Botany, Art, and Native Americans

This week my big adventures have included visiting the Botanic Garden and Conservatory, the Hirshhorn Gallery, and the Museum of the American Indian.  On Monday when I visited the Botanic Garden, it was also the day that the famous titan arum was starting to bloom, and apparently, it is still blooming, four days later.  However momentous an occasion, I'm really grateful I didn't have to walk around the conservatory with the aroma of onions and rotting flesh.  It was interesting as I walked through the Conservatory to feel the different temperatures and levels of humidity as I went from one simulated area of the world to another.

In the Jungle area of the Conservatory

In the walkway from the Jungle to the Southern landscapes part of the Conservatory

Tradescantia pallida, "Purple Heart", spiderwort; found in the Southern Landscapes area of the Conservatory

An orchid; found in the endangered-orchids part of the Conservatory

Close up of one orchid

The Hawaii section of the Conservatory

One of my personal favorites--in the Ancient Plants section--I love the dinosaur!

After spending some time inside the Conservatory, I made my way outside to the Regional Garden.  At the Botanic Garden they pride themselves on their use of natural methods of fertilization and getting rid of pests, rather than using chemicals and pesticides.  They try to make it very plain that you can garden and have a beautiful garden, without having to use chemicals that harm the environment.

Flower Fountain outside the Conservatory, going into the Regional Garden area

Giant dragonfly

A nice swampy area

American White Water-Lily

Later in the week, after doing research on Tuesday and Wednesday, I was able to venture forth again.  This time I visited the Hirshhorn Gallery--not just the garden this time--and was able to see some more of the modern art in DC. 

Venus of the Rags, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Italian, 1967

 This piece made me laugh!  I love that Venus is trying to find some clothes to put on!  And isn't that what every laundry room looks like? I think it's a great take on a "classic" piece.

Wall Drawing #1113: On a wall, a triangle within a rectangle, each with broken bands of color, Sol LeWitt, American, 2003, acrylic

 I think I just have this thing with color. There was an exhibit called "There and Back" that I took four photos of because it shows the progression of one color to another. However, with this piece, I love the vibrancy of the colors, the rigidity of the lines, the way it seems 2-D and 3-D simultaneously, and the different lengths of the color bands. I just really enjoyed this piece, besides the fact that it is HUGE--it fills an entire wall.

1950-M No.1, Clifford Still, American, 1950

 Another example of my crazy love for blue. It looks sooooo much lovelier in real life. The contrast between the blues is more subtle.  I just love blue.

Sanctuary, Gerhard Richter, German, 1988, oil on linen 

 This was an fascinating piece to look at. It looks kind of crazy in a photograph, but in real life it is actually more crazy.  It seems like there is very vivid underpainting of color--the greens, blues, oranges--and then this thicker, almost still liquid looking overpainting of the reds, darker orange, black and brown. And then over that there is still another layer of blackish-white and redish-orange specks.  The brush strokes are very deliberate and thought out--except at the far right where the artist is able to make it look like the paint is dissolving into nothing. It is sooo cool! I really, really enjoyed looking at this painting.

Untitled (Dog), Peter Coffin, American 2012, Mixed Media

 This is apparently the world's largest canine. What I couldn't get a picture of was of my hands-down favorite piece in the entire gallery. It's also by Peter Coffin in the Here & There exhibit. It is called Untitled and it is an animated projection on paintings from the Hirshhorn collection.  In the handout I got it reads, "Where does the brain 'ping' when looking at art? Sound, music, and superimpositions 'animate' works in the collection, encouraging new ways to consider them."  I loved this work!  There were 11 or 12 framed canvas paintings hanging on the wall in a darkened room. There was a projector aimed at each wall/painting that would superimpose images onto these paintings, with music and noises to accompany it. It was done masterfully with colors seeming to jump up out of their place on the painting and move about the canvas and onto the wall, or to have a shape painting have the colors and shapes react in response to a classical piece of music playing.  It was engaging, surprising, and insightful.  I wish I could somehow share it with all of you, but I can't.

My next visit was to the Museum of the American Indian.  I first viewed a film on the fourth floor that talked about and showed the relationship that Native Americans have with the Earth and how it is a part of their culture, livelihood, and art.  I walked through some of the exhibits and finished off by eating in the cafeteria.

