178 LATVIA - Andris Vitolins Ambulance

This postcard shows the painting "Ambulance" created by Andris Vitolins in Riga, Latvia. Unfortunately, I do not have many informations about him. Vitolins is a Latvian painter which already had exhibitions in Latvia and France. Here is a quote from him from his website: "Mankind fascinates me; nevertheless I do not paint people. I paint objects created by men. I portray the material world. I focus on the materialised fruit of human fantasy. I observe human development by watching how the mankind develops thus transforming and using the landscape. I am watching how our living environment gets urbanised: it escapes the control of mankind and transforms into a disarranged entanglement."

About the sender
Dietrich (postcrossing) sent from Riga (Latvia) on 15.06.2014

162 SPAIN - Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain (UNESCO)

The first Homo sapiens arrived by small groups in northern Spain around 35,000 BP. They cohabited for a time with the last of the Neanderthals, and then developed a significant culture known as Upper Palaeolithic, from 30,000 to 25,000 BP, producing bone projectiles and stone blade tools, and producing the first artistic artefacts and the first decorated walls (La Peña de Candamo). The last Ice Age then began to make its influence felt, ending in around 18,000 BP. During this period cave art developed in the eastern part of Cantabria, producing an individual style (Altamira, La Peña del Candamo, El Castillo, Las Pasiega, El Pendo, La Garma, Chufin and El Pendo).

The artistic apogee, known as Magdalenian, corresponds to the end of the Ice Age, from 17,000 to 13,000 BP. This was the period of the major works in the decorated caves, with a great variety of motifs and techniques of representation. This was one of the key moments of the history of art, as seen for example in the polychrome figures of Altamira and El Castillo, the combination of engraving and painting, the use of the rock forms themselves, and realistic detail in the animal figures in most of the nominated caves. From 13,000 to 10,000 BP, the climate became warmer (Holocene), causing a profound transformation in human lifestyles, together with a decline in cave art. Las Monedas is an example of late cave art, and there is no evidence of cave art later than 11,000 BP.

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Postcrosser Spain (direct swap) sent from Isla (Spain) on 19.02.2014

073 UNITED KINGDOM - London, Piccadilly, City of Westminster

Piccadilly is a road in London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the City of Westminster and forms part of the A4 route, London's second most important western artery, to Avonmouth. The area of St. James's lies to the south of the eastern section of the street, while the western section is built up only on the northern side and overlooks Green Park. The area to the north is Mayfair. Piccadilly is one of the widest and straightest streets in central London. It is the location of several notable London landmarks and buildings, including Fortnum & Mason, the Royal Academy, the Ritz Hotel, the RAF Club, Hatchards, the Embassy of Japan and the High Commission of Malta. Simpson's, once amongst the United Kingdom's leading clothing stores, opened on Piccadilly in the 1930s. The store closed in 1999 and the site is now the flagship shop of the booksellers Waterstone's.

The City of Westminster is an Inner London borough occupying much of the central area of Greater London, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary is the River Thames. It was created with the 1965 establishment of Greater London. Upon creation, Westminster was awarded city status, which had been previously held by the smaller Metropolitan Borough of Westminster. Aside from a number of large parks and open spaces, the population density of the district is high. Many sites commonly associated with London are located in the borough, including Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, and 10 Downing Street. The borough is divided into a number of localities including the ancient political district of Westminster around the Palace of Westminster; the shopping areas around Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Bond Street; and the night time entertainment district of Soho. Much of the borough is residential, and in 2008 it was estimated to have a population of 236,000. The local authority is Westminster City Council.

About the sender

This postcard was sent from my old friend Jack from Oxford. Thank you Jack!

050 BELARUS - Nicholas Roerich, Boats

First of all, I would like to thank all the people who made it possible that I have more than 50 postcards now! Great job and keep sending postcards.
Secondly, this is absolutely a postcard which I don't like at all, I am not an art fan, but I will upload it anyways. But please keep in mind not to send me art cards.
Thirdly, it is really difficult to find out something about this postcard, but I can give you some informations about the painter and some key facts about the picture.

The painter Nicholas Roerich (1874-1947) also was a Russian writer, archaeologist, thesophist, enlightener philosopher and public figure. Born in Saint Petersburg, Russia to the family of a well-to-do notary public, he lived around the world until his death in Naggar, India. Trained as an artist and a lawyer, his interests lay in literature, philosophy, archaeology and especially art. Roerich was a dedicated activist for the cause of preserving art and architecture in times of war. He earned several nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize. The so-called Roerich Pact was signed into law by the United States and most member nations of the Pan-American Union in April 1935.
This painting from Nicholas Roerich was painted in 1903. It has a size of 165 x 270 cm and is shown in the Russian city "Omsk" in the Omsk Regional Fine Arts Museum of M.A. Vrubel

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qwerchenok (postcrossing) sent from Minsk (Belarus) on 15.10.2013