January 21

The blog Pigtown Design, about architecture and design in the greater Baltimore area, is one of the most charming and visually pleasurable sites I've encountered. Here is a post on a refurbished and reopened classic hotel:

http://pigtown-design.blogspot.com/2010/01/old-royal-residence.html

The New York Times ran a nice piece on designer Hella Jongerius and her use of color in industrial design:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/arts/18iht-design18.html

The blog Curious Pages, which covers "recommended inappropriate books for kids," alerted me to a new edition of The Wizard of Oz illustrated by Graham Rawle, which, Oz-phile that I am, I am delighted to know about. It looks smashing:

http://curiouspages.blogspot.com/2010/01/wizard-of-oz.html

Among notables born on this date are literary critics R.P. Blackmur and Louis Menand, Russian composer Alexander Tcherepnin, Russian choreographer Igor Moiseyev, French composer Henri Duparc, actors Paul Scofield and Geena Davis, operatic tenor Placido Domingo, golfer Jack Nicklaus, cinematographer and film director Rudolph Mate, Hungarian poet Imre Madach, German novelist Ludwig Thoma, folk singer Richie Havens, and artist Jeff Koons (giant puppies, yeah!). Domingo turns 69 today and is going incredibly strong, singing, conducting, and running two opera companies, the Los Angeles Opera and the Washington National Opera. He recently premiered in his first baritone role, Verdi's challenging Simon Boccanegra, which according to Wikipedia is his 128th operatic role -- more than any tenor in history.