Weblog 175
June 14, 2009~ 12:00am
I took a vacation day on Friday, so Wayne and I availed ourselves of a day trip to the Carnegie Museum.
The Art Museum opened in 1895, and the Natural History Museum in 1896. Both the work of Pittsburgh steel baron, Andrew Carnegie. I believe the sheer size and inclusiveness of these museums rival any major exhibits in the entire world. We've got everything from bugs to dinosaurs to mummies...to Picasso.
I'd not seen the new dinosaur T-Rex display until Friday, and the difference between the old 'Hall of Dinosaurs', and the new- which looks like something from Disney -was a BIG surprise. I have a soft spot in my heart for the old austere display of HUGE SKELETONS that seemed as high as houses in a softy shadowed, cavernous room with forbidding "DO NOT TOUCH" placards everywhere...but that's progress for ya'....can't keep the kiddoes interested (they think) in this day and age, without interactive displays and jungle sounds and push-button CD-ROM action at play stations interspersed with the actual fossils. (I think the old style was awesome and creepy, but maybe that's just me.)
They've pared down the Egyptian exhibit quite a bit. I remember sarcophagi laid out plainly and solemnly, so that it felt funereal and atmospheric. And all around, displays of broken pottery and amulets, and even one old mummy with a leathery hand poking out of its wrappings. This updated section is colorful, but it lacks all atmosphere.
The Native American section is WONDERUL however-- as well as all the natural history sections with their stuffed grizzlies and rack-headed moose looking real enough to charge. (My favorite is the restored 'Lion Hunt'- showing a Bedouin on camel, fending off an attacking male lion, with the lion's claws already deeply embedded into the camel's leg, and a dead female lion at their feet -- a cast off rifle with a bent ram rod lying useless in the sand -- and all mouths - the camel driver, the camel, and the attacking lion, opened and showing teeth -- while all their eyes roll wide in panic.) It used to scare me when I was little- I guess that's why it still has such a powerful effect.
The REAL THRILL for me was walking through the Carnegie Museum of Art!-- to walk around and stand close to such beauties as this John Dickson Batten
--big as life -- looking ready to breathe, in those golden Pre-Raphaelite and splendid hues was marvelous! (It's one thing to see a reproduction in a book or on a computer screen, but to experience a painting LARGE and right up close is a thrill beyond compare.)
I looked and looked for one painting I was particularly seeking out because it's always been my favorite: a haunting, dark-haired beauty that until our trip on Friday, I'd never known its name or the name of the artist. Then rounding one of the corners in the marble halls, there it was-- hanging next to a Sargent. But even with Sargent's power, nothing could compare to the intensity of that lady's stare.
It was titled simply, "Mrs. Chase" and had been painted by her husband, William Merritt Chase. It's a painting I find hard to tear my eyes from, and it's enormous (and yes, it's still my favorite.) When I got home I did a search on the artist's work, and found he'd painted her over and over. For a real feel for this master's talent, visit William Merritt Chase. His work is stunning. You'll find so many glimpses of his dark-haired Alice, as well as their daughter Dorothy, who is a comely and mesmerizing subject in her own right.
My second favorite painter is John White Alexander....
This is one of his many studies of women in single splendid colors-- with this one titled, "A Woman In Rose". There's just no way to describe the luminous quality of the painting's skin tones-- or that graceful, curve of neck. This example from the Carnegie (lovely and spellbinding as it is) is nothing compared to his VIVID LADIES in reds and emeralds and sapphire blues! Treat yourself to a perusal of some of his other paintings, and you'll see what I mean. John White Alexander
What further distinguishes this artist is that he also painted the large murals that decorate the main hallway balustrade walls. They are entitled, "The Apostheosis of Pittsburgh", and he painted them from 1907 up until his death in 1915, and what a accomplishment they are! (If you've clicked on the link to his other 'ladies', you can only imagine the beauty that decks those walls. He was a genius.)
We spent nearly five hours on Friday walking and taking in sights of more interest and beauty than I've experienced in quite a while, and it left me completely sated. I love to revisit places I've seen much earlier in my life, only to realize that the older I grow, the more deeply things move me. It's one of the lovelier parts of aging, and I guess it's the growth of wisdom, and a deeper appreciation of so much I'd taken for granted, or only 'half experienced' the first times round.
Youth is about 'flower-hopping' and the travel itself, but age is for the savoring of each stop along the way. And I did. I truly did.
June 14, 2009~ 2:00pm
Saturday evening brought more entertainment via a viewing of "Frost/Nixon"...
Langella was perfect as Richard Nixon, and Michael Sheen was compelling in his depiction of talk show host, David Frost. I'd always thought of Frost as a man without nerves, who threw himself at the person interviewed with a kind of naked glee, so it was no surprise to me that he was able to catch old Tricky Dick offguard in those post-Watergate interviews, but this film shows a more vulnerable side to the Frost of that time, that makes his success at getting Nixon to finally say that he'd done anything wrong all the more remarkable.
