Drawing from a tradition that embraces excess -- whether it be in poetry, rock 'n' roll, life, or all of the above -- Patti Smith brings passion and wit to her rough-edged, anarchist music. Her songs recall the lives of such debauched, ecstatic souls as Rimbaud, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, and James

Agitated, Bombast, Dissonant, Gritty, Hard rock, Punk, Religious, Rough

Sir Giles Gilbert Scott II has shaped the modern, urban British landscape -- even if many people don't know it. His work is as archetypically British as golden arches were, once upon a time, essentially American. Scott is responsible for those bright red telephone boxes gracing Great Britain since 1

Bright, Classical architecture, Decorative, Elegant, Pioneering, Religious

In 1925, while he was teaching at a boy's school in Wales, the young Evelyn Waugh attempted suicide by swimming out to sea. After getting fairly far from shore, he was forced to turn back: a shoal of stinging jellyfish had beset him. Macabre, comic, and ironic, this incident epitomizes Waugh's entire

Agitated, Angry, Clever, Realist fiction, Religious, Sardonic

A whisper of light illuminates four figures, cloaking them in tenderness and warmth, and there arises a sense of the subtle anticipation of early morning, the relief that accompanies forgiveness, and the graciousness that rewards gentle touch. "The Return of the Prodigal Son" exemplifies the human

Baroque art, Dramatic, Intense, Pathos, Religious, Violent