explore | Grilled Cheese

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 5:42 PM

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"Tender as well as bright—like inlaid mother of pearl, or white roses washed in milk."
— John Ruskin, The Elements of Drawing.
The soft, creamy outer petals of these roses fading into a warm blush pink perfectly capture the delicate colour harmony #Ruskin described in his botanical studies.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 14, 2026, 5:03 PM

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An inspired snap at #Brantwood, @andyksheff.bsky.social!
#Ruskin's portrait catching a glimpse of the dining room's iconic windows, symbolising his Seven Lamps of Architecture - Sacrifice, Truth, Power, Beauty, Life, Memory & Obedience that he believed should guide both architecture & society.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 13, 2026, 12:08 PM

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#RuskinSocietyReadingGroup
12.10.2026

“I saw that nothing remained for me to write, but his epitaph.”
#Ruskin began Modern Painters to defend #Turner. In the preface to Volume III (1856), that defence becomes a task of remembrance in explaining his achievement and preserving his work.

J. M. W. Turner (1775–1851), “The Fighting Temeraire tugged to her last berth to be broken up, 1838”, painted in 1839. Oil on canvas, 90.7 × 121.6 cm. National Gallery, London; Turner Bequest, 1856. Inventory number NG524.

A broad river scene beneath an expansive sunset sky. On the left, the towering Temeraire appears pale and almost ghostly, its white-and-gold hull beneath three tall masts, fine rigging and furled sails. A much smaller, dark brown steam tug pulls the warship towards the viewer and slightly to the right. Its black funnel releases a plume of orange-brown smoke that streams backwards across the sailing ship.

The sky shifts from cool blue and grey on the left to glowing gold, peach and fiery orange on the right. A slender crescent moon hangs high above the warship. Near the right-hand horizon, a pale setting sun shines through reddish clouds, casting a long golden reflection across the gently rippling water. Both ships cast darker reflections in the foreground. Smaller sailing vessels, distant masts, a low shoreline and a tiny rowing boat recede into the haze. A dark buoy rises from the water at lower right.

The scene depicts the veteran warship’s final journey along the Thames to be dismantled, pairing the fading grandeur of the sailing ship with the compact, smoky power of the steam tug.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 12, 2026, 1:52 PM

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The Ruskin Hours, made in northeastern France cca 1300, is a book of prayers for lay worshippers, later owned by John Ruskin. This page opens the Hours of the Virgin: “O Lord, open my lips.” The Annunciation fills the initial D; jousting riders occupy the margin.
#Ruskin #MedievalArt #BookOfHours

Illuminated parchment page from the Ruskin Hours, made in northeastern France around 1300, folio 37v. A large blue, pink and gold initial D at the upper left contains the Annunciation: the winged angel Gabriel faces the Virgin Mary, who holds a book, with a flowering plant in a vase between them. Both figures have gold haloes and stand beneath pointed Gothic arches. Black Gothic lettering and a red heading fill the right side and lower half of the page. The Latin prayers begin, “O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.” A smaller decorated D shows a young man praying to Christ above him. Slender blue and gold stems, curling leaves and red, orange and green ornaments extend down the left margin and across the bottom. Below the prayers, two riders on pale and orange horses face one another with long lances in a jousting scene. The parchment is cream-coloured, with faint ruling lines. The image has black borders on either side, and the page’s upper edge is cropped.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 2:29 PM

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Looking closely @ Henry Moore’s Double Oval (1966).

#Ruskin valued the expressive marks of the human hand over mechanical perfection. Moore’s textured bronze surface brings that idea to mind. Its scored marks suggest a landscape in miniature, recalling weathered rock, bark & layers of stone.
#Kew

An extreme close-up detail shot focusing entirely on the textured surface of Henry Moore's bronze sculpture. The metallic material is covered in a dense, chaotic network of fine scratches, heavy cross-hatched chisel marks, and deep vertical gouges. The patina shows varying tones of dark metallic gray, earthy bronze, and lighter silvery-gold highlights where light reflects off the raised edges of the scratches. The overall appearance mimics the rugged, weathered texture of tree bark or heavily eroded rock faces.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 11:54 AM

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Henry Moore's "Double Oval" bridges the gap btw modern abstraction & Ruskin’s devotion to the study of nature. By piercing large voids through the bronze, #Moore lets the landscape in. The trees & sky frame the sculpture, proving space is as vital as the physical art itself.
#KewGardens #Ruskin

A dramatic, close-up perspective of Henry Moore’s bronze sculpture, "Double Oval." The foreground shows the wide, heavy curve of the sculpture’s base, which features a rough, deeply scratched and gouged metallic texture. Emerging from behind this foreground curve is a massive upper loop with a smooth, polished inner rim that forms a large circular opening. Framed perfectly inside this circular void is a dense, vibrant green tree in the background under a cloudy, overcast sky, demonstrating how the sculpture incorporates the surrounding landscape.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 7, 2026, 12:51 PM

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#Ruskin believed art should learn from nature, not just copy it. In Double Oval (1966), Henry Moore doesn't reproduce a bone or pebble; he captures the forces of erosion, growth & weathering that create them.
Ruskin's "truth to nature" for the modern age.
#Art #Sculpture #KewGardens #HenryMoore

A monumental, weather-beaten bronze sculpture by Henry Moore, titled "Double Oval," sits on a lush green grass lawn within a park or botanical garden setting. The sculpture consists of two massive, organic, curved forms that arch together, creating large, smooth circular openings through the center. Tall, mature green trees line both sides of a wide path in the background, framing the sculpture and creating a deep perspective view into the distance under a pale blue sky. A solitary park bench is visible on the grass to the far left.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 5, 2026, 4:04 PM

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A View of Geneva, Switzerland

In 1854, #Ruskin sketched this corner of Geneva with just a few washes of colour and a remarkable eye for architectural detail. During that trip he also visited Interlaken, Thun, Lucerne, Chamonix, Lausanne & Fribourg.

