Tag: writing & blogging

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Women in the Arts

Lately, one of my favorite haunts has been the National Museum of Women in the Arts {NMWA}. I frequent the gallery to view the latest work dedicated to celebrating women’s achievements in the visual, performing and literary arts.

The first piece I was immediately drawn to was What if Women Ruled the World. The artist Yael Bartana explores imagery of identity and politics of her native country, Israel. What women wouldn’t want this neon sign blazed across her desk at work! Next was Spider III by Louise Bourgeois who associated maternal protectiveness with this arachnid. She frequently remarked on her mother’s shared attributes with the spider: patience, cleverness and industriousness…. personally these eight-legged critters still give me the “creepies”.

Yael Bartana (b. 1970, Kfar Yehezkel, Israel) What if Women Ruled the World, 2016

Louise Bourgeois (b. 1911, Paris; d. 2010, New York City) Spider III, 1995

Niki de Saint-Phalle (b.1930, Neuilly-sur-Seine; d.2002, La Jolla, California] Pregnant Nana, 1993

Niki de Saint-Phalle will always have a special place in my heart, after grad-school I went to Paris. Walking the Centre Pompidou and the Church of Saint-Merri I saw the Stravinsky Fountain sculptures dotted around the plaza. They were so gorgeous that I couldn’t stop taking photos of the works.

Once in the NMWA you instantly notice the signature style of de Saint-Phalle with her colorful, patterned art work, and the French term for “nana” means a woman, chick, or girlfriend.

Stay stylish,
K

 

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A Day in the Orient

Rainy days and Mondays…. what a perfect combination for taking a day off from work. Last weekend our time at Heath was spent dealing with leaks alongside the roof and fireplace. Rain can take its toll by putting a damper on activities so, gardening, planting and barbecuing were completely …. if you’ll pardon the pun…. “a wash out”!!!

After painstakingly repairing the roof and doing a lot of clean-up it was now time to report back to work. I wasn’t having it, and needed an entire day off so, I headed to the District to find where Asia meets America. First stop was to the Freer/Sackler Galleries to see the Empresses of China’s Forbidden City, 1644-1912.

The focus on the last imperial dynasty of China {Qing} is on the primary duties of the empress or consort to the emperor. For 268 years the male officials who wrote court history recorded virtually nothing about the accomplishments of these women. To unlock the hidden aspects of their lives we must examine the materials goods they possessed such as attire, furnishings, portraits and devotional objects.

The East Glorious Gate to the Palace of Longevity and Health.

Empress Dowager Cixi {1835-1908} is arguably the most powerful empress in Chinese history, who dominated the court and policies for nearly fifty years.
Every aspect of imperial dining was splendidly planned from the taste of food to the containers used to hold delicacies and the cups for drinking. Lidded cup and lobed tray with phoenixes and peonies- Qianlong period {1736-95}

Fine dining on the road- Empress Dowager Chongqing spent tem months of each year living outside the Forbidden City. She made nearly thirty trips to Chengde, an imperial resort north of Beijing . This lacquer with gold on wood was portable tableware for elegant dining.– And an Ewer with dragons and clouds made of gold alloy.

I do not think I have ever had boots on in May, it was pouring rain and the wind kicked up to about 25-30 mph.

Staying in theme we headed to Graces Mandarin restaurant at the National Harbor for a delicious lunch of Salt & Pepper Shrimp, Crab Fried Rice and a crisp cold glass of Santori Pinot Grigio.

Stay stylish,
Kathleen