Chasing Matisse

I made a blog entry last weekend about my visit to the Des Moines Art Center. In it, I mentioned that the Center has a variety of paintings by some pretty famous artists in its collection. One of those artists is Henri Matisse; this is "Woman in a White Dress," part of the permanent collection there. One of my regular blog readers, Isabelle, commented on my post that she is amazed how art finds its way all over the world...even to Des Moines, Iowa. That made me stop and think that, yes, it is pretty amazing! How did this Matisse end up in the middle of America's Heartland? Since Matisse is one of my favorite artists, I decided I would try to sleuth out answer to this mystery. This painting was one in a series of works that Matisse painted while he lived in Vence, France from 1943-1949. He was 75 years old at the time, but still working hard at his art. The painting was a gift to the Art Center by Elizabeth Bates and John Cowles. Cowles was part of a publishing dynasty and his life was not without controversy. He and his wife, Elizabeth were world travelers, actively involved in civil rights issues, and huge supporters of the arts. Where and when the Cowles obtained the painting is the next part of the painting's provenance and still a mystery. Maybe a another trip to the Art Center will provide me with a clue?

Quick Update for the Week

...still waiting for our new baby to arrive. Marley Grace is being stubborn; her mommy is very ready!!

...it's snowing here in Iowa today...not sticking much yet.

...work continues to be all-consuming. The financial news is not good; we were warned that there may be mandatory furloughs for managers. That would mean days up to a week without pay. Gulp!

...current 'reads' include Plainsong by Kent Harup and Traveler's Tales France.

...something I learned this week: that Merlin's forest and the Lady of the Lake legends are set in Brittany just outside of Rennes! I thought all those Arthurian legends were set in England.

...blog of my week: Soar-Dream-France. I've been pouring over my France road atlas tracing the course of the Lot River from Cahors east and following Laury's adventures.

American Gothic

I promised you that I would find creative inspiration yesterday and I did. I made a brief stop at the Des Moines Art Center and left refreshed and with my faith in culture re-affirmed. The Art Center has a surprisingly wonderful collection of mostly modern art with a few classics thrown in for balance. It features Georgia O'Keeffe, Henri Matisse, Edward Hopper with sculpures by Claus Oldenburg and Alexander Calder.

The building itself is famous as it was designed by 3 of the 20th century's most famous architects, Eliel Saarinen, I.M. Pei and Richard Meier. It sits surrounded by a lovely park on the south and by sculptures around the front.


Every time I visit I ask myself why I don't do this more often. I always come away feeling inspired by the art and soothed by the spaces that house it. This weekend, however, I had a specific goal in mind. The Center is currently hosting an exhibition entitled "After Many Springs: Regionalism, Modernism and the Midwest" And on display is a real classic: American Gothic by Grant Wood.


While this is a painting of Iowa by an Iowa artist, it's current home is in The Art Institute of Chicago. It seems that I'm not the only Iowan who felt compelled to visit this famous painting during its exhibit run. I actually had to stand in line for over 20 minutes until it was my turn to look at it! What a change from my normal visits to the Art Center when there have only been a handful of people enjoying the art. Like most art, this painting is much better viewed in person. The detail is amazing...there are lace curtains at the arched window, lovely sprigs of flowers on the woman's dress and potted plants on the porch...all difficult to see in a photo. The other paintings and photographs in the exhibit were equally as interesting with Thomas Hart Benton, Jackson Pollock, and Dorothea Lange among the featured artists. I hope to make another visit before the exhibit moves on at the end of the month.

Life is Not About Work

I try to keep my job out of my blog. When I read other people's blogs, I see that they mostly keep work separate as well. My friend, Randi, blogs about her kids who are her work right now, but that's different. Those of us who work for a living, a salary, a way to pay the bills tend to blog about other things. It would be too easy for my blog to become a platform for whining if I let work worm its way into it. I have to admit, though, that my job does influence this blog. This past week is a perfect example...I haven't made a single blog entry! Not because I haven't thought about it or wanted to, but because work has consumed every bit of my energy, creativity, and instinct for survival...and not in a good way! My goal today is to break that pattern and find inspiration. It's the weekend! I have two whole days of freedom, of not having to think about my job! I can do whatever I want! I intend to put this time to good use. I'll keep you posted....

One More Step Towards My Dream

As you walk by Cafe de la Poste on your way to see the village windmill, you notice a woman 'of a certain age' sitting seul at a table, her face tilted to catch the afternoon sun. In front of her is a small, metallic blue mini-laptop. The woman sits quietly; you can tell that behind her tres chic dark glasses her eyes observe everything. She ponders, then begins tapping on the keyboard, a story spilling out. She takes a sip of her pastis and begins writing again. In the space of time it takes to stroll past the cafe, you know...this is a woman who is living her dream, a dream of a literary life in Provence. She is writing something important or entertaining or poignant; her publisher is eagerly awaiting this manuscript. Perhaps she is even writing about you!

That's the dream. This is one more step towards attaining it...my new Asus mini-laptop! I devoted part of my income tax return to its purchase, and I'm thrilled with it. It is wireless-ready, has the capability of both Skype and Bluetooth connections, has a built-in webcam and a word processing program. While it won't be good for storing a lot of photos or manuscripts, I can use it for both and then download onto a jump drive to save pictures and documents. It has a 6 cell battery with a 9 hour battery life. The screen is 10 inches, and it weighs a mere 3 pounds making it perfect for travel...it fits nicely in my luscious red Longchamps bag!

