Interesting stuff this from Giuseppe Arcimboldo:

One of the most bizarre and distinctive painters in the whole of art history, Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527-1593) owes his reputation to the series of composite portraits of heads made up of a variety of objects, both natural and man-made. Most of these paintings were created at the court of Rudolf II, who hired Arcimboldo as his court painter, placing him at the centre of Rudolf's eccentric menagerie of artists, scientists and charlatans.

Giuseppe Arcimboldo was born in Milan in 1527 into a highly distinguished family, which boasted archbishops (including his grandfather), jurists and artists (including his father Biagio). Little is known about his early life, but his connections with Milanese nobility undoubtedly helped him secure work designing frescoes and windows for the cathedral. In 1562 he travelled across the Alps to Vienna to become the portraitist and copyist to the Hapsburg court, at the invitation of Emperor Maximilian II (his talent having been noted by Maximilian's father Ferdinand I, who employed him as a painter of conventional portraits).

See more of Giuseppe's artwork.

Some weekends are undoubtedly longer than others, but on occasion even the usual Saturday/Sunday break seems compressed into a minor blip that squirts by with nought but the briefest respite for the weary worker.

A feeling of normally is settling over my household this morning, following the reinstatement of Darling Daughter to her term-time address in Bradford. Her presence in the family home will be missed: there’s currently an empty feeling about our nest.

Under optimal circumstances the round trip from South East Wales to West Yorkshire and back can is pleasant. My preferred route takes you through some interesting countryside and from my point of view it’s been entertaining to witness the seasonal changes. Of course Sod’s Law rears its ugly head from time-to-time and decrees the journey will be undertaken in torrential rain, driving snow or fog, effectively blocking out the landscape. Weather conditions like these not only make for a dull journey, but also create a tired and irascible driver. This last weekend it was the turn of the Motorway Monster to throw a spanner in the works with the closure of the M6 on Saturday morning, forcing a change of route and additional driving time.

Bad planning I know, but yesterday wasn’t notable for being London Marathon day, St George’s Day, the anniversary of the Bard’s Birth or anything else, except Our Mam’s Birthday. Our Mam takes pride of place over them all in this house, especially as reached Two Fat Ladies yesterday.

So here we are on Monday morning after an action packed weekend and with a busy week ahead and instead of my feeling refreshed and raring to go I’m tired, irritable and just a little depressed: God help any student who pisses me off today!