Terri Higgins

This exhibit wasn't in an art museum but in the National Museum of Natural History.

The creatures inflated and deflated along with beautiful lighting in the Ocean Hall. The one piece integrated a computer screen housing the eyes. The wires didn't seem out of place when you consider how much they look at home in an underwater atmosphere. This exhibit was heavily attended and it wasn't the easiest place to stand and observe. I did my best but I didn't get a chance to appreciate all the nuances.Some of Huang's materials used  to construct the creatures were garbage bags, tape, fans, computers, ink and Mr. Clean. This exhibit ended on January 8, 2012.

This weekend a new Degas exhibit opened at The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC and I stopped in to take a look at it.  I'll admit that I was never a huge Degas fan but this exhibit had me changing my mind. 2 pieces in particular had me impressed, Dancers At The Barre, which is much more impressive in person than in photos and another small painting that I've unfortunately forgotten the title of, but you can't miss it. It is a small painting with a pink background, drawn in a brown gouache wash. It is simple and gorgeous. 

I found I appreciated Degas's work much more when his pieces were hung together instead of in a collection with other artists; it made a huge difference for me. It made it much easier to see his direction rather than appearing he had just found a pretty subject matter to paint. The exhibit is set up to show how the ballet and his painting held a bond in repetition. I could enjoy his work much more after looking at it with that idea in mind and I found I  a new appreciation of his dedication, 30 years of ballet dancers.

Before leaving the exhibit there is  a small room with paintings by other artists/friends of Degas. They are an impressive lot ranging from Gauguin to Bonnard, but these works do not interfere or distract from the focus of the Degas exhibit, since they are set apart from it. Exiting you are treated to entering a quiet, narrow room with mirrors and ballet barre. I love fine touches like that to exhibits. 

Washington, DC

I highly recommend seeing this memorial.  Sculptor Frank Gaylord.

Interesting play of light.

My best friend is my Kindle

I haven’t known it for years

Because It’s new on the block

 But one day, I took a chance

And got involved

 

So far, it hasn’t hurt my feelings

Or deleted me or unfriended me

Nor dropped me as if I didn’t mean a thing

It hasn't treated me like a stranger 

It hasn’t criticized me

Judged me

Or made me feel unwanted

 

It remembers my name

It always has the time

And I always seem to be invited

 It never reveals I was the last on the list

Or what someone said behind my back

It doesn't exclude me because "I won't know anyone"

 I can travel with my friend

It doesn’t leave me behind

It doesn’t describe its travels

And with whom,

It doesn’t tell me about the party

Punctuating I was left out

 

It waits for me

 

I can have breakfast,

Lunch, and dinner with it

It never seems to tire of me

A perfect companion 

Who gives me its full attention

 

It doesn’t feel sorry for me

Or look away

because 

something 

Is more Interesting than me

 It’s very discreet

No one knows what I’m thinking

Or reading

It doesn’t gossip

It knows how to keep a secret

 

It’s very interesting

Sometimes funny, sometimes sad

Sometimes it just sits quietly

Sometimes it gives me advice

 

It must think I’m interesting too

 It remembers what I was doing

It saves my place

And when I come back

We pick up just where we left off

As if we were never apart

Like any good friend would.

I've switched to a new comment host, IntenseDebate, and everything seems to be working fine now. I did notice that a lot of older blog posts are missing and I'm not sure how long ago that happened.  I will probably try to repost any that seemed worthwhile.  

New additions to my art collection from David Higgins (Snowman) and Katie Chenault (Lighthouse).

Me as an Andy Warhol subject.

Me as a comic book character.

Me as a science fiction character.

It's easier than digging through the drawers and less confusing than putting them on top of taboret. 

Just finished gesso-ing this canvas. It will need a few days.

Detail of hand. I especially like how the form turned out on this one, thumb is expressive.

Detail other hand.  I decided to abstract this even more. It's definitely an implied image of a hand.

On Friday evening, I had a great honor to be invited to the Spotsylvania County Schools "Showcase of Excellence" by Senior Katie Chenault.  Katie is an Independent study student of Studio Art and used some of my work as inspiration for some of her work. We traded artwork, as artists have the tendency to do. 

The pointillsim painting has a new home.

Katie's presentation of her work was very professional.  Somehow I missed taking a pic of the painting she did inspired from my work!! but there's a portion of it right side under guitar painting. Maybe Katie can email me the image.  

The Lighthouse painting was the piece I went home with but I could hardly decide since they all were beautiful.  Her work is very expressive in the medium Tempera Resist.  I loved the layering of color.

Colors pop in her work, my iphone camera didn't pick it all up.

She knows how to layout a page. Great design work!

Detail Lighthouse.

A start to a small pointillism painting.

This painting is coming along nicely.

I had to remind myself of how I like the paint strokes to be, when I began to be dissatisfied. 

Today I visited the Phillips Collection in this beautiful Georgian Revival house from 1897.  I think every single painting is worth going to see.  The music room was a surprise with a coffered ceiling and dark intricate wood paneling and columns. This did prevent any labeling of the paintings in the room. I found a listing by the corner window but it was still difficult to identify individual paintings, though it's completely obvious why they chose to do it that way. For a while I stopped looking at the paintings in the music room altogether just to admire the room.  The rest of the museum rooms were labeled as usual.

I was very happy to see a collection of Jacob Lawrence paintings.  I'm not sure but I think it is the first time I've seen his work in person instead of in a book.  

The special exhibit was Philip Guston, Roma,  but I wasn't thrilled with it.  I think it goes along with too much pink.

Some of the artists I enjoyed were Cezanne, Van Gogh, Matisse, Bonnard, and Daumier, there were many more. I liked the mixture of paintings hanging in the rooms. 

There was a small room dedicated to Mark Rothko. (Above) I love Mark Rothko's work. It's hard to appreciate unless you see in person, but the scintillation is exciting and is full of emotion.

This is what's going on on the side, a small project top left in progress.

Still roughed in but drawing is sealed before starting to paint.

Blank canvas, it all starts like this.

IF

DANCER DRAWING

THROW AWAY FRIENd

I became a throw away friend

when you stopped talking to me

leaving a wound of sadness

a realization that cut through the essence of my spirit

 left behind

the substance  treasured

was instead frivolity

why I didn't know

my foolish face I hid

sadness took me

and finally my spirit did succumb

I meander in and out of lives

an indelible mark I never make

I know this about myself -now

you taught me

my hopes no longer rise to the surface

why should they?

for a throw away friend

the lump in my throat is swallowed down hard

life continues

forgotten

LAMENTATIONS