Here are the best parts about this lovely little gem...it was cheap and it seems to have been made especially for me!

One More...

I can't resist...one more proud mom/grandma photo. Parker and Travis were swimming in one of the warm pools at Chico Hot Springs. This photo was taken over the Christmas holiday. Chase was there swimming, too, but all of his pictures have his hair hanging in his face. It's a teenager thing. Parker loves the water.

My Other Passion

I've spent several days blogging about Paris and Provence. Please indulge me with a post or two about my other passion...the kids in my life! This is Parker. He's halfway tbetween 2 and 3 years old and is expecting his new baby sister to arrive soon. She's due on March 24 and Becky thinks she'll be right on time. This picture of Parker was taken in January when Becky made a trip to South Carolina to see her family. There were so many cute ones to choose from, but I really liked this one. Stay tuned for another photo tomorrow.

A Piece of Provence

In a previous post, I wrote about the lovely holy water font collection that hangs on the living room wall in my favorite Provence B & B. Browsing the blog-o-sphere, I found a blog from Provence, Le Trip, whose author deals in brocante and antiques. I checked out her Etsy store which provided a way to email her, which I did. Long story short, I purchased this large holy water font from her. She mailed it to me during her recent Stateside visit and voila, here it is! It's 18 inches high by 10 inches wide. The red material is velvet...a little worn and rubbed, but beautiful. I tried it several places in my house, but it's big enough that it really needs its own wall, so here it hangs in my guest bedroom

Here's a close up of the detail. It's quite nice. I asked Jill about the provenance of the piece. She only knew that it came from the Aix-en-Provence area and looks to be from the 1800s. I'm very pleased with it.

This is #25 on my list of favorite things about Paris and Provence. Thanks for letting me enjoy them all with you!

Scarves

Scarves define French fashion. I remember before my very first trip to France, Mickey told me, "Don't pack a scarf. The first thing we'll do in Paris is buy a fabulous one. You'll see...it will make you feel tres French!" And indeed, it did! I've never seen scarves worn in such profusion and with such panache. Every woman, and many of the men, had one draped, tied, tucked, bowed, slung around her neck. Mickey and I haunted every scarf shop we could find and I bought several that trip. They are such an easy souvenir...light and don't take hardly any room in your suitcase. I have to tell you, though, that I bought my very first scarf at my very first market in Provence. It's a beautiful turquoise paisley wool challis that can do double-duty as a shawl. I can tell you where and when I bought each scarf in this photo. The black&white one came from a little boutique in Apt; the brighter pink striped one, I bought off rue de Buci for Easter at the Notre Dame in 2007. Each one evokes a memory. One day at work someone complimented a French scarf that I was wearing. I thanked them and said "Oh yes, I bought this one in Paris in February of 2006." One of my staff commented..."Geez, that's weird. Do you really remember where you buy all your clothes?" No, only the scarves that I buy in my very favorite city in the whole world! Who wouldn't remember that?

Cemeteries

I've blogged about cemeteries in the past. I love them! I know you think that's kind of weird, but, oh well, my secret is out. One thing I like about cemeteries from other cultures is that they frequently have pictures of the deceased on the gravestones. I first came across this many years ago in a very old cemetery in our neighborhood in San Diego.There was a large Portuguese community in San Diego, and this is where they buried their dead. Every child's grave had an old tin photo-etching of the child. It was so touching to see a picture of a family's beloved child on its headstone. This grave is in the Pere Lachaise cemetery in Paris. I'm a huge Edith Piaf fan and sought out her grave on my visit there. I loved that people leave tokens of their esteem on many of the graves. Here a rose and chestnuts. Chestnut offerings were very common along with flowers, rocks, saint's cards, crosses, etc.




This picture is from the cemetery in Goult. It says "To our comrade, Lulu. Regrets. Friends in Goult." My guess is that Lulu didn't have family to mark his grave since there were no family 'regrets' there. He must have been a good friend.

Cemeteries in Paris and Provence are #23 on my list of favorite things.

PS...please click on the link to the Pere Lachaise Cemetery...it's really cool. You can see actual pictures of the graves. For example, click on the "P" scroll down to Piaf. Her grave flashes. If you click on her cross, a photo of her grave comes up. Here are some others to try: Jim Morrison, Sarah Bernhardt, Oscar Wilde, Yves Montand and Simone Signoret, and Chopin.
PSS...the link to Edith Piaf goes to a YouTube video of her performing "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" It brings tears to my eyes and sends shivers down my spine. What a voice!

My Favorite Museum

Everyone has their favorite Paris museum. For many people, it's the Louvre. I like that one a lot and visit it a couple of times on every trip. Others really prefer the Musee d'Orsay and its wonderful collection of Impressionist art. I like that one as well. On my last visit to Paris, I spent an afternoon at the new Musee Quai du Branly...also an awesome museum. But if I had to name my very favorite museum it would be the Musee de Moyen Age, better known as the Cluny Museum. I've posted a picture of some of the detail of the exterior of the museum. I think it's amazing that so much beauty was incorporated into the design of this structure. The building was completed in 1364 and was originally the 'town house' for the bishops of Cluny; a place for them to stay when they journeyed to Paris for meetings. This structure was built on the 3rd century ruins of Gallo-Roman baths which can still be seen in the basement of the building. On one visit I was privileged to view some gorgeous illuminated manuscripts of the Book of Hours. Every visit, though, I stand in awe in front of the "Lady and the Unicorn" tapestry, one of my favorite works of art. This museum stands in the #22 spot on my list of favorite things.