Photo Realism and Meeting my Heroine
Where to Begin? There have been days and days since the last posting, and frankly longer since I've really even thought about this little enclave I'm so trying to discipline myself to use. I could not, however, pass up the opportunity to recap the past couple of weeks.
On a Thursday evening not long ago my dear friend Jane invited me to attend an evening of Art Appreciation. Though I was sick as a dog, weak and faded from the flu that has been going around, we decided it was just too nice an opportunity to miss. We ponied up and went into the city to attend a showing of Robert Bechtle's works on paper at Crown Point Press, right around the corner from the MOMA.
As a very recent inductee into the world of modern and contemporary art, I am in a state of constant vesseldom... that is, I approach each of these experiences as an empty vessel to be filled with new knowledge, awareness and (hopefully) appreciation. Art, like Wine, is a personal thing, and yet also like wine, a little education goes a long way towards enhancing one's experience and appreciation. One of Jane's favorite things is the speculation and appreciation of Art, mostly modern and contemporary, but her knowledge base is vast and extends (so far as I've found) everywhere.
It was a lovely evening despite my inability to remain standing too long (a glass of Cab or two certainly helped keep me on my feet.... and that's hardly ever the case). We went to the show at Crown Point and then promptly whisked ourselves around the corner to the MOMA where my good friend Kirra was volunteering that night. The event, as it happened, was the Member's night opening of a Bechtle retrospective. Fabulous. Innumerable works, superb display and room arrangement, and the chance for me to bump into friends and gaze at Bechtle's fascinating art. Needless to say, before long I realized if I wasn't home in bed quickly the floor around me would soon suffice; so we left.
The following Thursday was to hold new, even more pleasant surprises. Jane again had the generosity to invite me to an evening at the home of some friends of hers who live in Sea Cliff. They were hosting an evening known as the Collector's Forum. Basically it is a group of very wealthy people who in one way or another support the art and museum world. Most are benefactors of the MOMA and all are collectors of some degree. I asked if we could also invite my Art History professor, Deborah Loft, who is one of the most inspiring and quality teachers I've ever had. She kindly accepted our invitation and the three of us were the first ones there.
Walking in the door, Jim and Jean's home was striking from the moment. An original, and I say beautiful, Claude Monet hung above the fireplace, and the entry was adorned by a Neri sculpture in Marble. The guest of honor on this night was... you guessed it, Robert Bechtle, come to show some slides and spill the beans on his technique and some history of his career. What I discovered just the day before was that there was a chance that his wife, one of my current Heroines, might also be there.
She was. So I met and spoke with Whitney Chadwick, author of Women, Art and Society, the text we used two semesters ago in our History of Art by Women course. The slide show was great, but the chatting with Whitney and Robert afterwards was even more enlightening. After some delicious tiny warm chocolate cakes (I had three), the three of us jumped in Deborah's car and made our way back across the GG.
I have found myself in the last few weeks, moving in circles I didn't even know existed. I have taken it on as an opportunity to educate myself via experience, to encounter kinds of people who live very different lives and involve themselves daily in very different endeavors than I. It is a world I'm not sure I'd ever be entirely comfortable in; a little to much attention paid to what others are looking like and doing, and not enough attention paid to who those people actually are, but I am with a good friend who knows the ropes well and isn't afraid to just pull me right along to the next big adventure....
Speaking of which... Next Saturday promises to be the icing on the proverbial cake.
On a Thursday evening not long ago my dear friend Jane invited me to attend an evening of Art Appreciation. Though I was sick as a dog, weak and faded from the flu that has been going around, we decided it was just too nice an opportunity to miss. We ponied up and went into the city to attend a showing of Robert Bechtle's works on paper at Crown Point Press, right around the corner from the MOMA.
As a very recent inductee into the world of modern and contemporary art, I am in a state of constant vesseldom... that is, I approach each of these experiences as an empty vessel to be filled with new knowledge, awareness and (hopefully) appreciation. Art, like Wine, is a personal thing, and yet also like wine, a little education goes a long way towards enhancing one's experience and appreciation. One of Jane's favorite things is the speculation and appreciation of Art, mostly modern and contemporary, but her knowledge base is vast and extends (so far as I've found) everywhere.
It was a lovely evening despite my inability to remain standing too long (a glass of Cab or two certainly helped keep me on my feet.... and that's hardly ever the case). We went to the show at Crown Point and then promptly whisked ourselves around the corner to the MOMA where my good friend Kirra was volunteering that night. The event, as it happened, was the Member's night opening of a Bechtle retrospective. Fabulous. Innumerable works, superb display and room arrangement, and the chance for me to bump into friends and gaze at Bechtle's fascinating art. Needless to say, before long I realized if I wasn't home in bed quickly the floor around me would soon suffice; so we left.
The following Thursday was to hold new, even more pleasant surprises. Jane again had the generosity to invite me to an evening at the home of some friends of hers who live in Sea Cliff. They were hosting an evening known as the Collector's Forum. Basically it is a group of very wealthy people who in one way or another support the art and museum world. Most are benefactors of the MOMA and all are collectors of some degree. I asked if we could also invite my Art History professor, Deborah Loft, who is one of the most inspiring and quality teachers I've ever had. She kindly accepted our invitation and the three of us were the first ones there.
Walking in the door, Jim and Jean's home was striking from the moment. An original, and I say beautiful, Claude Monet hung above the fireplace, and the entry was adorned by a Neri sculpture in Marble. The guest of honor on this night was... you guessed it, Robert Bechtle, come to show some slides and spill the beans on his technique and some history of his career. What I discovered just the day before was that there was a chance that his wife, one of my current Heroines, might also be there.
She was. So I met and spoke with Whitney Chadwick, author of Women, Art and Society, the text we used two semesters ago in our History of Art by Women course. The slide show was great, but the chatting with Whitney and Robert afterwards was even more enlightening. After some delicious tiny warm chocolate cakes (I had three), the three of us jumped in Deborah's car and made our way back across the GG.
I have found myself in the last few weeks, moving in circles I didn't even know existed. I have taken it on as an opportunity to educate myself via experience, to encounter kinds of people who live very different lives and involve themselves daily in very different endeavors than I. It is a world I'm not sure I'd ever be entirely comfortable in; a little to much attention paid to what others are looking like and doing, and not enough attention paid to who those people actually are, but I am with a good friend who knows the ropes well and isn't afraid to just pull me right along to the next big adventure....
Speaking of which... Next Saturday promises to be the icing on the proverbial cake.
posted by Peter at
7:44 PM
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