Inspired by Art

One of my go-to sources of inspiration is an art gallery.  I am fortunate to live 30 miles from Washington, DC and a trek to the city is always the shot-in-the-arm I need. During my latest trip downtown I had the pleasure of visiting the Renwick Gallery on Pennsylvania Avenue, a few doors down from the Blair House and the White House.  I have only been there once before, some 30 years ago, and this is now on the top of my list!

The Renwick Gallery, which opened in 1874, was Washington's first art gallery and was referred to as the American Louvre.  It is part of the Smithsonian's American Art Museum and houses a collection of contemporary craft and decorative art.  It has recently undergone a two year renovation bringing it up to more contemporary standards.  

The current exhibit "WONDER" runs through May 2016.  Parts of it will remain open through July while some of the art will be added to the Renwick's permanent collection.  Nine artists have created large scale installations which beg the visitor to experience each artwork in three dimensional space; walking around it, almost touching it, experiencing the sights and smells (yes the giant rubber tire sculpture by Chakaia Booker emanates a smell I have an aversion to). 

 Here is a preview of some of the beautiful installations:

Tara Donovan's pillars made from paper products:

Gabriel Dawe's string installation:

Patrick Dougherty's woven sticks:

Mya Lin's clear glass marble installation:

John Grade's beautifully recreated wooden tree:

Leo Villereale's moving light display:

For a great view of the exhibit through Instagram, follow "#renwickgallery". 

 The photos above are courtesy of The Renwick Gallery. 

 [Sadly, my photos were lost in a technical glitch.]

I hope you get to see this fun, tactile and inspirational exhibit if you are in the DC area and that it inspires you as much as it did me!