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Art Journal, Wayfarer's Journal

Artist’s Date with Vivian

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It was a few years ago now that I read a fascinating story in the Wall Street Journal about a woman named Vivian Maier. Maier was never married, never had children, had virtually no family relationships, and was a nanny by trade. She would have quietly faded into obscurity were it not for one young man named John Maloof who purchased a tub full of photo negatives at an auction.

Maloof’s journey of uncovering  the story of the nanny photographer Vivian Maier is told in his documentary film Finding Vivian Maier. The mystery of this woman, her life, and Maloof’s discovery is compelling, but even without their fascinating story the photographs she compulsively took stand as amazing artwork in and of themselves. Maier took thousands and thousands of photographs in her solitary lifetime. Only a fraction of them were ever developed.

To see her photographs, visit http://www.VivianMaier.com

I was overjoyed when I found out that an exhibition of Maier’s photographs was on display at the Des Moines Art Center (always free admission!) and even more excited to hear that the Art Center would be showing the documentary in conjunction with the exhibition. It sounded like the perfect Artist’s Date.

So it was that Wendy and I drove to Des Moines yesterday to pick up Taylor at her new apartment (adorable). We headed to Louie’s Wine Dive for a scrumptious brunch complete with Mimosas and Beignets. We then headed to the Art Center to take in Maier’s photographs and watch the film together. Lovely afternoon.

Finding Vivian Maier is on Netflix. The exhibition at the Des Moines Art Center runs through January 22.

Chapter-a-Day

Artist’s Date

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For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
Romans 1:20 (NIV)

Wendy and I will sometimes go on an artist’s date with friends. Often it’s just another couple, though we have done it with slightly larger groups. We typically go to the Des Moines Art Center because it’s close, it’s free, and it has an amazing collection of 19th and 20th century artwork. Here’s how the artist’s date works:

First, we wander together through the Art Center quickly browsing through each gallery. Each person is to be open  and mindful to pay attention to what particular piece of artwork strikes them for whatever reason.

Once we’ve made it through the Art Center, we then spread out, each person to the one piece that struck them the most as we browsed. This time, we stand or sit in front of that piece of artwork and look at it for 30 minutes.  There are no particular rules. You might look at it from different angles. You might get in close to inspect the brushwork. You might just sit in one spot and stare at it. I personally like to bring a journal (and a pencil, the Art Center doesn’t like you using a pen!) and write my thoughts.

When the 30 minutes are up, everyone meets back at the lobby. We go to a nice restaurant, order some good food and drink, and then take turns sharing what art work we looked at and what we gleaned from our 30 minutes with it. It’s always fascinating to hear others share.

When you look at an artist’s work, really look at it, you eventually begin to catch a glimpse of that artist. The painting, the photograph, the drawings, the sculpture are an expression of what’s inside the heart and mind of the artist.

We often forget that God first reveals Himself to us as Creator. “In the beginning, God created….” God is an artist, and the universe is an ongoing work of art as the heavens expand out into the seemingly endless canvas of space and time. When you look at creation, really look at it, you begin to catch a glimpse of the Artist. Detailed, ordered, and infinitely particular while at the same time infinitely playful and diverse in subject, composition, line, color, and form.

Today, I have the fortune of driving for several hours through forecasted rain and snow as I make my way home. My artist’s date today is in the Art Center of nature and I will focus my attention on God’s artwork: Prairie Winter. I can’t wait to see what new things there are for me to glean as I study the landscape.

chapter a day banner 2015

Top Five Tuesday

Top Five Quiet Places

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Speaking of quiet, this week’s Top Five Friday are my Top Five quiet places. The places where I like to steal away:

1. My home office. I grew up having a room of my own and, as a child, I retreated there to play, imagine, create, and rest. Some days my room became the bridge of Star Trek’s Enterprise. Other days it was a courtroom, or a battlefield, or a football stadium. Now that I am grown, I still retreat to my room which is my home office. While the primary focus on the space is work, it is also the place for my quiet morning conversations with God. I still find myself playing, creating, and letting my imagination run free.

2. The Playhouse. We intentionally have not hooked up a television signal here. There is a television and DVD play for movies, but we’ve chosen to hold back the intrusion and constancy of the noise. Here at the lake the house, the deck, and the dock are places for quiet.

3. My car. I spend a fair amount of time on the road. The trip to Des Moines for work meetings is an hour each way. A trip to the Twin Cities for client meetings is roughly four hours each way. While I don’t always love the long drives, I’ll admit that I sometimes look forward to some windshield time. Sometimes it’s nice to turn off the radio, let the white noise of the road rumble on, and let my mind go.

4. The Des Moines Art Center. It’s always quiet. It’s free. There’s amazing artwork to inspire me no matter what my mood or mindset. What’s not to love?

5. Coffee shops. I don’t have a favorite, though I’m particularly fond of unique, out-of-the-way coffee shops which offer a one-of-a-kind ambiance and a slower, quiet neighborhood type of pace. There’s something I like about sitting alone in one place with my coffee and my journal, newspaper, or book and letting the rest of the world buzz in and out past me.

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Wayfarer's Journal

Artist Date

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A month or so ago I wrote a post in the 30 day blogging challenge I was doing about a date I would like to go on. Wendy and I finally arranged the “Artist Date” a few weeks ago and headed out on a gorgeous autumn afternoon with our friends Sam and Candace. We spent about and hour or so wandering through the Des Moines Art Center, taking in the collection on display. Each of us then split up and spent just over a half-hour with one work of art that stood out to us for whatever reason.

Being a beautiful, warm, sunny afternoon, I spent my time in the courtyard with the DMAC’s iconic statue of a man launching himself off of a pegasus. I’ve seen this sculpture a million times and it had sort of morphed into the background of the Art Center’s surroundings. I didn’t think much about it. So, I took some time to really study it. It spoke to me of the relationship of myth and culture. I realized that the statue, now surrounded by the three very different buildings making up the DMAC, had layers of meaning for me that the artist could have never envisioned since it was conceptualized and installed well before its present surroundings. I thought a lot about the meaning of artwork that gets layered upon it over time and the changes of culture compared to the artist’s original intent. It spoke to me of courage, faith, and adventure.

We stopped for coffee and casual conversation at Zanzibar’s on Ingersoll. It was a great time of building relationship and friendship as the process of knowing and being known deepened between the four of us. We then took a walk through the sculpture garden downtown before ending up at Noah’s for a wonderful dinner.

Over dinner, each of us shared about the work of art with which we spent time. It was really interesting to hear how each piece affected the viewer and intersected with our current life experiences. We had a lively conversation with great food and good wine, topped off with rich, dark chocolate cake for dessert.

The ride home flew by as our conversation continued. Wendy and I could not have enjoyed ourselves more as we looked back on the day. It fulfilled what I’d blogged about and envisioned back in August. Great experiences with great people certainly serve to fill life’s well.

Pursuit of Happiness

Pursuit of Happiness #15

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Wendy and I went to the Des Moines Art Center yesterday afternoon to see their current exhibit of Henry Ossawa Tanner’s paintings. I love the Art Center. I love that it’s free (thanks to generous patron support). I love that I have a growing supply of memories of being there with loved ones and friends.  I love that I once brought my daughters there as little girls and now, as adults, they want to bring me back. I love how some paintings become old friends and make me feel at home and at rest in their presence. I love getting to know artists and their works. I love that each time you walk in you see the same things only different. I love that what I see changes each time I visit not because the works of art have changed but because I’m at a different place in my journey and see them from a different (hopefully, a more full) perspective.