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A Magical Day

May 12th, 2013 . Posted in Eastern United States, Travel, United States | Comments Off on A Magical Day

Sunday – May 12, 2013

Another good reason to go to Boston is the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.  Mrs. Gardner built an Italian Renaissance palazzo to display her magnificent collection of 2,500 objects.  There are artifacts from Egypt, ancient Rome, Medieval and Renaissance Europe, China, Japan, the Middle East, and the Americas.  Unfortunately, photography is prohibited so I have no lovely photos of the museum to share.

Mrs. Gardner’s museum has a breathtaking collection of art housed in a Venetian palace in downtown Boston.  The website provides a catalogue of the treasures, but doesn’t give the viewer an accurate sense of the size or grandeur of this unique palazzo.   http://www.gardnermuseum.org

Contemporary Art

This day, the Gardner Museum was crowded with Mother’s Day families.  As the sun streamed into the center courtyard, casting shadows on the spring flowers and palms, my shutter-finger flexed uncontrollably.  We decided that we would return soon, but during the week.

Institute of Contemporary Art

The morning clouds gave way to a bright blue sky and we had enough time to go to the Institute of Contemporary Art located on Boston Harbor.

Harbor-side View of the ICA

We read about the ICA and it sounded like an interesting place to visit, not only because of its excellent location on the waterfront, but also because of the unique architecture of the building.

Street Art Indoors

There were several works of contemporary artists on display in the galleries.  After two decades of working in San Francisco, “street artist”, Barry McGee’s works were brought inside for to create an inspiring exhibit.

Art Appreciation

McGee was a graffiti artist who also worked with “found objects” and discarded materials to express the pessimism of urban living, pollution, addiction,and poverty.  The market value of his artwork rose after several international exhibits.  As a result of the increased attention in the art world, his public pieces were scavenged or stolen.  I think they should have given cans of spray paint to the visitors for us to make art and participate in an interactive exhibit.

Graffiti Artists

Inside Outside

I enjoyed Barry McGee’s works!  They expressed the tension of working in the streets of San Francisco and the grittiness of street life.  It must have been a challenge to display his work indoors in a gallery space.

Art or Nature?

McGee’s work was a fitting end to our weekend.  We began with the memorial in Copley Square, which was a spontaneous public outpouring of emotions to honor the victims of the bombings at the finish of the Boston Marathon.  We ended with Barry McGee’s view of life on the streets in another major American city.  With the current thread of inequality, lack of respect for each other, and inhumane violence, it is a challenge to all of us to retain inner strength, maintain resiliency, and to question our values and attitudes toward other human beings.

Natural Mural

Barry McGee’s philosophy of art and life was recently quoted in a Boston newspaper: Are you into the magic of art? Just the magic of, how did that happen? And if you’re standing in front of something and just don’t understand it, but you’re drawn to it? I think it’s one of the last things that still has a magic to it. It just appears.  Perhaps we all need a little magic in our lives?

Fine Arts in Boston

May 11th, 2013 . Posted in Eastern United States, United States | Comments Off on Fine Arts in Boston

Saturday, May 11, 2013

We were able to shake off the sadness in the streets and celebrate our anniversary in high style at the Fairmont. It’s an easy place to forget the worries of the world and escape into pampered luxury.  The lobby was always busy and at night the ballrooms were full of men wearing tuxedos and women in beautiful long gowns.   

Lobby of the Fairmont Copley Plaza

After a delicious continental breakfast in The Lounge, we decided to take public transportation to the Museum of Fine Arts.  A “Charlie Ticket” is the reusable transportation card in Boston.  It reminded me of the song, Charlie on the MTA which the Kingston Trio made famous in 1959 about a man who didn’t have enough money to pay the “exit fare” and was stuck on the train:

Did he ever return?  No he never returned,  And his fate is still unlearned.  He may ride forever ‘neath the streets of Boston.  He’s the man who never returned…..

Purchasing Subway “T” Tickets

There actually was an MTA employee at the station (in shorts in the photo above) who was there to help tourists buy tickets for the subway.  He told us the original words of the song had been composed in 1949 for a Boston mayoral candidate and the Kingston Trio changed the words a bit.

