monkeys’

Medha Kapur from Saffronart on ‘Gandhi’s Three Monkeys’ by Subodh Gupta installed at Katara, the Cultural Village. 

Qatar: The sculptures ‘Gandhi’s Three Monkeys’, 2008, made by Indian artist Subodh Gupta have been installed at Katara, the Cultural village in Qatar. Subodh Gupta is best known for incorporating everyday objects related to Indian life including domestic kitchenware and means of transport such as bicycles & scooters. The three sculptures are made from bronze, steel, and old utensils.  The three installations portray a human head with different head gear. One wears a soldier’s helmet, the other a terrorist’s hood and the third a gas mask symbolizing war and peace, public and private, and global and local themes.   The sculptures are a visual metaphor of Mahatma Gandhi’s “Three wise monkeys”, representing the Japanese proverb “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.” Click here for more information.

‘Gandhi’s Three Monkeys’ by Subodh Gupta'Gandhi’s Three Monkeys’ by Subodh Gupta 'Gandhi’s Three Monkeys’ by Subodh Gupta