The movie title could well have 'v.s' between the two names, because it plays like a prize fight: lots of tension, lots of coaching from the sidelines, with the opponents often staggering back against the ropes.
Both actors were able to make their characters more sympathetic than either man seemed in reality at that time.
Frank Langella's portrayal of Nixon is hauntingly lonely, verging on delusional; he's got his hunch and his gait down pat. It's a stunning depiction for this accomplished actor whom I've loved since he played Dracula. Sheen is more boyish than I believe Frost ever was, but it works in this role. There's a quality of helplessness that pulls at the soul. As a viewer, you want to help him out, you want his scheme to work.
I do think anyone younger than 40 or so would have a hard time getting a feel for just how villainous Nixon's behavior had been in those days, if their only exposure is this film. He's not evil enough. LOL!!! But for sheer tension.... and a great build-up to the knockout punch in their fourth interview session, it did feel a bit like Rocky at the end, with sad, defeated Nixon holding the gift of Italian loafers from a departing (victorious) but gracious David Frost. Good movie, but not as aggressive as it could have been. For my money, nothing beats "All The President's Men" for capturing that era as it was, as its venality eviscerated this country. (Little did we know the sheer ruthlessness of a true imperial presidency was yet decades away. We thought we were dragon-slayers, but the BIG ONE was still sleeping in the mountain, waiting for the dawn of the new century.)
June 15, 2009~ 5:30pm
I called my daughter today and little Kay answered. Knowing they had a family camping trip this past weekend, I said, "Kay, how was the camping?"
"I ketched a twout!"
Well this made me laugh out loud...mostly because I understood it perfectly. Fishing. (And of course, last time BILL caught a trout and Kay nabbed a lowly sunfish.) So this green martian moonmaiden (taken at Bill's 6th birthday party in April, which had a 'space/planets/Martian' theme)
now claims her own bragging rights! 'Kay! the Dramatic!', 'Kay the Competitive', Kay the four year old angler-- hooked her very own first TROUT!
And very pleased she was too! It's the best sort of news to hear on the day back to work after a 3 day weekend, when the world seems pretty glum. Nothing like the sound of KAY-GLOAT bright and early in the a.m. It's right up there with birdsong -- It's mighty fine.
***
(Return To Weekly Archives)
I took a vacation day on Friday, so Wayne and I availed ourselves of a day trip to the Carnegie Museum.
The Art Museum opened in 1895, and the Natural History Museum in 1896. Both the work of Pittsburgh steel baron, Andrew Carnegie. I believe the sheer size and inclusiveness of these museums rival any major exhibits in the entire world. We've got everything from bugs to dinosaurs to mummies...to Picasso.
I'd not seen the new dinosaur T-Rex display until Friday, and the difference between the old 'Hall of Dinosaurs', and the new- which looks like something from Disney -was a BIG surprise. I have a soft spot in my heart for the old austere display of HUGE SKELETONS that seemed as high as houses in a softy shadowed, cavernous room with forbidding "DO NOT TOUCH" placards everywhere...but that's progress for ya'....can't keep the kiddoes interested (they think) in this day and age, without interactive displays and jungle sounds and push-button CD-ROM action at play stations interspersed with the actual fossils. (I think the old style was awesome and creepy, but maybe that's just me.)
They've pared down the Egyptian exhibit quite a bit. I remember sarcophagi laid out plainly and solemnly, so that it felt funereal and atmospheric. And all around, displays of broken pottery and amulets, and even one old mummy with a leathery hand poking out of its wrappings. This updated section is colorful, but it lacks all atmosphere.
The Native American section is WONDERUL however-- as well as all the natural history sections with their stuffed grizzlies and rack-headed moose looking real enough to charge. (My favorite is the restored 'Lion Hunt'- showing a Bedouin on camel, fending off an attacking male lion, with the lion's claws already deeply embedded into the camel's leg, and a dead female lion at their feet -- a cast off rifle with a bent ram rod lying useless in the sand -- and all mouths - the camel driver, the camel, and the attacking lion, opened and showing teeth -- while all their eyes roll wide in panic.) It used to scare me when I was little- I guess that's why it still has such a powerful effect.
The REAL THRILL for me was walking through the Carnegie Museum of Art!-- to walk around and stand close to such beauties as this John Dickson Batten
--big as life -- looking ready to breathe, in those golden Pre-Raphaelite and splendid hues was marvelous! (It's one thing to see a reproduction in a book or on a computer screen, but to experience a painting LARGE and right up close is a thrill beyond compare.)
