Object
Armor
Milan, Italy
c. 1600–1610
Before the Wall Street Crash of 1929, William Randolph Hearst bought this Milanese suit of parade armor for $15,000 and displayed it in his New York apartment. Standing at just over 5 feet tall, it was probably made for a young man of small stature but great prominence. The dense ornament is carved, punched, and delicately damascened—a painstaking craft—in silver and gold. This was one of six suits of armor Hearst owned, part of the tycoon's vast collection of treasures that included swords, guns, silver and gold, tapestries, enamels, and paintings. Most were sold when his fortunes reversed in the 1930s. For the first time since then, 150 items from Hearst's holdings are reunited in "Hearst the Collector," an exhibition currently at LACMA in Los Angeles, through Feb. 1. lacma.org
Book
Ken Adam Designs the Movies: James Bond and BeyondBy Christopher Frayling and Ken Adam
Steven Spielberg calls the War Room in Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove the finest set in the history of film. It and other celluloid worlds designed by Ken Adam are revealed in large-format concept sketches, technical drawings, floor plans, and stills, as well as behind-the-scenes stories of directors at odds with the designer. Thames & Hudson; $65
Architectural Improvisation: A History of Vermont's Design/Build Movement 1964–1977
Fleming Museum, Burlington, Vt. Through Dec. 19
Migrants from the architecture schools at Yale and U. Penn landed in Vermont in the 1960s, versed in Bauhaus theory and primed to launch their own radical movement in a quiet place. Undocumented until now, their design/build projects experimented with organic forms, natural materials, and some far-flung notions—like wind power and co-housing—that are getting traction today. flemingmuseum.org
