Friday, April 6, 2012

Art Tour Series, Part I

I love to go to museums, especially with my kids, Bethany and Mike, and soak up all that is creative and unleashed within those usually spectacular museum walls.  These places are shrines, and I'd like to start a monthly post on some of my favorite museums.  I usually come away so inspired, it fuels my fire ( that sounds like lyrics to a song! ).  I hope you enjoy my journey, and please let me know if you've been to these places, and share your thoughts with us!

Trip Number 1: The Hirshorn Gallery and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC.


I have to start here, since this is near my home, and the place I go the most!   The Hirshorn was built in 1960, and has a vast collection of contemporary and modern art and sculpture.  There are always interactive exhibits ( here I am trying to put myself on the Niagra Falls);


unending circular halls of sculpture and art, with the likes of Rodin, Echelman, Brancusi, Motherwell, Kapoor, and hundreds more....

                                                                                     

                                                                             





                                                                        

                                                                           

                                                                                 

 

a maze of outdoor gardens...




and tons of tactile, emotional and thought provoking experiences to be had... I love it!

This brings to mind a story of my days as a high school art teacher, while on a field trip to the DC art galleries, a student looks at a piece of modern art and  says to me: "I could have done that!", and my response was " but you didn't !" while further explaining the years of 'work' the artist created to get to this point, are something a teenager cannot even fathom.

My connection between interior design and sculpture is intimately related.  I love the variety of textures, the design qualities of light, line and space, and how a sculpture is 'presented' or displayed has everything to do with placement and arrangement, just like in interior spaces.  Then of course, the addition of color is another huge emotional response for me, which fuels my love of color in all things...

Next month will feature another of my favorite national galleries, so stay tuned!

Don't forget to check out our GIVEAWAY! 

~Nancy




3 comments:

  1. I think my grandmother, who was an art history and fine art teacher at NOVA back in the '70s, said that to me and anyone in her classes that dared to belittle post-modern art.

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  2. Hi Nancy - Thanks for visiting my blog. Wonderful to find you. I worked at the Smithsonian for 5 years, and the collection at the Hirshorn was / is one of my favorites. I think the building is awesome, too. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to your posts. Loi

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  3. These are so interesting and cool. Thanks for sharing!!

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