MBTA Subway Cars

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority or “The T” began in 1896 and is one of the oldest subway systems in the United States.  The cars resemble double buses attached together.  They run underground as well as above-ground like trolley cars with overhead wires.

The Museum of Fine Arts

One of our main reasons to go to Boston was to visit the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.  I have to admit that we’re museum and library people and we love to “collect” museums around the world.  The MFA is a world class museum with many wonderful artifacts and amazing works of art.

Samurai Sword Demonstration

As part of a special exhibit of Samurai warriors, there were martial arts demonstrations and a talk about making Samurai swords.

Family Snack

The museum has a good collection of European impressionist art and a wonderful collection of John Singer Sargent paintings.  A new contemporary art wing has been added since our last visit several years ago.

In a Gallery

Rest

It is impossible to see everything in the MFA in one day, so we saved some art for another visit in the near future.  It was a good day!

Boston Strong

May 10th, 2013 . Posted in Armenian, Eastern United States, Travel, United States | Comments Off on Boston Strong

Friday, May 10, 2013

We had planned a weekend in Boston for some time. When the bombings occurred at the Boston Marathon just three weeks ago, we considered canceling our trip but, in the end we were determined not to allow crazy terrorist activities to change our lives. “Boston Strong” was the motto exhibited by the residents on nation-wide television, so it was a Go for us.

Signed Marathon Poster & Sneakers

We leisurely drove north, taking our time and enjoying the ride on a beautiful sunny spring day. Our first goal was the Armenian Library and Museum of America in Watertown, Massachusetts, just outside Boston. (website: www.almainc.org) We remembered watching television and waiting for the police to capture the second terrorist hidden in a small boat in someone’s backyard in Watertown.  We easily found the museum, parked, and entered the modern building.  ALMA is a delightful small museum which is managed by friendly people.

Model of Armenian Cathedral

On the ground floor was an exhibit of the wonderful black & white photography of Yousuf Karsh. He is best known for his famous portraits of Winston Churchill and Ernest Hemingway. Karsh survived the Armenian Genocide in eastern Turkey, immigrated to Quebec, and became a Canadian citizen. He had a photographic studio in Ottawa and traveled the world to take photographs of well known people. Karsh lived in Boston during the late 1990s and died there in 2002. His wife, Estrellita Karsh, donated the portraits to ALMA in order to create a permanent collection at the Armenian Museum.

Armenian History

An informative exhibit depicted the long history of the Armenian people from pre-historic times through earliest Christianity, and the Armenian Genocide to modern day. This exhibit entitled, Who Are the Armenians, attempted to explain the long epic history of the little-known Armenian people.  It was a testament to human strength, survival, and resiliency.

Nonny Hogrogian Paintings

Another current exhibit highlighted the work of the Armenian-American author and illustrator, Nonny Hogrogian. She wrote and illustrated many books and won two Caldecott medals for her children’s books, Always Room For One More and One Fine Day. Her charming books beautifully retell Armenian folk tales.

Copley Square

After an enjoyable time at ALMA, we drove into downtown Boston. We found our hotel, the Fairmont Copley Plaza, and happily gave our car to the valet for the weekend. We dropped off our luggage and went out to explore the neighborhood. Copley Square is a public park in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston and was named after the painter, John Singleton Copley.

Memorial

On April 15th as the winners crossed the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon at Copley Square, two bombs exploded killing three people and injuring almost 200 more people. The shock sent chills through every American who immediately remembered the awful events of September 11th. Millions were glued to televisions, radios, and listening devises to receive news of the unimaginable events in Boston and Watertown. Now, a mere three weeks later, Copley Square was quiet and peaceful.

Wall of Running Shoes

We crossed the street and walked into the square, between Trinity Church and the Boston Public Library, to see the public Memorial created by locals and visitors to honor the people hurt by the bombings. A international crowd of people quietly walked among the artifacts. We looked at the running shoes, flags, tee-shirts, candles, and photographs which honored the innocent victims of the recent senseless and brutal acts of violence.

Origami Birds

 

Signs of Spring

May 7th, 2013 . Posted in Family, New York City | Comments Off on Signs of Spring

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

As Emily Dickinson wrote,

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune – without the words,
And never stops – at all,

After a difficult winter for so many people across the world, in our nation, locally, and personally, it is Hope that carries all of us forward to a brighter future.  Spring is a time of renewal, promise, and hope.

Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center

I always thought it was obnoxious of parents to boast about their young children’s accomplishments, however, I think grandparents, especially Grandmas, can boast all they want.  Grandparents have earned the right to boast and brag and beam with pride at any time and any opportunity.  As the school year winds down, the youngster concert season is in full swing.  My younger granddaughter played cello with her classmates at their elementary school concert.  She had a solo part and had a great time!  She is also finishing the season with her “Traveling Soccer Team”.

Avery Fisher Hall

Her older sister, now in seventh grade, continues to play viola with the Greater Westchester Youth Orchestras Association.  Their spring concert was held in Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center this past Sunday.  It was an afternoon filled with beaming, proud parents and grandparents.  The Junior String Orchestra beautifully played pieces by Vivaldi, Schubert, and modern composer, Janice Macaulay.  The orchestra was wonderful!

The Junior String Orchestra

The flowering trees are in full bloom and the air smells sweet and earthy.  The forsythia outdid itself this season.  The tulips and daffodils are finishing and the azaleas are on the edge of bursting into bloom.  The sky is a cloudless bright blue and the sun stays with us longer each day.  Yes, it is spring in the north east.  Finally.

As another American poet, Langston Hughes, wrote:

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

Gotham Shrugged

February 3rd, 2013 . Posted in New York City | Comments Off on Gotham Shrugged

February 2, 2013

Gotham Shrugged was a comment in a film I saw this week about the history of New York City. The words were an expression of the city’s response to hardships and difficult times. When I heard the words, I imagined a huge collective sigh of, “Whatever….” It was an image of stoic New Yorkers who had been there, saw it all and were moving on without concern. I have been thinking about the idea of a city-wide shrug.

Wheel of Chance

To shrug, according to the dictionary, is the act of contracting one’s shoulders to express aloofness, indifference, or uncertainty. Aloofness? Yes, I think the city exudes an air of “aloofness”. The general mood in New York City and other big cities is one of spatial boundaries and distance, with a minimum of eye-contact. People who live in large cities appear aloof. Uncertainty? I think not. There is no uncertainty or lack of confidence in the New York psyche. Potential vulnerability, perhaps. Uncertainty, definitely not. What about indifference? Here is the grand, who cares? Not my problem.

Immigration Art Installation

I was born in Manhattan just after WWII and grew up during a time of incomparable construction. I witnessed tremendous changes in the city. During my youth, New York City was a collection of ethnic neighborhoods. Many people were recent immigrants or children of immigrants who worked for the common goal of a better life. New York was safe for a child to walk the streets, ride the buses, or take a subway to an outer borough. It seemed there was little crime or we simply did not hear about it.

Historical Markers

The film I saw was an historical overview of the city presented by the recently renovated New York Historical Society. It was an interesting film and the idea of a shrugging city stayed with me as I toured the NYHS. Just off the elevator there was a display of artifacts from the first synagogue in North America founded in 1654 in lower Manhattan. The congregation “set the stage for religious and ethnic diversity in the United States,” according to the printed information. Further along, I was captivated by a charming exhibit of model toys and trains made in Marklin, Germany from the 1850s.

Keith Haring Ceiling

The Historical Society has greatly expanded their exhibition space and opened the building to display many more items from their huge collections. There were exhibits which ranged from landscape paintings of the Hudson River School to the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation.  There were of photographs of NYC landmark buildings, Audubon’s watercolors of American birds, World War II artifacts, Keith Haring’s amazing illustrations, and an interactive children’s history center.  Exhibits covered NYC history through mass immigration, prejudice, wars, riots, depression, attacks, continual growth and change.  

Sign in a Subway Car

After a few hours, I left the Historical Society and walked out into a light drizzle and a darkening sky. People walked quickly along the sidewalks. The lights of the city were burning brightly. Gotham Shrugged? I thought.  During its 400 year old history, Gotham might have shrugged. However, after seeing the exhibitions, the shrug was not with indifference, or uncertainty, or arrogance.  New York City shrugs with an air of  “OK, we can do this. Let’s all pull together.  We will endure.”  

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