Abroad: Italy Gives Cultural Diversity a Lukewarm Embrace

All across Europe attitudes are stiffening toward immigration, nowhere more so than in Italy.

Richard J. Koke, Visionary Curator of New York’s History, Dies at 91

Mr. Koke was a curator of the New-York Historical Society, helping turn it into an institution where visitors come face to face with relics of New York City.

Art Review | 'Heavy Light': Japanese Culture, in Vivid Color

By the International Center of Photography’s own standards, the show feels a bit phoned in. But it provides some valuable glimpses of Japanese life and culture today.

Journeys | Madrid: Goya Framed by His City, Madrid

From grand palaces to small churches, many of the Spanish master’s most iconic paintings remain in the city in which he lived and worked.

Art: Death Can Be a Canny Career Move

Three artists who refused to cater to dealers and collectors are finding posthumous success.

Matter: It’s About...Nothing

The latest in retail luxury.

Tasha Tudor, Children’s Book Illustrator, Dies at 92

Ms. Tudor’s pastel watercolors and delicately penciled lines depicted an idyllic, old-fashioned vision of the 19th-century way of life she famously pursued.

Donaldson C. Pillsbury, Who Helped Sotheby’s Out of Morass, Dies at 67

Mr. Pillsbury was the lawyer who guided Sotheby’s, the auction house, through a welter of legal problems and helped restore its reputation after a price-fixing scandal.

Inside Art: Art Historian’s Trove Will Go to Auction

About 620 paintings, drawings, prints and sculptures from Julius Held’s collection will be featured at Christie’s in New York on Jan. 29.

Art Review: Just Enough Seriousness to Go Around

The two fun summer shows at Bard College feature five little-known, often interesting artists from Europe and deftly float some ideas about collaboration, irreverence and artists as curators.

Donaldson C. Pillsbury, Helped Sotheby’s Out of Morass, Dies at 67

Mr. Pillsbury was the lawyer who guided Sotheby’s, the auction house, through a welter of legal problems and helped restore its reputation after a price-fixing scandal.

Three Lives Inspire the Portrayal of a Complex Artist

Mercedes Ruehl exchanges her jeans for more exotic fashions to portray the sculptor Louise Nevelson in the play “Edward Albee’s Occupant.”

Lost Baroque Work Is a Spectacle Again

A restored chapel in Rome reflects a “union of all the arts.”

Style: Angle of Repose

A soaring steel house rests gently on the California landscape.

Antiques: Making Wood Furniture, Early American Style

A new exhibit at the Flynt Center of Early New England explores the kinds of wood that craftsmen used, the evolution of woodworking techniques and the European styles they adopted between 1650 and 1840.

Art Review | Chantal Akerman: An Avant-Gardist’s Sparse Stories, in Film and Fragments

A traveling exhibit at M.I.T. offers a good opportunity to assess what Chantal Akerman, a hero of the avant-garde cinema, has been up to over the last decade.

In the Closet: Gadgets, Suits, & Gin

Tyler and Josh on indestructible (or at least indestructible-looking) gadgets, the two (or maybe four) suits every man needs, and whether it's actually possible to drink gin on the rocks.

In the Closet: June 10, 2008

Tyler and Josh on indestructible (or at least indestructible-looking) gadgets, the two (or maybe four) suits every man needs, and whether it's actually possible to drink gin on the rocks.

Among Scientific Treasures, a Gem

A collection of scientific writings to be auctioned off next week constitutes pretty much a history of science and Western thought.

Getting to Spend a Year as a Shadow to a Star

An apprenticeship program started by Rolex pairs developing artists with masters.

Museum Review | Contemporary Jewish Museum: Museum’s Vision: West Coast Paradise

San Francisco’s new Contemporary Jewish Museum, designed by Daniel Libeskind, is dedicated to a hyphenated American identity.

The Architecture Issue: Face Value

In the new cityscape, keeping up the facade is what matters. And that’s the job of Front Inc.

GQ: Gisele Bündchen

Video proof that Tom Brady is the luckiest man on earth.

Hard-hat site

Photo by Pete Favat

So the Weston house is finally starting to rise out of the ground – the pre-cast foundation walls are up, and the basement-level plumbing and heating happened last week, courtesy of Richard Trethewey and our new (fantastic) Weston plumbing contractor, Lynne Keating. We’re so glad to be partnering with yet another talented plumbing contractor - and one who also happens to be female – so be sure to look for Lynne’s debut on the show this fall.