Sculpture in one of the alcoves in the Museum of the American Indian

Navajo taco

NGA: Outdoor Sculpture Garden

This post could be called Part Two of my adventures in Modern Art.  These are the modern art pieces that were too big to fit into the East Building of the NGA (and they're designed to be outside and not be destroyed, I guess). Here goes...

Aurora, Mark di Suvero, American, 1992-1993, steel

I'm not entirely sure what the artist was trying to do, but my initial thought was that all the letters of Aurora can be found in this piece. What do you think?

Thinker on a Rock, Barry Flanagan, British, 1997, cast bronze

Just because I took a picture of it's twin in the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden.

Graft, Roxy Paine, American, 2008-2009, stainless steel and concrete

A graft is where two different plants come together to make a new one, right? I wonder what the graft is in this. Maybe it's the combination of using steel, a nonliving substance, to make a tree, something that is living. Whatever the reason, it's beautiful and the branches are so delicate.

Fountain in center of sculpture garden

This is an awesome fountain in the middle of this garden.  The water coming out of those pipes is like water coming out of a fire hose--incredibly powerful!  A nice relaxing place in the middle of busy Washington DC.

Lessons I'm learning in D.C.

I finished out the school year, set up my new classroom, visited my family in Michigan, and then on Monday I was reunited with my husband after 33 days apart.  Frankly, I don't advise 33 days apart if you can help it. It was hard, but now it's over.

I decided I would spend my first day in D.C. as a proper/improper tourist.  What I mean by that is that I dressed up in dark clothes, including a skirt, so I would look like someone going to work, but then I went and visited tourist attractions.  My ruse worked and as I was on my way to my first tourist attraction, a man and his wife stopped me and asked me a question about transportation.  Thankfully, I knew the answer or I would have had to admit this was my first day back in the city after two years, and even then, I'd only been here for three days.

I visited the Smithsonian Castle (which is where the Moongate Garden is), Freer and Sackler Galleries (in a nutshell: Whistler, Leyland, and Asian art), Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden, and Renwick Gallery.

In the Hirshhorn Scupture Garden

The Burghers of Calais by Rodin in the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden

Looking at the fountain in the center of the Freer Gallery

Smithsonian Castle viewed from my bench in the Moongate Garden

The Moongate Garden

Lessons I've already learned so far:
CVS does not have a public bathroom
McDonald's does have a public bathroom and the museums
Most museums and galleries open at 10 but the Castle opens at 9 and has free wi-fi
Traffic lights don't really apply to pedestrians; if the way is clear, you go
Try to get a map of the National Mall before you realize you've almost walked by it completely
Asian art is really cool

My second day in DC was a lot less uneventful in terms of sightseeing.  I did the laundry, bought groceries, vacuumed our apartment (for the sole purpose of passing out on the floor in a nap later in the afternoon), vacuumed the common area on our floor and swept the laundry room (I did those rooms in addition to our apartment because 1)I was the only one around and 2)I like to walk around without shoes on when I'm home and I didn't like continuously getting things stuck to my feet), finished Hunger Games and started Catching Fire, took an hour and a half walk in which I got several awesome blisters on my feet and still didn't find my way to the French Embassy, made dinner, went and got a milkshake with Cody at Johnny Rockets, and watched some Studio C skits.

Now with day three, I'll be working on research in two hours, I'm anticipating reading and possibly writing.  I've contacted a friend who worked at a temp agency last year when she was in DC and hoping maybe I can get some leads for that.  I just don't think I can sit around all day.  I mean, if it doesn't work out, I'll just have to be creative...and that wouldn't hurt too much for me to practice that.

Day 37: Azay, Chenonceau & Amboise

This is from my journal entry on Thursday:

Thursday, 3 juin 2010
Today we went to Azay-le-Rideau, Chenonceau, and Amboise. I really liked all of them, though for different reasons. Azay was in a little city/town, set on the side with lots of land and kind of built in the water. A queen or king never lived there; it was for a financier. It was more down-to-earth and liveable. Also I loved the path and trees around it.

Chenonceau was just simply gorgeous. And when I use "simply" I mean it had a simple kind of beauty. It wasn't terribly ornate or extravagant. I felt that I could comfortably live there. There were also pretty French gardens surrounded by wilderness. The novelty of being built on water also appeals greatly to me. The history and stories of Chenonceau also fascinate me. Maybe one day I'll write children's or young adult books about Charters and these castles and their history. That really appeals to me. :)

Amboise was the castle of Francois I and it is where Leonardo da Vinci spent three years and has been buried. The history there and the tie to Ever After and Cinderella is appealing (I guess that's my word of the day) too. I watched that movie tonight with Paris and Rachel. Unfortunately they didn't even try to make the Amboise castle in the movie look like the real Amboise castle.

