Before Morse Code, There Was Morse’s ‘Gallery of the Louvre’

Samuel F.B. Morse’s oil painting “Gallery of the Louvre” is packed with works by Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Raphael — a grouping that didn’t actually exist all in one room. He meant to exhibit “Gallery” in the U.S. for the those who had few chances to see fine art

By Michael Upchurch
Special to The Seattle Times
Samuel F.B. Morse’s oil on canvas “Gallery of the Louvre,” which arrived this week at the Seattle Art Museum for a four-month visit, is actually three dozen or more paintings in one.

It’s simultaneously a document, a fantasy, an art tutorial and a piece of epic-scale legwork for an artist who had even grander projects in mind. It’s also the painting that, after being spurned by the public in his lifetime, set Morse on his path as an inventor.

For, yes, this is the same Morse who invented the telegraph and the dot-dash-dot alphabet that went with it. Far from dreaming of being an inventor, Morse (1791-1872) was determined to pursue an art career from the time he was in his teens. He trained at the Royal Academy of Arts in London and hoped to specialize in historical scenes. His only source of income upon his return to the U.S., however, was portrait painting — a genre he disdained, despite his brilliance at it….

Read Full Article: Link

Recent Posts

W4OP Loop Antenna

January 12, 2017 No comments

It seems that more and more, amateurs are facing increasingly strict HOAs. This antenna is not designed for the backpacker, but rather for the QRP ama... Read more

Icom Mobile Antennas AH-760 and AH-740 (1.6MHz–29.999MHz )

January 05, 2015 No comments

Icom Mobile Antennas AH-760, Wide Frequency Heavy-Duty Moving Coil Antenna 200W PEP SSB, 125W PEP CW/DATA 1.6MHz–29.999MHz wide frequency coverage wit... Read more

New Zealand prohibits unrestricted Baofeng , Pofung and Wouxun

October 01, 2018 No comments

Baofeng prohibits unrestricted New Zealand’s regulator RSM reports: In August, we mentioned creating a prohibition notice for unrestricted two-w... Read more

The CommRadio CTX-10 QRP

October 14, 2016 No comments

CommRadio CTX-10 The CommRadio CTX-10 blends high performance, internal SDR technology, high efficiency circuit design, compact size and simple operat... Read more

Colorado Governor Signs Amateur Radio Antenna Bill Into Law

March 16, 2015 No comments

  Friday the 13th turned out to be a lucky day for Colorado hams, as Gov John Hickenlooper signed into law an Amateur Radio antenna bill that mir... Read more

The Most TactiCool BaoFeng Antenna Ever!

June 24, 2019 No comments

The AR-152A is updated CS tactical antenna ,with more flexing and better signal Description: 1. All of our items are brand new. 2. Model: AR-152A 3. C... Read more

Radio Hams Watch for Severe Weather – Ohio (WTOL)

February 28, 2017 No comments

By Tim Miller, Reporter Toledo News Now, News, Weather, Sports, Toledo, OH BOWLING GREEN, OH (WTOL) – As severe weather moves in for the first t... Read more

An In Depth Look At ICOM IC-705 HF VHF UHF QRP Transceiver

August 31, 2020 No comments

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abbSuqz59co Read more

Dayton Amateur Radio Association Surprises ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ

January 20, 2016 No comments

As he nears retirement, ARRL CEO David Sumner has been honored by the Dayton Amateur Radio Association (DARA), which sponsors Dayton Hamvention®. Sumn... Read more

New version of DX Monitor

February 12, 2015 No comments

Beta test versions of DX Monitor may be used for up to 30 days from their release date and will run even if your trial period has expired. If you trie... Read more

LDG RT-100 Remote Tuner

May 11, 2016 No comments

RT-100 LDG has announced the RT-100. The RT-100 is a 100 watt coax in / coax out remote tuner designed to be placed near the feedpoint of the antenna.... Read more