hi i'm basil falconer and this is my hgtv show, by crypt or by carriage. today we'll be checking out the interior of a belle epoque parisian tunnel home, a set of lavish victorian train cars, and a wwii soviet bunker that combines the two. as always, see if you can tell which is which! we're joined today by the contessa von steinbluern who

thoughts i had

even the more “bizarre” examples of socialist architecture are beautiful in ways that the architecture of neoliberalism fails to be. a commonly derided example are the “creepy” monuments across the yugoslavian landscape, which are commonly called “UFOs” or similar terms of derision, typically with the implication that they are proof of perceived flaws of central planning.

however, monuments like these, despite usually being commissioned by the central government, had designs chosen by local councils based on the desires of the area’s population. this one, the makedonium/illinden in krusevo, macedonia, was a popular tourist attraction for a long time. it memorializes the sacrifices of those who revolted against both the axis powers and the ottoman empire.

why does this monument look so weird, then, if its purpose is so solemn? personally, i think that it represents a different attitude, as a culture, towards sacrifice and heroism, particularly because of how recent the memories of the bitter struggle for freedom in world war 2 were. most surviving yugoslav partisans were in their 40′s-60′s at the time, and personally knowing the horrors of fascism can make the crass displays of herculean, nationalistic power expected of american monuments to seem disrespectful, even contradictory.

what i believe the illinden monument (and all other “alien” yugoslav monuments) intends to be is both sanctuary and warning. a reminder of the heroism of the revolutionaries entombed within it, yes. but also a reminder of the steep price of ethnonationalism and exploitation. this monument is not like the crass displays of power of babylon and london. it does not speak out to the world to gloat of victories that time will destroy. the illinden monument is its own space in the world, within a small forest clearing like an ancient druidic shrine. it has no worldly possessions to speak of but the burden of keeping alive the memory of murdered innocents and to warn of the insatiable bloodlust of the kinds of people who destroyed them. it sticks out in the verdant flora, an alarming, holy, bleached-white obscenity that screams out from the past like a fossil. and it is a fossil, because the society that created it no longer really exists. it is abandoned, and yet it is more purposeful than it ever was before.

Photowork by Marcin Nagraba. Costumes by Agnieszka Osipa Costumes - just imagine a place where all ppl wear such stuff for everyday duds!

“The Amphitheater of Eternal Knowledge,” Hamburg, 1595.

The phrase “this looks like a renaissance painting” is banned until everyone takes an art history class. Who even knows what a renaissance painting looks like at this point? SHit if I know.

that phrase is often ascribed to BAROQUE composition techniques using space and subject arrangements.. vivid emotions and contrasting colors and bodies in motion were a very baroque thing. renaissance has really symmetric compositions with muted tones and plain faces in sitting/standing positions, like my header :-)

Opera coat, Christian Dior X John Galliano

YO OKAY SO I WAS IN THE DIAMOND DISTRICT IN NYC JUST CASUALLY WINDOW SHOPPING AND SHIT, YOU KNOW, THE USUAL, WHEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THIS FUCKING THING CATCHES MY EYE. THIS. FUCKING. THING. ITS AS BIG AS MY FUCKING HAND AND ITS MADE OF REAL MUFUCKIN DIAMONDS AND GOLD. THIS HAS GONE TOO FAR PEOPLE. LOOK WHAT YOUVE DONE. THIS IS WHAT THE WORLD HAS COME TO. FUCK.

what a shrektacular piece of jewelry 

all that glitters is gold

Okay this is not strictly games-related, but still super cool; a Storm Trooper Helmet carving, Maori style.

Now this is not only awesome because the Troopers are clones of Jango Fett (played by New Zealand actor Temuera Morrison, who is of Maori descent), but it’s even cooler because the helmet was made by Daniel Logan who played the young Boba Fett in Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. Ho Snap!

The helmet was a 501st project by Daniel with the assistance of Shawna M. Hogan-Moore (Red Elk), Darcienne Sparber and Michael Moore (HMS Creative Productions). It was sold at a charity auction for $3500.

And yes I know the pics have been floating around the internets for a while now, but I only just came across it. So tough luck, sharing it anyway.

so pretteh *flails*

@deadcatwithaflamethrower

Oh it’s very shiny!  <3

Holy crap! This is the coolest fucking thing!

The morning after October Revolution of 1917 in art

Pretty pleased how this came out

benedict cumberbatch

Domaine de Chantilly - Ambitieuse

The Woman Called Fujiko Mine 1x02 “.357 Magnum” (2012) dir. Hideki Tonokatsu, animation dir. Takao Takegami for Sayo Yamamoto

The Freaky Ass Furniture of Catherine The Great

This is Catherine The Great. She was a legendary Empress of Russia and ruled longer than any other leader, and she did a damn good job by all accounts. People loved her, she worked hard, she was smart, and she was also one of the proudest motherfucking freaks in HISTORY. She proved to the world that just because you look a little like Lady John Lithgow does not mean you are undesirable, and just because you’re royalty does not mean you can’t be a horny goddess of filth.

There’s this rumor that Catherine’s biggest conquest was a literal goddamn horse, but historians believe that it’s just a sick rumor that some hating ass bitches made up because they were intimidated that a woman could not only be in charge of a country but of her own sexual predilections. HMM, THANK GOD TIMES HAVE CHANGED???

Anyway, Catherine used her money to finance this fuck pad room in her castle that was an homage to doin’ the nasty. Catherine’s Pinterest board must have looked like a fucking PornHub screenshot because this is what that beautiful proud slut decorated her lair with:

A chair that is so classically beautiful and…oh my damn…what in the hell..

IS THAT CHAIR SUCKING A DAMN DICK?

THAT IS THE DEVIL AND HE IS EATING A PUSSY LIKE HELLFIRE’S GONNA SHOOT OUT OF IT

YOU NOT A BAD BITCH UNLESS YOUR OFFICE CHAIR HAS A PANTALOON-LESS VULVA AIRING ITSELF OUT ON IT. 

THERE ARE GIANT WANGS GROWING OUT OF GIANT CHI-CHIS HOLDING UP A CORNUCOPIA OF FINELY-CRAFTED, CLASSICAL ASS, BAROQUE ASS, ROCOCO ASS GENITALS. HOW THE FUCK YOU GONNA GO TO IKEA AFTER THIS SHIT? 

I wish there were more pictures of the original pieces, but in the 50′s some uptight German Army dipshits destroyed her collection because it gave them shameful boners or something. An artist has recreated her utilitarian odes to fuck, but it is truly sad that we cultured skanks can never appreciate such high art in its original glory. Damn, Cathy. Respect.

Exquisite Apartment in Paris Found Untouched for 70 Years

This stunning Parisian apartment was left abandoned for 70 years when its owner fled Paris from the Nazi regime. It belonged to the grandmother of French actress Marthe de Florian, who died in 1939. Paid for decades in advance, the space remained untouched by the outside world. Under the multiple layers of dust, lies an atmospheric display of exquisite Parisian style, ornaments, and secret treasures.

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Drawing Den’s Artist Inspiration of the Week Featured Artist: Magdalena Pagowska

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thank you so much for the feature, @drawingden