1,780 posts later...
April 10 2022
Video: AB
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
It was exactly 2 years to this month when Bendor very kindly asked me to start posting on AHN. Over 1,780 posts later, this is my final offering.
It has been a great honour and tremendous fun to keep the blog running, thank you to all of you who have continued to read it! I'm very grateful for all the interesting stories, comments and corrections I've received. It has never ceased to amaze me how many readers get in touch from all over the world. Ultimately, it is Bendor who we must all thank for supporting its continuation. I'm sure the next phase will be interesting too (and might contain more contemporary art stories, many of which I found particularly difficult to find any enthusiasm for).
New adventures await me as I have recently accepted a job cataloguing Old Masters at Sotheby's in London. As my doctoral research has recently ended, I think it is about time that I found another challenge to pursue.
As a parting gift, I thought I would record a segment of one of my favourite Pavans for the lute. It is entitled Sedet Sola [Sitting Alone] and was written by one of Elizabeth I's lutenists Anthony Holborne (c.1545-1602). I particularly love this piece as it is probably connected (subject wise at least) to Isaac Oliver's A Young Man Seated Under a Tree c.1590-1595 in The Royal Collection. I have always imagined that this particularly sweet melancholy is exactly what Oliver's miniature sounds like.
Update - Dear Adam, I can't thank you enough for all your excellent work on AHN these last two years. Your keen eye for a story, and many a sleeper-alert, have been indispensable in keeping us all informed about what's going on in the art historical universe. What a pleasure it has been to know the blog has been in such good hands. I'm not sure what happens next on AHN, but I doubt there'll be much enthusiasm for contemporary art stories any time soon. Sotheby's are lucky to have you (and your lutes!) and I not only wish you the best of luck there, but look forward to reporting on all the exciting discoveries I know you'll make, thanks to your excellent connoisseurial instincts. Thanks again, BG
