Brandywine River Museum Visit

Deanna and I took our MICA classes on a tip to the Brandywine Museum today. They had a great exhibit up on illustrations done for Edgar Allan Poe stories. We got to see some originals by Barry Moser, Aurthur Rackham, and Harry Clark, among many others. As always, the permanent collection was incredible. I am floored by the large NC Wyeth paintings every time I see them.

Paris - Post 2

One of the best things we did on the trip was take one of the river tours on the Seine. This is about as touristy as it gets, but seeing Paris from the water at night was incredibly dramatic and overwhelming. We started our tour a little before 10 just when it was getting dark. It didn't hurt that we were on there with about 300 other people who were really excited by the experience as well. It had a weird field trip/rock concert feel to it. Turning one bend and seeing the lit up Notre Dame for the first time really socked us in the gut. There was a very heartfelt and synchronized "whooooa..." everyone let out at the same moment.

This is the Pont Neuf, the oldest standing bridge in Paris. Each bridge along the way is unique and they use just about every architectural style in the book since they were constructed at different times. This bridge features 384 different heads sculpted along the sides of it. As far as I can tell each head is different.

Here is a view from Pont de la Concorde. You can see the Pont Alexandre III straight ahead. Alexandre III was the most elaborate bridge we saw. It featured lots of sculptures and ornate lamps along it. The Eiffel Tower is of course beaming on the left.

Paris - Post 1

Deanna and I just got back from a week in Paris. We have been planning this for about four years now and haven't had a proper vacation in about that time. I'm going to post a couple pictures for the next few days. Here is a simple yet elegant one. This was spotted on a small side street on one of our many walks around the city in the Montmartre area. It was a decoration on some type of shutter hinge. The bust was about an inch tall. It didn't look like it had been used in quite a while. I loved the patina on it and the worn off face. I promise some more picturesque images to come, but I liked all of the little touches and details we encountered there. We had an incredible time and were dumfounded over and over while exploring the city.

Deanna and I went to the BMA this weekend to check out the Baltimore Contemporary Print Fair. We saw a few things we really liked, but were most taken by the art of South African artist Diane Victor. Diane draws using the smoke from candles; producing an extremely delicate look. Some of her series have dealt with AIDs patients and missing children. The medium mirrors her subject matter in a most beautiful way. Once the carbon from the candle smoke hits the paper it sticks, but it takes nothing more can a light paintbrush stroke or graze of a finger to wipe it off. She says she has yet to find a way to successfully fix the smoke. An attempt to use spray fix has totally destroyed the piece. Click any of the photos below to see a video of her process. Its amazing how much of her personality comes through in this short piece.