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 One of two big lions outside the The Art Institute of Chicago. They are indeed big but not quite as big as this image makes them seem. A bit of an optical illusion. This is where we spent most of the day that Sunday and most of that time we spent in the Edward Hopper exhibit. It was even better that I expected and even more better because of the biography I read before going up and even more betterer because I got to share it with someone who also had a thing for Hopper. It made for a richer experience all around. There were several rooms filled with his work and every time I turned around, I was face to face with a painting I had only known from books. Sounds kinda corny but there were a few times when I literally gasped. OMG, I'm standing in front of 'Chop Suey' or 'New York Movie' or 'Early Sunday Morning'. (This whole trip started because of my Early Saturday Morning and there we were in front of the inspiration.) I saw 'Nighthawks' last time we were in Chicago and it's still wonderful. Eddie and I talked about how when you see the paintings in person, the colors and light seem to jump off the canvas. 'Gas' was a prime example and we both loved it. There was a half hour documentary constantly running on a big screen in one of the rooms. It's narrated by art collector and Hopper fan Steve Martin. Two of my favorite parts of the mega bio on Hopper by Levin were two separate sections in the back. One was on Hopper's influence on visual arts and the other was about Hopper's influence on film. Hopper loved movies and filmmakers loved Hopper. The house in Hitchcock's Psycho was based on the Hopper painting 'House by the Railroad' and there are a ton of other examples. Pennies from Heaven starring Mr. Steve Martin goes so far as to create scenes tableau vivant (fancy French for 'living painting') from 'New York Movie' and 'Nighthawks'. I've never seen Pennies for Heaven so I may have to queue it up. We did spend some time in other parts of this great museum. It's cool to see Grant Woods' 'American Gothic' in person. Seeing something that has become better known in parody than in the original form is interesting. I guess the same could be said for 'Nighthawks' too though not to the extent of the famous pitchfork couple. Seurat's 'Sunday on La Grande Jatte' is another one of those that I've read about and sat through a lecture on in Art Appreciation class back in the day. Pointillism I believe was the point. But seeing this monster canvas in person is actually very cool. As was seeing a room full of Monet's, some Picasso, some van Gogh and so much more. I'm not an art scholar by any stretch. I've just kinda' go by what I like or what moves me in some way. I've always loved the Dutch masters and Rembrandt in particular. As a photographer, I love the way he captured light. The same could be said of Hopper and Hopper was a fan of Rembrandt for what it's worth. 'Old Man with a Gold Chain' may be my favorite work at the AIC. I would love to see 'Night Watch' but I'll have to get to Amsterdam to check it out in person. Once again, anybody want to go with me? The Hopper exhibit is paired with a Winslow Homer exhibit and while I didn't like it as well as Hopper, it was still pretty cool. I saw a Homer exhibit last year down in Homosassa Springs just north of Tampa. Apparently he summered there a few times so there's a connection. The AIC exhibit focused on his watercolors but my favorite though, is the oil that is on display all the time called The Herring Net. Beautiful. Next time on Panhandlin', well...I'm not sure. I may take a break from Chicago for a little bit and come back to it later. I still have a few more images to put up and some teases to clear up but I need a change of pace. We'll see. Posted by blbutler on April 6th, 2008 Archived under: B&W, Travel, Wordplay |
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