More PAM

This is the exhibition we went to go see at the Phoenix Art Museum:"One For All & All For One, The Jumpsuit." From denim coveralls to turn of the century swimsuits...One piece outfits from Elvis Presley to Beyonce...Full body Olympic swimsuits to astronaut gear... It was all in this one gallery. Plus More!

The Chicklet wasn't as interested as I was so we didn't spend as much time there as I would have liked. I'll probably go again on my own.A small sculpture by Lynn Chadwick. Another artist who's work was an inspiration in grad school. Where has the museum kept all these gems hidden? We saw Calders and a Giacometti, not a familiar piece but a Giacometti none the less. I either missed them or they have been rotated in since the last time I was at the museum.A visit can't end until we've had a good stroll through the museum store. The Chicklet and I discovered this strange looking object. A very modern, plastic menorah. With a very plastic, modern, contemporary art price...at 75% off. It was a bargain! Given the choice between pink and blue, we can see which one the Chicklet chose.
The surprise came when she took it out of the box. Look what it does. It's completely pliable! This sure beats yogurt smoothie cup menorahs...From the synthetic to the natural. Water running down the sides of a large clay sculpture.The play of light on the side of the museum building as we arrived. It wasn't at all interesting when we left.
More shadow play. Inspiration for a hair style?

How's this for a good read? "Raising Your Child Cubist." Ha, ha... what a square. Eewww! Bad pun....This was one of the bronze public art pieces at the light rail station at Central and McDowell.

Marissa

We Rode the Rails

Light rail has come to Phoenix. Whoo hoo!!! We're not close to it but drove over to the end of the line at Christown. Our destination: the Phoenix Art Museum. Wow! A lot of folks had the same idea to ride the rails. It was standing room only.
We exited on Central and McDowell. Cross the street and you're at the Phoenix Public Library or the Spaghetti Factory or the Phoenix Art Museum and the theater.The library facade. I'm still on my diamond kick and found them in the reflection of the shades on the building.

How's this for art? A little bit of texture in the streets.My "buddy" Ponder is in another pasture in the museum. This is the new sculpture in the foyer. With the newest museum addition, I lose my way around and there's always a new surprise around the corner.

We wandered around the museum. The Chicklet was restless so we went out in the sculpture garden. I love these pieces by Magdalena Abakanowicz. She's been a major influence in the fiber art world and was a huge influence for me in grad school.It was after 3 pm and the shadows caught my attention. The chairs on the cafe patio...A row of trees.

More tree shadows.

The Chicklet wanted to get back on the Metro and ride it all the way to Mesa. I compromised with riding to Tempe. Off we went. Next destination: Dinner at Haji Ba Ba's.We got off on Dorsey and Apache. A short walk to the restaurant but they were closed! Oops! Never assume on New Year's Eve... We were on the lookout for the public art at each station. Because of where we were sitting or having people around us, we couldn't see the art at every stop. On our last trip back to Christown we sat higher. The public art might be at eye level or on the platform itself. The Dorsey station had these tall, scrolly hands and mosaic art. If the art doesn't get your attention the people watching does.

Marissa

Art and Recycling

Collage/assemblage enthusiasts, found object lovers, hunters, gatherers, tinkerers-Go see this exhibition at the Arizona Museum for Youth in Old Downtown Mesa. I read a short write up on the exhibition and I zeroed in on the picture of a sculpture made from found objects, watches, jewelery, etc.

It is the museum for youth so take your kids (or don't, there were plenty of screaming babies to go around). The Chicklet was joined by a friend and the girls kept busy with the hands on activities while I took in all the artwork. The theme of the exhibition was art made from discarded materials. Most of the artists were new to me. There's a couple I'm going to google.
OK, here's my little photogenic wonders. Once again, photography wasn't allowed in the exhibition. We took a walk across the street and visited "Betty" the elephant. Gotta love the street art along Main Street although Betty is on Robson.Have the planets aligned or was I just otherwise occupied and didn't realize how much high quality art there is to see in Phoenix? Three shows in two monthes and they're all hits, (and I'm picky). Next on the list-Phoenix Art Museum: Art of the Jumpsuit via the new light rail. Woo hoo, can't wait for a ride on our new Metro line. It opens this Sat.

It's the first week of winter and this is what it looks like:Winter in Phoenix...

I've been taking a lot of pictures of shadows lately. The distraction of colors and textures is taken away and all that's left is line and shape.

Marissa