Hello there! I apologize for my absence. Last week started out slow with lots of time and ended in a rush with no time to spare. Lots going on, some of it exciting and some of it scary, but all good. In this New Year I have decided to visit an art museum each month. I mean come on, I live in fricking New York City so I have no excuses! I decided that my first trip would be to MoMa. I just made it before the end of the month! Whew! I was joined by a friend that I haven’t seen since July, which leads me to another New Year intention. I think most of my friends will attest that I never call them, let alone invite them to things, so if I want to keep my friends I better get on that!
Here are some pictures of the stand-outs from my trip.
The Diego Rivera exhibit.
This mural is titled Frozen Assests. I think that although it is from the 1930s that it is relevant to today and the Occupy Wall Street movement. It depicts the New York City skyline with the growing skyscrapers, unemployed men sleeping in a covered shelter, and a bank vault where the accumulating wealth is being counted.
This is the Agrarian Leader Zapata mural. An interesting part of the exhibit is that they showed his sketches of the murals before they were painted. This was necessary because of the size of the murals and the quick drying nature of the paints and materials he used. Apparently he would often re-work small details like the feet over and over trying to get them just right. After my drawing course last fall I can appreciate his attention to detail. It’s really hard to get the details right, especially feet or hands.
Another exhibit that resonated with me was the feminist exhibit titled Sweet Violence showing the work of Sonja Iveković. She is a Croation artist from the former Yugoslavia, who works in photography, video, sculpture, drawing, and performance.
This is Lady Rosa of Luxembourg displayed in the center of the museum. This monument is a ‘countermonument’ meaning an heroic form like Lady Victory is altered, in this case she is pregnant, which then changes the way the public perceives the monument.
These posters also stood out to me. On the surface they look like fashion photography, but when you read the text it tells the woman’s story of being beaten or humiliated by her husband or boyfriend.
And of course you can’t go to MoMa without stopping by the Design Store or the bookstore. I could spend hours in these stores without even entering the museum. However, I was able to control myself and not buy anything, not even a postcard! But it is a great place to find unique gifts (or things for yourself of course).
Of all the multiple cool things in the store, this is the item that caught my attention yesterday. It is a Pig Cooking Lid that helps food cook evenly be releasing steam. It can be used on the stove top or in the microwave.
All in all it was a great trip! See you again soon.
iwanttolivehere 