Just Another Person Who Thinks She Knows Something
28 December
I’m not the biggest fan of Picasso, but in his early years, specifically the blue period, before he went off into the Cubist kind of “whoa okay” movement, I don’t mind him. This particular work is very moving, and up close, the use of complimentary oranges is very striking – it gives a layered nuance to the heavy usage of blues.
27 December
This is my favorite iconic view of the Eiffel Tower; it’s a pop art style in bright, perfect colors that stands out, but it was done in such a wonderful 20s expressionist style.
26 December
As opposed to The Tavern, this painting is meant to be appreciated for its open spaces, its colors, and its light. However, it is still meant to be uncomfortable in a different way – it is meant to highlight the darkness of the upper class and the plight of the invisible poor.
25 December
There is something about this that is just impermanent and fleeting, dark and destructive, visceral and cruel, even though it is none of those things and is just vague lines on a canvas. It might be the coloring, all primary and aggressive in a relentless way, or it might be the positioning of the figures, in a claustrophobic way, with no space between them and no feeling of dimension. But it is not a comfortable painting in any way, and it is not meant to invoke a feeling of such.
24 December
I remember when this used to hang right outside the entryway to Panorama, the Museum’s restaurant, back in the day. You’d have to go beneath the chandelier to go up to Panorama from the bottom floor, and it was like being bathed in broken, bright light from heaven. The lighting is different now, but it’s still so lovely if you can get just the right day – the light just sings.
(We had some issues beginning December 16, and lost all content tables between the 16 and the 23, so I’m beginning to repost beginning the 23rd of December.)
This painting reminds me of science fiction novel covers from the 1970s and early 1980s, or at least the backgrounds thereof. There is something both abstract and comforting about it in a context like that, even though it is slightly disconcerting in other ways.
While this is my second favorite work of contemporary sculpture, I never really ascribed to it any of the conventional meanings. In fact, to me, it’s much more of a feeling of abstract notions rather than a direct equation, unlike most people’s interpretations of the work. I feel very calm and centered when I look at it, with a nudge in the direction of intellectual stimulus, rather than, say, wanting to go watch something on television or the like.
There is a simplicity and a complexity in trying to replicate nature in art. It seems both easy and trite, yet isn’t easy to achieve in the slightest. The execution sometimes becomes abstract, such as in this case.
This isn’t your typical Tiffany glass vase; it’s not as schooled and elegant, the lines aren’t as crisp and clear, but you can definitely tell it’s from Tiffany as opposed to anyone else. It just has that panache.
A lot has changed in St. Louis over the years, including urbanization, city blight, gentrification, etc., and that began as early as 1888 in some parts of the city. This painting embraces a kind of optimism about the pre-WWII industrial expansion that was going on in parts of the city and shows it off in bright colors and flashy ways that belies the truth of how the sprawl actually became more of a problem than a solution.