Short Timer Blues

It's Sunday and Emily and I return to Massachusetts on Tuesday. We don't arrive until Wednesday, but I truly hope I will be sleeping for most of our red eye flight. I cannot believe that I have been here since Thanksgiving -- it has gone by in a flash. But I am definitely ready to be in my own house again. I won't get back until Saturday because Emily has to go to work, but I'll have time with the fur baby grand kitties.

I know that I have fallen down on the blogging, so here goes.

We had rain! The mountains are now green.

 

 Sprinkles are just beginning in these pictures.

Below is the aftermath which is  snow on the mountains.

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This morning on Sunday Morning, they had an interview with Takashi Murakami whose art is now being exhibited at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. He is one of the artists Maria and I saw in Chicago (at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art). The rest of the photos from that exhibit are back about a year ago.

 The story focused mainly on his "happy" art such as shown above. They barely touched on his 'serious' art such as his macabre images and references to war.

But I think it was interesting that the interviewer noted that Murakami was called 'the Andy Warhol' of his time. (He liked that.)

Two Thursdays ago, Mom and I went to see the Andy Warhol exhibit at the Palm Springs Art Museum. 

 This portrait above is one of the many Childers' photos of Andy Warhol. They were long-time companions and associates.

 "Do you remember when you were in the Peanut Gallery on the Howdy Doody show?" Mom asked. I sure do. I was in the front row and had stretched my legs out, crossed at the ankles. "Someone tell this kid to pull in her legs," Buffalo Bob said after he almost tripped. I was mortified.

 Jimmy Carter was also a feature on today's Sunday Morning. Can you believe he was last President 37 years ago? I can't. He and his wife of 72 years, Rosalyn, were my inspiration to become a Habitat for Humanity supporter. I now have the time to become more active again ...

 Ted Kennedy, former senator from Massachusetts (JFK's brother). There's a movie coming out called "Chappaquiddick" and it can't bode well for his reputation. He actually did a lot of good for the people of Massachusetts, but of course, many people vilified him just because they didn't like his family. I have to admit to having a lot of doubts about his story of what happened at Chappaquiddick.

 I did not know there were so many Marilyns!

 Georgia is one of my favorite artists and I do not particularly like this portrait. But Warhol did many of this type and they glitter with diamond dust. I had never seen that technique before and it's really amazing.

Also new to me was this 'soup can dress' pictured below. I wonder if it was modeled by one of his friends. It turns out, you can have an original for $8,193.02 (why the 2 cents?) or a copy for $46. Who knew?

 And finally, here's what we all remember about Andy -- the iconic soup cans. I didn't know that he had been a commercial artist before his art adventures. He said, 'I used to submit what I thought was unique and original art to the client and they rejected it every time. So I stopped being original.' Many of his portraits were created for album covers (Liza Minelli and others).

On the whole, I was very impressed with the variation and experimentation of new techniques. And, unlike "common knowledge," Andy Warhol really could draw and was a good artist. He allowed Childers to do many portraits knowing that they would enhance his image and create "branding" for his art.

I just never got the impression that Warhol was particularly happy. From Getty images, which I Googled, I only saw 4 smiling (out of 15) from Warhol. So either he put on a good show in developing his persona, or he was a depressed individual.