I looked and looked for one painting I was particularly seeking out because it's always been my favorite: a haunting, dark-haired beauty that until our trip on Friday, I'd never known its name or the name of the artist. Then rounding one of the corners in the marble halls, there it was-- hanging next to a Sargent. But even with Sargent's power, nothing could compare to the intensity of that lady's stare.
It was titled simply, "Mrs. Chase" and had been painted by her husband, William Merritt Chase. It's a painting I find hard to tear my eyes from, and it's enormous (and yes, it's still my favorite.) When I got home I did a search on the artist's work, and found he'd painted her over and over. For a real feel for this master's talent, visit William Merritt Chase. His work is stunning. You'll find so many glimpses of his dark-haired Alice, as well as their daughter Dorothy, who is a comely and mesmerizing subject in her own right.
My second favorite painter is John White Alexander....
This is one of his many studies of women in single splendid colors-- with this one titled, "A Woman In Rose". There's just no way to describe the luminous quality of the painting's skin tones-- or that graceful, curve of neck. This example from the Carnegie (lovely and spellbinding as it is) is nothing compared to his VIVID LADIES in reds and emeralds and sapphire blues! Treat yourself to a perusal of some of his other paintings, and you'll see what I mean. John White Alexander
What further distinguishes this artist is that he also painted the large murals that decorate the main hallway balustrade walls. They are entitled, "The Apostheosis of Pittsburgh", and he painted them from 1907 up until his death in 1915, and what a accomplishment they are! (If you've clicked on the link to his other 'ladies', you can only imagine the beauty that decks those walls. He was a genius.)
We spent nearly five hours on Friday walking and taking in sights of more interest and beauty than I've experienced in quite a while, and it left me completely sated. I love to revisit places I've seen much earlier in my life, only to realize that the older I grow, the more deeply things move me. It's one of the lovelier parts of aging, and I guess it's the growth of wisdom, and a deeper appreciation of so much I'd taken for granted, or only 'half experienced' the first times round.
Youth is about 'flower-hopping' and the travel itself, but age is for the savoring of each stop along the way. And I did. I truly did.
June 14, 2009~ 2:00pm
Saturday evening brought more entertainment via a viewing of "Frost/Nixon"...
Langella was perfect as Richard Nixon, and Michael Sheen was compelling in his depiction of talk show host, David Frost. I'd always thought of Frost as a man without nerves, who threw himself at the person interviewed with a kind of naked glee, so it was no surprise to me that he was able to catch old Tricky Dick offguard in those post-Watergate interviews, but this film shows a more vulnerable side to the Frost of that time, that makes his success at getting Nixon to finally say that he'd done anything wrong all the more remarkable.
The movie title could well have 'v.s' between the two names, because it plays like a prize fight: lots of tension, lots of coaching from the sidelines, with the opponents often staggering back against the ropes.
Both actors were able to make their characters more sympathetic than either man seemed in reality at that time.
Frank Langella's portrayal of Nixon is hauntingly lonely, verging on delusional; he's got his hunch and his gait down pat. It's a stunning depiction for this accomplished actor whom I've loved since he played Dracula. Sheen is more boyish than I believe Frost ever was, but it works in this role. There's a quality of helplessness that pulls at the soul. As a viewer, you want to help him out, you want his scheme to work.
I do think anyone younger than 40 or so would have a hard time getting a feel for just how villainous Nixon's behavior had been in those days, if their only exposure is this film. He's not evil enough. LOL!!! But for sheer tension.... and a great build-up to the knockout punch in their fourth interview session, it did feel a bit like Rocky at the end, with sad, defeated Nixon holding the gift of Italian loafers from a departing (victorious) but gracious David Frost. Good movie, but not as aggressive as it could have been. For my money, nothing beats "All The President's Men" for capturing that era as it was, as its venality eviscerated this country. (Little did we know the sheer ruthlessness of a true imperial presidency was yet decades away. We thought we were dragon-slayers, but the BIG ONE was still sleeping in the mountain, waiting for the dawn of the new century.)
June 15, 2009~ 5:30pm
I called my daughter today and little Kay answered. Knowing they had a family camping trip this past weekend, I said, "Kay, how was the camping?"
"I ketched a twout!"
Well this made me laugh out loud...mostly because I understood it perfectly. Fishing. (And of course, last time BILL caught a trout and Kay nabbed a lowly sunfish.) So this green martian moonmaiden (taken at Bill's 6th birthday party in April, which had a 'space/planets/Martian' theme)
now claims her own bragging rights! 'Kay! the Dramatic!', 'Kay the Competitive', Kay the four year old angler-- hooked her very own first TROUT!
And very pleased she was too! It's the best sort of news to hear on the day back to work after a 3 day weekend, when the world seems pretty glum. Nothing like the sound of KAY-GLOAT bright and early in the a.m. It's right up there with birdsong -- It's mighty fine.
(Return To Weekly Archives)
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