#Watercolour #ArtHistory

Watercolour, pencil and ink drawing by John Ruskin showing a quiet urban view in Geneva, Switzerland. A group of closely packed historic buildings occupies the centre of the composition, featuring pale stone walls, pitched roofs and several small towers and chimneys. The architecture is rendered with fine pen lines and soft washes of cream, beige and grey, while touches of blue surround the upper buildings, suggesting distant landscape or sky. The foreground is lightly sketched with minimal detail, drawing attention to the clustered structures. Ruskin's precise observation of architectural forms contrasts with the atmospheric, unfinished edges of the scene. Signed and dated "Geneva/JR.1854" at lower right. Medium: pencil, pen and black ink with watercolour, heightened with white. Dimensions: 16.5 × 22.9 cm.

@sue-newell.bsky.social Oct 5, 2026, 8:53 AM

Memorial to #Ruskin (1819-1900) on his grave at St Andrew’s, Coniston by his student, local sculptor HT Miles, to designs of his secretary WG Collingwood

@sue-newell.bsky.social Oct 5, 2026, 8:45 AM

Finally visited Brantwood,from 1871 home of #Ruskin, formerly Buckland’s student, at Coniston #LakeDistrict last month. Wonderful insight into Ruskin’s passion for nature, art, collecting and teaching

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 4, 2026, 6:59 PM

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Architecture achieves its greatest glory when softened & enriched by nature.
Ruskin’s philosophy perfectly captured at Kew Palace, where the strict lines of 17th cent. brick harmonise beautifully with the wild, reaching red rosehips of autumn.
#Ruskin #Aesthetics

A vibrant red, three-story historic building with distinctive Dutch-style gables—Kew Palace—is seen in the background under a dramatic, cloudy sky. In the sharp foreground, a wild, tangled green bush heavily laden with clusters of bright red rosehips frames the building, beautifully matching its brick color and softening the architecture.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 3, 2026, 8:54 PM

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Autumn crocuses at Kew Gardens. Look closely at their delicate veins, repeated petals, each flower a variation on the same form. Nature rewards attention. Beauty begins with learning to see.
#Ruskin

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Oct 2, 2026, 7:53 AM

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From #Turner & #Ruskin to Cleveland, illness, family, ambition, love, & the frightening business of letting somebody help.
'Train to Cleveland with John Ruskin' made its debut in August.
Thanks to everyone who got on the train with us.
The journey continues.

#TrainToCleveland

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Sep 30, 2026, 6:36 PM

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📙Our Reading Group is back!📙

Join us as we recommence our shared reading of Modern Painters, Volume 3.
Online, Monday 12 October, 6:30-7:30pm BST(UK)
Whether you're a longtime Ruskin enthusiast or new to his work, all are welcome.
DM us for details.
#Ruskin #ReadingGroup #ModernPainters

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Sep 29, 2026, 3:58 AM

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Alpine Peaks: Jungfrau and Others
John Ruskin, 1846, watercolour on paper.
Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery / Bridgeman Images.
#Ruskin was greatly impressed by the Jungfrau. He described it as "the most beautiful mountain in the world" (Praeterita, vol. III, §34).

John Ruskin's Alpine Peaks: Jungfrau and Others (1846), a watercolour and pencil study sheet of Swiss Alpine mountains. The composition consists of several separate studies of snow-covered peaks and ridges arranged across the page. Handwritten labels identify mountains including the Jungfrau, Eiger, Finsteraarhorn, Schreckhorn, Wetterhorn, Aarhorn and Breithorn. A dark, rocky massif occupies the centre, while sharper, snow-clad summits appear to the right and lower sections. Executed in pale blue-grey washes with delicate pencil outlines, the sheet combines topographical accuracy, geological observation and atmospheric effects characteristic of Ruskin's Alpine studies.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Sep 26, 2026, 11:37 AM

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#Ruskin on Amiens Cathedral's Vierge Dorée:
"Everybody must like the pretty French Madonna... with her head a little aside, and her nimbus switched a little aside too, like a becoming bonnet."
He immediately adds: "A Madonna in decadence she is..."
(The Bible of Amiens, 1884)

@rickfylde.bsky.social Sep 26, 2026, 5:44 AM

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0D9K...

#All #by #yourself in the #moonlight. #Roger #Ruskin #Spear. #comedy #funny #satire #music. #light #jazz #jass. From the album #Electric #Shocks

@rickfylde.bsky.social Sep 25, 2026, 6:23 AM

www.youtube.com/shorts/Sejib...

#Roger #Ruskin #Spear. #robots. #Im #forever #blowing #bubbles. #comedy #funny #satire #music. #Bonzo #Dog #Doo #Dah #Band.

@ruskinsociety.bsky.social Sep 24, 2026, 12:55 PM

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We were deeply moved by the voices in 'Train to Cleveland with John Ruskin'. Dan Callaway & Joey Nicoletti sing with such warmth and intimacy that the music feels less like an interruption than another way the two men learn to listen to one another.

#TrainToCleveland #Ruskin

@victorianweb.bsky.social Sep 22, 2026, 9:21 PM

#autumnequinox! Time for the leaves to fall, if they haven't already! This is John #Ruskin's marvellously evocative "Study of a Spray of Dead Oak Leaves," 1879, from the Collection of the Guild of St George, Museums Sheffield. You can feel how crisp the leaves are! victorianweb.org/painting/rus...