Days 34-36: Normandy & Brittany & Loire Valley

Bayeux, Omaha Beach, St-Lo

31 mai 2010
We went to Bayeux, Omaha Beach and St-Lo Monday. The tapestry at Bayeux was rather amazing. I couldn’t believe that it had been made so quickly and that it was so detailed. I have had periods in my life where I have been really into cross-stitching and embroidering so it was a treat to see the technique and to see how it has been preserved throughout the centuries.

As for Omaha Beach, the German Bunker and St-Lo, it was a wonderful day to go those places because of the fact that it was Memorial Day. Being at Omaha Beach was a really special experience for me. I kept trying to envision the beach and trees being filled with soldiers, tanks, bombs dropping and boats out on the sea with paratroopers falling from the sky on to the beach. Even with an active imagination, it was hard for me to imagine that kind of a scenery because of the peace and calm that I felt on that beach. It was incredibly peaceful. I had the thought that maybe some of those soldiers thought “Hey I get to go to France” even under horrible circumstances such as war, they may have been excited to go there (because France is so famous), and yet so many—thousands—of those men lost their lives and are now buried in France.

Walking through the cemetery and reading the names of the soldiers was also a special experience. I think that there is something, I’m not sure what but something, that happens when you say someone’s name and recognize their existence as a human being, which is one of the reasons why I love going to cemeteries and reading the names on the tombstones and honoring their lives—whatever kind of lives were lived, they were human and they are my brothers and sisters. I’m really grateful I was able to go there to see the beach and cemetery and honor those who gave their lives to protect the entire free world.

Mont St-Michel, St-Malo
1 juin 2010
The rain definitely made today a different trip than it may have been with sunshine. From a distance I was impressed with the majesty of Mont St. Michel. It reminded me of a mix between the castle from Beauty and the Beast and the Hogwart’s castle from Harry Potter. We were able to have a look closer-up as we walked through the cramped “streets” leading up to the part of the abbey where our tour was going to start. I liked the juxtaposition between the Romanesque and Gothic architecture that was so visible in the different parts of the abbey. I absolutely loved the view from the abbey down onto Brittany. Even in the fog it was a beautiful sight.

St-Malo would have to be my favorite visit so far on this whole trip to France. It was so peaceful and beautiful. I’m sure it would have been a different kind of beautiful with the sun out, but it had a special kind of a feel when it was overcast. It was neat to walk on the wall around the perimeter of the city and look out over the beach.

In addition to these set destinations that we went to yesterday, I love looking out the window at the scenery. It is so green and lush here. The houses are picturesque and set off from the road with a wide variety of colors for the doors and shutters and gates—details which I absolutely love about being here in France.

The dinner was a treat. I loved the feel of the restaurant and the colors—deep red and white and silver. So beautiful! And the food was fantastic!

Angers, Langeais, Tours
2 juin 2010
The Angers Château was really a fortress, which you can tell on the outside but once inside you may doubt that a little bit because of the gardens and the peaceful environment that reigns there. We walked around the wall and were able to look out onto the city of Angers. While the view was stunning and the fortress itself was pretty neat, it was the flowers and plants that caught my attention. I definitely want to learn how to garden and not kill plants when I get back to Provo and/or have a yard.

I absolutely loved the tapestries at Angers ! Now I really want to read the Book of Revelations because the tapestries are called the Apocalyptic Tapestries and were commissioned to be made in 1375 by Louis I, Duke of Anjou and brother of King Charles V and was probably completed in 1382. While the tapestries can be considered in one sense a depiction of the events in Revelation, they are also a version of a certain kind of interpretation of the Book of Revelation which I thought was really interesting. That’s a lot of the reason why I want to reread the Book of Revelation…

After Angers we drove to Langeais. The castle was cool—the first castle that we’ve seen in the Loire Valley. I loved the beds! I thought they were so neat! I kind of want a bed like that…Also the chests were really neat. Very intricate and detailed. Some of them reminded me of Mom’s cedar chest where all the old blankets are.

Then for dinner here in Tours we ate at this fantastic restaurant. Very classy and very delicious.