Roamings of a Leo

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Tucson Museum of Art

My friend Glenice and I enjoyed strolling around old Tucson and especially the Museum of Art. We were fortunate that we arrived while a touring exhibit from the Kasser Mochart Art Foundation was at the museum. The exhibit was entitled "The Figure Examined." The Kasser Mochary Foundation was founded in 1968 by Alexander and Elisabeth Kasser with the mission of inspiring and promoting appreciation of the fine arts. They do this by lending significant works of art to regional museums from their holdings.

The exhibit is comprised of approximately 120 works of art and portrays the human figure through paintings, sculpture and works on paper by noted 19th and 20th-century European and American artists.

Here are some of my favorites:

"Bust of a Woman," 1955 by Giacomo Manzu, Intalian, born Giacomo Manzoni, 1908-1991.

"Annette VI," 1962 by Alberto Giacometti, Swiss, 1901-1966

"Draped Woman," 1908 by Pierre-Aguste Renoir, French, 1841-1919

"Portrait of Katharine Kelso Cassatt," (artist's mother) 1905 by Mary Cassatt, American, 1844-1926

"Portrait of Maria Lani," 1927-1928 by Andre Derain, French, 1880-1954

"The Damned Women," 1885-1890 by Aguste Rodin, French, 1840-1917 and

"Falling Man, Torso of a Young Man," before 1904

"Bird of Paradise," 1985 by John Bellany, Scottish, 1942-2013

"Untitled," 1943 by Jackson Pollock, American 1912-1956, ink gouache, watercolor on cut paper mounted on blue paper.

"Heads of Men," 1954 by Andy Warhol, American 1928-1987

Left: "Head of a Man," 1906, by Pablo Picasso, Spanish, 1881-1973

Back: "Self Portrait," 1917 by Egon Schiele, Austrian, 1890-1918

Right: "Maguette #2," 1933 by Jacques Lipchitz, American born Lituania, 1891-1973

"The Eternal Idol," 1893 by Aguste Rodin

"Two Seated Figures against Wall," 1960 by Henry Moore, British, 1898-1986

"Girl on Cot," 1976 by Raphael Soyer, American, born Russia, 1899-1987

"Young Mother in a Grotto," 1885 by Auguste Rodin, marble

"Motherhood," 1930 by Pablo Picasso, aquatint, etching on paper, print.

"Hay Harvest," 1920 by Diego Rivera, Mexican 1886-1957

"Loge with a Gilded Mascaron," 1893 by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, French, 1864-1901

"Bathers under the Trees," 1904 by Henri Fantin-Latour, French, 1836-1904

"Dance Movement," 1911 by Henri Matisse, French, 1869-1954

"Harlequin with Clarinet," 1919-1920 by Jacques Lipchitz.

"The Ice Skater," 1960 by Giacomo Manzu

"The Montvallon Chateau at Lissieu (Rhone)," 1928 by Maurice Utrillo, French, born Maurice Valadon, 1883-1955

"Self Portrait," 1987 by John Bellany

"The Flute Player," 1936 by Ernst Bartlach, German 1870-1938

"The Little Parisian," 1881 by Paul Gauguin, French 1848-1903

"Surrealist Landscape," 1942 by Salvador Dali, Spanish, 1904-1989

"Adam" 1881 by Auguste Rodin

The brochure states that Rodin was inspired by the works of Michaelangelo to create this large bronze which was cast in 1970, 8/12

"Bacchanale," 1955 by Pablo Picasso, lithograph with gouache on paper.

"In the Time of Harmony; the Golden Age is Not Passed, it is Still to Come (Reprise)," 1896 by Paul Signac, French, 1863-1935

"The Water Bearers (Egyptian)," 1895 by Emile Bernard, French 1869-1941

"Celise Receives Germeuile's Letter," 1968 from the series "The Marquis de Sade" by Salvador Dali, gouche on paper

"Landscape with Crucifixion," date unknown, by Marc Chagall, Russian, 1887-1985

"Hina," 1892 by Paul Gauguin, bronze.

L.A. Dodgers vrs. Chicago White Sox opening spring training game

My friend Tim and I enjoyed the opening Spring Training season at their Camelback stadium in Glendale Arizona on March 4th. It was a good occasion to see some of the stars of the teams, new trades and hopeful young players on both teams. It was also a good time for my first Dodger Dog with beverage of the season. The Dodgers lost 6 to 3. But they must have worked out the cobwebs because they have won every game since.

Here are a few photos of the day.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art

My friend Tim and I roamed through the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art on Tuesday and enjoyed their interesting exhibits. The first two we visited are entitled Post commodity - the interdisciplinary American Indian arts collective's "Promoting a More Just Verdant and Harmonious Resolution," 2011 and "Pollination," 2015. The brochure states that together, these artworks question common national narratives and the commodification of nature, history and culture. In the first exhibit we walked up a ramp and into an octagon shaped room with changing films of beautiful nature and children. Periodically were were assaulted with a loud noise of a rock band. The second exhibit had small rooms to set in, a token to insert into a slot that would open a screen to a peep show of a beautiful garden.

The next exhibit was of Afghan War Rugs: The Modern Art of Central Asia. The brochure describes the exhibit as offering a glimpse into the culture of modern day Afghanistan with images of tanks, soldiers, helicopters, world maps and political portraits.

Here are some photos of the hand woven rugs"

"Portrait Rug (Amanullah Khan)," Woven in Afghanistan, not dated, acquired in Peshawar, Pakistan, 1985. Amanullah Khan (1882-1960) ruled Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929 and is highly regarded for establishing Afghanistan's independence from the political influences of the British and Russian empires. He created a modernist constitution promoting equal rights and individual freedoms, established new schools for both boys and girls and challenged traditions, including strict dress codes for women.

War Rug with Map of Afghanistan and Portrait of Najibullah, woven in Pakistan refugee camp, not dated, acquired in Peshawar, Pakistan, 2012. Najibullah (1947-1996) was president of Afghanistan from 1987-1992 and killed in 1996 by the Taliban.