A missed assignment lead me to one of the nicest afternoons I've had in some time. I got my mind in the right place, made an Explosions in the Sky
playlist and biked over to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts for afternoon of solitary observation and contemplation.
Some of my favorites are below:
"Three sisters" by Jean Atoine Laurent- the personalities of each are brought to life extraordinarily well. Each has an agenda, an approach to life and a distinct personality.
"Goat path" by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot. The scene is calming. There are two goats in the picture in which the shepherd doesn't seem to worry for. The scene's colors are muted to give the impression of late afternoon, early evening.
Bridge by Monet. Attention to detail on the under-structure of the bridge was interesting. Each beam can be seen and traced to its function as architectural support.
These three pieces are a sampling of work that caught my attention and made me stop. I am by all accounts ignorant and inept when it comes to viewing art, but I know what I like.
The highlight of the afternoon came when I noticed one of the many security drones in the museum taking in a piece. I asked her how working in a museum affected how she looked at art. Her response and example blew me away.
She told me that she no longer saw the work as it was, but as a collection of details. She no longer saw the piece as a completed entity but as an accumulation of small imperfections or stories.
No moral, just a reminder for me how the most unlikely can notice things no one else sees.
This represents our crisis finally trickling down to touch those of us previously unaffected or invincible to our crumbling economy. This ad speaks to me in a number of ways.
