The French government has closed off the caverns entirely and to replace the air circulation system to try to save the drawings, estimated to be at least 15,000 years old. Historians believe hunter-gatherers drew the mineral-pigment paintings that include images of horses, bulls, birds and a rhinoceros.

The caves have been closed to the public since 1963, but wannabe spelunkers can explore a nearby replica of two of the Lascaux caves. Tourism ends up being a problem at a lot of attractions, both natural and art-based: Simply by being there, you're altering what you came to see.

The picture at right is from a cafe here in Cincinnati, The Coffee Shop on Madison, which has a stunning corner lined with Charley Harper prints.

Across town, there's an apartment building that must house a fairly busy artist: Every window of one first-floor unit is covered in portraits. They're not Renoirs, but who cares?

What about your town? Is it easy to stumble upon art in your neighborhood, or do you feel sometimes as if you're living in a creative desert? (If so, maybe it's time to go guerrilla...)

In the meantime, I have become totally fascinated with Harper's style and have become determined to have a print of his in my apartment by spring. (Luckily for me, a relative works at a gallery with a large Harper inventory and gets a 35 percent staff discount that I have absolutely no problem using.)

I attempted to post from home but couldn't log in—c'est la vie. So here's some good reading I've come across in the last little while. Happy new year!

• The New York Times on the Ashcan School
• Cityscapes painter Herman Rose passes away
• Jacob Lawrence's Migration of the Negro
• Schools catering to booming interest in comics (via ArtsJournal)
• Exhibit shows "extreme embroidery"

Via the Watercolor Artist blog: Gauguin's teeth found in a well

From the Chicago Tribune: How a fake Gauguin ended up in the Art Institute

Lucian Freud: The Painter's Etchings is on display at MoMa until March 10.

Some links you might find especially interesting:

• Books on Vermeer's technique and materials
• An article on lacemaking in Vermeer's time
• Images of his signatures
  
• And so you can impress your painter friends, a Dutch pronunciation guide
  

There are varying reports of exactly how many people have been injured by Shibboleth, but in a New York Times story today, the reporter writes about witnessing such an event:

Two visitors from the Netherlands, Manon Straatman and her husband, Victor, were equally mystified by the perils of "Shibboleth."

"Maybe someone walks into the museum and isn't interested in what's in the museum," Mrs. Straatman mused.

Mr. Straatman said the crack was modest in its width and depth, hardly the sort of gaping abyss into which you might plummet to your doom.

"Oh look, there's someone falling now," he said suddenly.

Indeed there was: A woman nearby had caught her foot in the crack and pitched awkwardly forward, ending up sprawled on the floor.

Just got these puppies in last week: Field Notes, a collaboration between Draplin Design Co. and Coudal Partners, two heavyweights in the graphic design arena. A pack of three runs you $9.95 plus shipping.

These notebooks have been getting major props in the blogosphere for a while. If you search the photo site Flickr for "field notes" you come across some pretty cool stuff. Like a design teacher who had students in his class fill the notebooks up with whatever they wanted, and he then posted the results on Flickr.

05. Shoddy Sketches
11. Big Ideas/Insights
12. Small Ideas/Notions
17. Escape Routes
25. Gambling Debts

What do you like?

It's simple and straightforward. What do you like reading here? What do you want to see more of? What do you not care for?

Let me know in the comments section. I'm really curious!