Even though the foundation goes up VERY quickly (try 5 hours for our “tall walls”!) – you may be surprised to learn (I sure was) that the guy who engineered the foundation, Adam Campbell, worked with the architect and structural engineer at Bensonwood for nearly 50 man-hours before the installation. (!) Adam is a smart cookie and a good guy; he engineered the foundation on our Carlisle project a few years back as well, and came up to Weston to personally oversee the installation for us this time. We love when we can work with people over and over again on the show, it starts to feel like family.

And speaking of "new" family, our homeowner Pete Favat recently took the time to customize our generic hardhats with TOH Weston logos.

We gave him the file, and he had the logos turned into something thatcan be burnished on in the field, so presto, we have customized Westonhats. I can’t recall a TOH homeowner making us customized gear before.Very cool.

Next up on the webcams: this week you’ll notice Tom Silva onsite, making final preparations for the pouring of the slab, which should happen (weather permitting) on Tuesday, June 10th. Be sure to watch the webcams in Weston that day, as we’ll also be there filming.

Up in New Hampshire, the shop work on our job is largely done, so we’ll be bringing that cam down to Weston before long, to be mounted inside the new house, once it starts to go up.

Depending on the weather, we should begin the “raising” of the house timbers and wall panels starting around June 19th. More on that shortly.

Hard Hat Site

So the Weston house is finally starting to rise out of the ground – the pre-cast foundation walls are up, and the basement-level plumbing and heating happened last week, courtesy of Richard Trethewey and our new (fantastic) Weston plumbing contractor, Lynne Keating. We’re so glad to be partnering with yet another talented plumbing contractor - and one who also happens to be female – so be sure to look for Lynne’s debut on the show this fall.

Even though the foundation goes up VERY quickly (try 5 hours for our “tall walls”!) – you may be surprised to learn (I sure was) that the guy who engineered the foundation, Adam Campbell, worked with the architect and structural engineer at Bensonwood for nearly 50 man-hours before the installation. (!) Adam is a smart cookie and a good guy – he engineered the foundation on our Carlisle project a few years back as well, and came up to Weston to personally oversee the installation for us this time. We love when we can work with people over and over again on the show, it starts to feel like family.

And speaking of "new" family, our homeowner Pete Favat recently took the time to customize our generic hardhats with TOH Weston logos. We gave him the file, and he had the logos turned into something that can be burnished on in the field, so presto, we have customized Weston hats. I can’t recall a TOH homeowner making us customized gear before. Very cool.

Click through to see a photo of the new hardhats.

Photo Credit: Pete Favat

Next up on the webcams: this week you’ll notice Tom Silva onsite, making final preparations for the pouring of the slab, which should happen (weather permitting) on Tuesday, June 10th. Be sure to watch the webcams in Weston that day, as we’ll also be there filming.

Up in New Hampshire, the shop work on our job is largely done, so we’ll be bringing that cam down to Weston before long, to be mounted inside the new house, once it starts to go up.

Depending on the weather, we should begin the “raising” of the house timbers and wall panels starting around June 19th. More on that shortly.

Kentucky Yard Sale Yields a Trove of Weegee Images

This week the Indianapolis Museum of Art plans to announce that it has acquired a trove of work and correspondence by Weegee, the stogie-smoking New York photographer.

Arts and Entertainment: A Museum That Lets Its Visitors Become Part of the Art

Taking its inspiration from today’s online world, an exhibit at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum solicits contributions from viewers in a democratic approach to art interpretation.

Arts and Entertainment: Seeking Truth, Not Always Beauty

The exhibition “Sprawl” at the Jersey City Museum does not set out to prove that parts of the New Jersey landscape are ugly. But it is hard to escape that conclusion after seeing the show.

Art: Holding a Mirror to a Mirror of the Past

Adam Cvijanovic recreates a monumental scene from ancient history, as envisioned through the lens of D. W. Griffith.

Alton Kelley, 67, Artist of the 1960s Rock Counterculture, Dies

Mr. Kelley created the visual equivalent of an acid trip in psychedelic concert posters for artists like the Grateful Dead and Jimi Hendrix.

