American Gothic

American Gothic, by Grant Wood, has always been one of my favorite paintings. Cliche I know, but I just love it. While in Chicago this past weekend I was able to see not only the original painting (1930) in the Chicago Institute of Art, but also a sister work of art from 2005 that mimics it nearby across from the famous Tribune Building.

I recently found out that the painting by Wood depicts a farmer and his DAUGHTER, not his wife like I always assumed, according to his sister Nan. He modeled the pair on his dentist, Dr. Byron McKeeby and sister; people he thought looked like occupants of such a house. The original building was in Eldon, Iowa and was painted from memory. The painting was submitted to the institute in a contest and won first place: $300 and a bronze medal. The museum purchased it shortly afterwards and it became one of the most widely published paintings of all history.

The nearby statue is of fiberglass and was created by J. Seward Johnson (the Johnson & Johnson heir). Measuring in at an impressive 25 feet high, the statue is called 'God Bless America'. Which do you prefer?

RIP iphone

I've been obsessed with fountains lately. I loved the video feature on the iphone because I collected 10 second clips of every fountain I saw! It was the start of a beautiful collection. Above is the huge fountain in the Memorial park in Crystal City, Virginia along Crystal Drive. Below is the fountain in the garden of the Chicago Institute of Art.


For those that asked, I had to get rid of the phone because it did not pick up an AT&T wireless signal in my apartment -in the heart of the city!

Paul Gauguin ceramics

While at the Chicago Institute of Art, I came across a piece that was surprising to me: A ceramic vessel by Paul Gauguin. Yes, THAT Paul Gauguin: the post-impressionist with the colorful exotic paintings based in Polynesia. I had no idea he was so prolific!

The vessel is of course of a young Polynesian girl or 'Leda and the Swan' (from Greek mythology) as it is entitled, and was made in 1887/88. The girl hugging the swan makes up the body while the swan's neck makes a clever handle. Really magnificent!

The Institute is one of my favorite museums because they pair not just paintings of similar time periods, but they give you the whole perspective with furniture, ceramics and even lighting fixtures of the time period. This vessel was in the same room as a number of Gauguin's works. The building has a new wing by one of my favorite architects, Renzo Piano and I will talk more about that soon!

and again - pictures by my iphone (which I think I'm giving up on and returning despite the great camera quality!)

Millennium Park continued

Adjacent to the Pritzger Pavilion, by Frank Gehry,are 2 other interesting pieces of sculpture that really capture 2 different styles of monuments.The first is a very classical structure, the Millennium Monument in Wrigley Square. It is a slightly smaller version of a Greek (doric) styled monument, designed by Edward Bennett, (who also designed the famous Buckingham Fountain nearby) which stood nearby from 1917 till 1953. I love classical structures like these, but sadly it was the emptiest part of the whole park.The Cloud-gate, lovingly nicknamed the bean for obvious reasons, was immensly more popular. I could see why: totally interactive, people loved to look at their own reflections 'carnival style' and walk in, around and under it. The sculpture sits in the AT&T plaza section: built of polished steel, it weighs in at 110 TONS! The heavy work was the first installation by artist Anish Kapoor in the United States and cost upwards of $23 million -about 5 times more than the classical Millenium monument! It is meant to depict a drop of mercury right before impact with the ground. The sculpture was hand polished on site after delivery to hide the weld-lines. They did a good job because it is amazingly PERFECT (although it could do with a good washing with windex!). You can easily see why this is the most popular piece in the park! If you plan a trip to Chicago (and you must!) plan to visit the Millennium Park!

Frank Gehry and the Jay Pritzker Pavilion

This past weekend I visited one of my favorite cities, Chicago. I was so excited to finally see the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park designed by Frank Gehry. Completed in July 2004, the pavilion is an open stage which seats upwards of 11,000 people in a mixture of fixed seats and the lawn as well as accomodate a full orcherstra on stage.

The pavilion is the gem of Millenium park, which is built over a large parking lot and the Harris Theater. One thing I question is the very lage trellis structure over the lawn seating, seen below. Meant to hold the complicated sound system, I wonder why a vinyl or canvas covering could not be stretched over it in the wintertime for more year round use. It seems much more practical to me and would not break the covenant for no buildings in the park as it would be a temporary structure. Just my 2 cents!

detail of the structure which directs the sound into the audience.

I never have been a fan of Gehry, but I think his style is best suited to outdoor structures like these and it is truly magnificent. Never mind that it cost around $60 million, it was well worth it as it's probably one of the most visited attraction in Chicago these days!

the pavilion seen in the distance above the water wall.

all photos taken with my iphone -which turned out surprisingly well!

weekend jaunt

A lot has been said in the media lately about local desinations being popular this summer or the 'staycation'. Use this little reminder as your incentive to get out there and see something new: it is the season after all!

Photos of the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco (not local, but a destination none the less!).

A gift for your architect.

I saw these creative cufflinks on Ebay and thought they were so clever! Architectural measurements of the actual cufflink of 3/4" x 1/2"; they even got the script right! Yours for only $45 on ebay HERE (PS: I have no affiliation with the seller at all).

National Gallery of Art

I'm loving my new iphone! While at the National Gallery of Art this past weekend I was having fun playing around with it in the front gardens; probably my favorite spot in the city

Even the video function which I never thought I would use is a really fun toy! The front entrance on the Mall is flanked by 2 small identical gardens with these huge, beautiful marble fountains in the center: Enjoy the fountain video- turn up your sound!

Rainbows

Rainbows are a reminder that tomorrow is always another day. (bonus points if you name that movie!)

Pictures taken at Sugarleaf Vineyard in Charlottesville, VA and Provincetown, Cape Cod.

The original Roosevelt Memorial.

Visitors to Washington, DC always stop at the amazing Roosevelt Memorial of water features, pictured above, completed in 1997. However, most people aren't familiar with the original Roosevelt Memorial which is largely forgotten.Located across from the National Archives at 9th St NW & Pennsylvania Avenue in a little grassy plot, a simple piece of square marble simply says: "In memory of: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1882 - 1945" as seen above.

This plaque bears the story of how this strange monument came to be. Roosevelt told the Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfuter

"If any memorial is to be erected to me, I know exactly what I should like it to be. I should like it to consist of a block about the size of this desk and placed in the center of that green plot in front of the Archives Building. I don't care what it is made of, whether limestone or granite or whatnot, but I want it to be plain without any ornamentation , with the simple carving, In memory of.."

I have to agree - simple is stronger.