One of my long time favourites as far as artists is concerned has been Albrecht Duerer. He was born in Nuremburg (Nuernburg) on May 21, 1471 and died on April 6, 1528. His father, a goldsmith, came from the Hungarian town of Ajtosi. The name Duerer is taken from the Hungarian town's name. Ajtos means "door" in Hungarian. When Albrecht Duerer the Elder came to Nuremburg, he used the name "Thuerer" which means "Thuermacher" or "doormaker" in German.
Amongst the many paintings Duerer (the younger) was known for, "the Great Piece of Turf" or "Das Grosse Rasenstueck" in German, was one of them. This piece was painted in watercolour and opaque in 1503 at a time when no one had painted anything as insignificant as a piece of turf complete with grasses, dandelion, pimpernel and plantain. This was entirely new in art at this time. The 41 x 31.5 cm work is to be found in the Graphische Sammlung Albertina in Vienna, Austria.
Duerer was a painter, graphic artist, mathematician and art theorist at a great time in the flowering of modern Europe. This renaisance brought an end to the dark ages and brought forth a new age of enlightenment. Something to remember! - Volker
This past weekend the weather was so lovely after weeks of dull, overcast skies that I had to get out for a long walk. The walk Saturday took me to Burnaby Lake nestled in central Burnaby between the Trans-Canada Highway to the south and the Lougheed Highway to the north. Further to the north is Burnaby Mountain. Not to be missed are the Coast Mountains seen from various locations. On the way over a bridge over the Trans-Canada Highway, I spotted a red-tailed hawk soaring high above the traffic below. The photo above is of that highway and the image below of the raptor soaring gracefully above everyone.
The image above is of a map of Burnaby Lake. Below is a view looking east-southeast toward the lake. Here Still Creek is flowing slowly toward Burnaby lake. Shades of blue and green predominate the scene.
That is white fluff floating in the air and water from tree sheading their seed. The bridge over the creek is a great place to view the nature's activity on the water.
Yellow flag in flower along the water's edge. You'll see some yellows in the landscape as well as the blues and greens.
Here is a view of the trail found along the west end of the lake. There is a sports complex behind the trees (populars) on the right. Then below you'll see a peaceful view of the lake looking toward the east-southeast. It was an awesome day for a hike in nature. There were swallows flitting above the water and the odd mallard duck could also be seen.
Ferns, moss and other plants are growing on this log pictured above and then there is a photo of a skunk cabbage soon to go into flower below.
Signs along the south trail above and buttercups in bloom near the lake are shown in the image below.
Here is another view of the south trail above and then I happened to see a pair of cedar waxwings (birds) and captured one of them in the photo below. I hadn't seen them in years and when they are seen, they are usually in flocks.
A trail on the eastern end of the lake allows horses as can been seen by the manure left behind in the photo below. Here hoof marks were seen everywhere along that trail. The trails are built on to of a bog, so here and there the ground is a bit springy. Hope you enjoy the photos! Comment if you wish. - Volker