Phenomenon: The Exigent City

Increasingly, refugee camps have become de facto cities, and cities have become extended refugee camps. Is there a place here for architects?

Art Review | 'Arctic Hysteria': Cool, Hot and Finnish, With a Dose of Mythic Imagination

Urgent emotions and irrational fantasies run through “Arctic Hysteria: New Art From Finland” at P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center.

Antiques: An Explosion of Sales of 20th-Century Design

There may well be too much 20th-century design for sale in New York next week for the market to absorb.

Klaus Perls, Art Dealer Who Gave Picassos to the Met, Dies at 96

Mr. Perls donated an important collection of African royal art from Benin and modern works by Picasso and Modigliani to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

At Art Basel, Old Names and Few Showstoppers

Although several satellite fairs dotting the city are devoted to emerging artists, Art Basel 2008 primarily features examples of new works by the already-hot.

Anne d’Harnoncourt, Who Led Philadelphia Museum, Dies at 64

Ms. d’Harnoncourt revivified the Philadelphia Museum of Art and maintained the intellectual standards of its program of exhibitions.

An Appraisal: Anne d’Harnoncourt: Discerning Enthusiasm for Art

By any measure, Anne d’Harnoncourt’s tenure as director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art was distinguished.

Art: ’60s Legacy, Personal Histories

An exhibition in Atlanta examines issues of racial identity, commodity culture and political action.

Michelangelo for Readers With Deep Pockets

The gala presentation of “Michelangelo: La Dotta Mano,” a volume of photographs of the Renaissance master’s sculptures, may well have been the most lavish book debut in history.

Art Review | Anish Kapoor: Sculptor as Magician

Anish Kapoor’s pieces dispense multiple visual thrills and mysteries, as seen at a well-chosen survey at the Institute of Contemporary Art and at the Gladstone Gallery.

Museum Review: Seattle Asian Museum Moves Around the Corner and Into Its Identity

As the Wing Luke Asian Museum reopens on Saturday, the celebrations are about more than mere institutional accomplishments.

Art Review: From Britain, a Trove of Glittering Prizes

Not every exhibition has to be more than the sum of its parts, especially when the parts are as gratifying as those making up “Medieval and Renaissance Treasures From the Victoria and Albert Museum” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

When I Paint My Masterpiece

A coffee-table book reveals another side of Bob Dylan: visual artist.

Inside Art: Adding One More Work to Hals’s Portfolio

In July, a painting by Frans Hals of Willem van Heythuysen is to go on the block at Sotheby’s in London, where it is expected to fetch about $6 million to $10 million.

Designers Teach Glass (and Themselves) New Tricks

By the time the Corning GlassLab packs up its two-and-a-half-week visit on June 3, 19 designers will have tested the limits of a material that few of them had previously used.

Art Review: Life in Iran, Etched With Suspicion and Humor

In Ardeshir Mohassess’s drawings, the coded beauty of traditional Persian art comes face to face with the ugliness of successive autocratic regimes.

Sony Taps Into Photo Archive as a Resource During Hard Times

The shelves at Sony’s New York headquarters hold decades of music history, which the company hopes to use to attract new revenue.

Arts, Briefly: Lauder Steps Down as Whitney Museum Chairman

Mr. Lauder remains a trustee and the chairman emeritus, with full voting rights.

An Artist Breathes New Life Into Renaissance Ways With Wood

Unusually for a 35-year-old contemporary artist, Alison Elizabeth Taylor ’s favored medium is wood marquetry.

Art Review: Silent Survivors of Afghanistan’s 4,000 Tumultuous Years

At once revelatory and heart-rending, “Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures From the National Museum, Kabul,” at the National Gallery of Art, has much to tell about the country’s past and present.

Art: Attention, ‘Blue Boy’ Fans: Slow Down

The Huntington mansion, known for its famous painting by Gainsboroug, was originally a businessman’s Arcadian dream. Today it is a fantasy of another sort.

The Other Half

A new look at the groundbreaking journalism and advocacy of Jacob Riis.

Inside Art: As Koons Prices Balloon, His Dallas ‘Flower’ Will Be Sold

A signature sculpture from Mr. Koons’s “Celebration” series has appreciated to such an extent that the owners have decided to sell it at Christie’s in London on June 30.