Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2014-12-24/Featured content

Featured content

Still quoting Iolanthe, apparently.

By Adam Cuerden

• 
  John Simmons' Hermia and Lysander: We are dainty little fairies, ever singing, ever dancing; We indulge in our vagaries in a fashion most entrancing.
• 
  Geertgen tot Sint Jans' Nativity at Night. Unlike most paintings based on the visions of St. Bridget of Sweden, Sint Jans managed to resist the commonly-used layouts that always makes me think they dropped the baby.

This Signpost "Featured content" report covers material promoted from [date] through [date]. Anything in quotation marks is taken from the respective articles and lists; see their page histories for attribution.

Featured articles

One featured article was promoted this week.

Hilary Rodham Clinton can be seen near the right of the famous photograph The Situation Room, watching reports of the death of Osama bin Laden.

• Hillary Rodham Clinton (nominated by Wasted Time R) Desc...

Featured pictures

Fourteen featured pictures were promoted this week.

Panaeolus semiovatus

Desc

Caravaggio's The Crowning with Thorns

• Nativity at Night (created by Geertgen tot Sint Jans, nominated by Hafspajen)This painting is a tiny little painting that shows the Nativity of Jesus, attended by angels, with the shepherds on the hillside behind in the dark, seen through the window, presumably made for private devotional use. The angels all look like small Christmas tree decorations. Geertgen tot Sint Jans (c. 1465 – c. 1495), was an Early Netherlandish painter who died probably still in his twenties. This depiction is influenced by the visions of Saint Bridget of Sweden (1303–1373), who was a very popular mystic, and in her vision the sources of light are the infant Jesus himself. In accordance with Bridget's vision the sole source of illumination in this scene of Bethlehem stable is the Child himself, only with one other light source, the shepherds' fire on the hill behind; with the angel floating above them. Depictions of the Nativity changed significantly in European art following St Bridget's visions of the event, many depictions reduced other light sources in the scene to emphasize this effect, and the Nativity remained very commonly treated with chiaroscuro through to the Baroque. Chiaroscuro means the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition, and also means that you can't notice the cow and a donkey in the dark, just barely. And a nice pyramidal composition too, with angel on top like a Christmas tree.
• Monkey selfie (created by a literal monkey, yes really, nominated by Chris Woodrich) Monkey selfie is a selfie that was made by a monkey. OK, the Monkey borrowed the artist camera. But how is it with the copyright for photographs created by animals? Is the monkey an artist or not, that is the question. Equipment owned by nature photographer David Slater was used by a Celebes crested macaque in Tangkoko Nature Reserve in Indonesia to take a series of self-portraits. The owner of the camera claimed copyright over the image, arguing that he had set up the situation. Other individuals and organizations, however, argued that the photographs, as the work of a non-human animal (and thus not the work of a legal person), were public domain. However, we have them now, and our article say;On August 22, 2014, the United States Copyright Office clarified their rules to explicitly state that items created by a non-human cannot be copyrighted, and lists in their examples a "photograph taken by a monkey", which would appear to reference this case.
• Roque de Agando (created by Diego Delso, nominated by National Names 2000) Description...
• The Crowning with Thorns (created by Caravaggio, nominated by Hafspajen)Jesus, mocked, crowned with thorns in a purple robe as the King of the Jews, is the theme depicted in this painting by Caravaggio. It is all irony, the royal robe and the crown of thorns are statement that actually mean something different from what it was supposed to mean literally; Jesus was not at all the king of the Jews. He never said that either. After his condemnation by Pontius Pilate, Jesus was flogged and mocked by Roman soldiers. They clothed him with a scarlet robe symbolizing a royal gown ( purple was a royal color), put a crown of thorns on his head symbolizing a royal crown, and put a staff in his hand symbolizing a scepter. They then knelt before him and said, "Hail, king of the Jews!" Maybe Caravaggio felt a certain affinity with the mocked man. Caravaggio was the art history's enfant terrible, unorthodox, striking, innovative and rebellious, and also a magnificent painter. He was involved in fights an scandals, and yes he was mocked sometimes - even if he striked back. He had a very special unmistakable style that was his own, and he influenced generations of painters of the Baroque style like Rubens, Jusepe de Ribera, Bernini, and yes, even Rembrandt.
• Phelsuma grandis (created by H. Krisp, nominated by Tomer T) Description...
• Panaeolus semiovatus var. semiovatus (created by Jörg Hempel, nominated by Tomer T) Description...
• Hermia and Lysander (created by John Simmons, nominated by Brandmeister) Hermia and Lysander is a watercolour painting by British illustrator and miniature portrait painter John Simmons from 1870 depicting William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. We left our couples, Hermia and Lysander (pictured) and Helena and Demetrius, from the previous edition in the enchanted woods at night, quarrelling and confused. Before both guys loved Hermia. Now they both love Helena... It's a bit complicated. It's all the fairies fault. Lysander and Hermia run away from home to secretly marry each other. They loved each other and all was fine. Helena who was Hermia's best friend, was engaged with Demetrius, but her fiancé abandoned Helena to woo Hermia. Demetrius is following after Hermia into the forest, while Helena who is still in love with Demetrius is following him. The fairies try to help, but make a mess of everything. Therefore, the boys who both were in love with Hermia, now are both in loved with Helena all of the sudden ... both Demetrius and Lysander are now chasing after Helena, while Hermia running furiously after them all. Helena is mad and accuses Hermia of being part of a cruel joke, making fun of her and mocking her. Some girls are like that. Hermia feels betrayed by the accusation and retorts that she would never hurt her friend that way. In the end however the fairies fix everything and all find each other again, - happy end. Lysander loves Hermia and Demetrius loves Helena again.

I always wanted a monkey for breakfast

• Japanese Occupation currency of the Netherlands Indies (now Indonesia), 1942 series: One cent, five cent, ten cent, one-half gulden, one gulden, five gulden, and ten gulden (created by Empire of Japan, nominated, scanned, and prepared by Godot13) Description...

• 
  Our last fairy

If we shadows have offended, Think but this, and all is mended— That you have but slumbered here While these visions did appear. If you forgive us, we’ll make everything all right. Soon as we may, Off and away! We'll commence our journey airy Happy are we As you can see, Every one is now a fairy!

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24 December 2014

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• Very nice selection of images this week! --Pine^✉ 02:51, 25 December 2014 (UTC)

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