Category: Новини

 The iconic tapestry of Pablo Picasso’s “Guernica,” which is considered by numerous art critics as perhaps the most powerful anti-war painting in history, returned to its place of honor at the United Nations on Saturday after a year-long absence that angered and dismayed many U.N. diplomats and staff.

The tapestry of the painting, woven by Atelier J. de la Baume-Durrbach, was re-hung Saturday outside the Security Council, the U.N.’s most powerful body charged with ensuring international peace and security. Since February 2021, the yellow wall where it had hung had been empty.

The tapestry was commissioned in 1955 by former U.S. vice president and New York governor Nelson Rockefeller and offered to the U.N. on loan in 1984.

The Rockefeller family donated the land to build the U.N. complex after the world body was founded on the ashes of World War II, in the words of the U.N. Charter, “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”

When the United Nations headquarters was undergoing a major renovation starting in 2009, the tapestry was returned to the Rockefeller Foundation for safekeeping. It was reinstalled in September 2013 when the renovations were completed.

Early last year, Nelson A. Rockefeller, Jr., the son of the late vice president and governor who owns the “Guernica” tapestry, notified the United Nations of his intention to retrieve it. The U.N. returned it to him in February 2021.

Rockefeller said in a statement Saturday that the tapestry was being returned on loan to the United Nations, and he intends to donate the work to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in the future.

“The Guernica tapestry with its probing symbolism — its depiction of horrific aspects of human nature — wrestles with the cruelty, darkness, and also a seed of hope within humanity.” Rockefeller said in a statement. “The Guernica tapestry is meant to be experienced and interpreted, with Picasso refusing to share its message when asked.”

Rockefeller said he was “delighted and deeply grateful, along with my family for the careful stewardship” of the tapestry by the United Nations and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

“I am grateful that the tapestry will be able to continue to reach a broader segment of the world’s population and magnify its ability to touch lives and educate,” he said.

In a Dec. 1, 2021, letter to Rockefeller, the U.N. said Guterres wrote: “This is most welcome news as we end a difficult year of global hardship and strife.”

“The Guernica tapestry speaks to the world about the urgent need to advance international peace and security,” the U.N. chief wrote. “We are honored to serve as careful stewards of this one-of-a-kind iconic work – as we draw inspiration from its message.”

The original painting, Picasso’s protest of the bombing of the Basque capital of Guernica during the Spanish civil war, is in Spain.

 
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Bollywood superstar Lata Mangeshkar, known to millions as the “Nightingale of India” and a regular fixture of the country’s airwaves for decades, died Sunday morning at the age of 92.

Mangeshkar was born in 1929 and started her musical training early under the tutelage of her father, Deenanath, singing in his theatrical productions when she was just 5.

Her father’s death when she was 13 forced her to take on the role of breadwinner to support four younger siblings, and the family eventually moved to Mumbai in 1945.

There she pursued a career as a playback singer, recording tracks to be mimed by actors, and her high-pitched voice soon became a staple of Bollywood blockbusters.

In a move reflecting her huge following, she was invited by the government to sing a patriotic tribute to the soldiers killed in the 1962 Indo-China war at India’s Republic Day commemorations in January 1963.

Her rendition of Oh the People of my Country reportedly moved then-Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to tears.

In the following decades, composers and film producers alike vied to sign the prolific Mangeshkar for their movies.

“I composed keeping Lata Mangeshkar’s range and voice quality in mind,” composer Anil Biswas said of her in an interview published in the Encyclopedia of Hindi Cinema.

“She had a wide range, and one could think of more complicated melodies than with the earlier untrained singers,” he added.

‘Stalwart of Indian culture’

Together with her younger sister Asha Bhonsle — a superstar in her own right — Mangeshkar dominated Bollywood music for more than half a century and is considered by many to be the Indian film industry’s greatest-ever playback singer.

Mangeshkar was not shy about taking a stand when it came to raising her prices or asking for a share of the royalties earned on her songs.

Her longevity and discipline saw her lend her voice to teenage actresses who were 50 years her junior.

Critics complained that her dominance left little room for newer singers to thrive, but her audience remained loyal, ensuring that her songs ruled the charts.

She was also known for her quirks, such as never singing with her shoes on and always writing out each song by hand before recording it.

Mangeshkar was in 2001 awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honor, and received France’s Legion d’Honneur in 2009 in recognition of her contribution to Indian music and cinema.

“Coming generations will remember her as a stalwart of Indian culture, whose melodious voice had an unparalleled ability to mesmerize people,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said.

She died in a Mumbai hospital on Sunday after being admitted to its intensive care unit Jan. 11 with COVID-19 symptoms.

Public broadcaster Doordarshan announced a state funeral and two days of national mourning for the singer after news of her death broke.

A school dropout in her hometown of Indore, who said she only attended classes for one day, Mangeshkar was fluent in several languages.

She sang in more than 1,000 films, in addition to recording devotional and classical albums. Her oeuvre spanned around 27,000 songs in dozens of languages including English, Russian, Dutch and Swahili. 

  
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The fashion industry has always had a relationship with some forms of social activism. But all too often the industry is also seen as one of excess and consumerism gone wild. That could change if New York’s Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act – or FSSAA – becomes law. Nina Vishneva has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. Camera – Vladimir Badikov.
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