Cultural Thursdays: Grand Central Station and the Bermuda dancers

Panoramic view of the ceiling in the main concourse of Grand Central Station, by Brent Townshend

This morning I took P to the Grand Central Station. He loves trains and I needed to do some grocery shopping. Since there is this wonderful market in the station, I decided to make our "supermarket" experience funnier than usual. So after buying our fresh fish, vegetables and cheeses (Murray's cheese shop is a must), we went for a stroll in the station. 

First of all, we went, of course, to see some trains. Although P was very disappointed when I told him we weren't going to ride on one. Then we discovered this fantastic toy store called "Kidding around". They opened in Grand Central Station last October, but they've been in the West Village for 17 years. They carry a lot of European brands, wood toys, puppets, educational toys, board games. Very different from what we usually see around here. 

The reason I had actually thought about going to the Station with P, aside from his love for trains, was because there is an Annex Gallery of the MTA-Transit Museum, inside the Station. And the last time I had been there (unfortunately without the kids), they had a beautiful miniature train circuit there. I thought it was something permanent, but apparently it was just a temporary exhibit because it wasn't there anymore. Instead, they are now showing an exhibition of The Art of Posters. They were commissioned by the London Transport at the beginning of the 20th century and they were made by the best English artists and designers to promote the use of public transportation. If you are around, it's fun to check-them out.

When we were on our way out, admiring the sky painting on the ceiling of the main concourse (P is always mesmerized by that painting), we heard some music. So we followed the sound of the drums and there we were in the middle of a party promoting tourism in Bermuda. P loved it. This is New York, everyday is a new day, full of surprises waiting around the corner. 

Bermuda Gombey dancers (sorry for the bad quality, I only had my phone with me)

 

Cultural Thursdays: VIP Art Fair - A new way to expose

My cultural Thursdays are not over. Actually, today I've visited many art galleries. I saw photographies, sculptures, installations, paintings, prints. All this, in the comfort of my house.

Have you heard of this event: VIP Art Fair?

During 5 days, starting tomorrow February 3rd (today was only the preview), Art galleries from all around the world will be participating in the second edition of this Online Art Fair. And we are talking about the most important galleries worldwide (the exhibitors list is quite impressive) presenting high quality contemporary Art.

From the point of view of an Art appreciator, like myself - who has no means or intentions to buy anything -, what I experienced today was more and less what I feel when I browse prints from Art.com or any other online "Art retailer" with the huge difference that most of the art works presented by the galleries at the fair are from renowned artists and are originals and important pieces (prices also differ greatly). What I was trying to explain through the comparison is that if you go to galleries or to an Art fair just for your viewing pleasure, then this might not do the trick. It may work, though, for collectors who beforehand already know what to look for and who to talk to.

I personally think, that participating physically to an Art fair gives you more pleasure. There is no online chat that can be compared to an actual conversation with the art dealers and there is certainly no online reproduction that can be compared to an original work. Nonetheless, I found the event interesting, very well organized (there is a zoom feature that let you see the works really closely that is fantastic) and so avant-garde. So since it's there why not enjoy the beautiful art presented, the discussions, the life performances and all the other fun events related to the VIP Art Fair (whenever and wherever we want). 

Diego Rivera Murals at the Moma

Diego Rivera. Agrarian Leader Zapata. 1931. The Museum of Modern Art. 

Yesterday, after assembling a bookcase for the kids' playroom and taking P to his music class, I snuck out of the house while P was finishing lunch. I went to the Moma, where there is currently an exhibit on Diego Rivera's murals that were commissioned by the Museum in 1931, for a retrospective of the Artist's work. The murals are beautiful, strong and impressive. You can't remain indifferent to them. Some of his sketch books (that are amazing) are also exposed, as well as big drawings that were used as drafts before the artist painted the actual mural and there is in addition an explanation of the technique used by the artist to make his portable murals. 

The museum offers walking tours through some of its galleries for free. So I decided to join one that was going to go through Diego Rivera's exhibit. The tour was a little bit too crowded, but our guide was very good. She gave us a lot of insights, was well articulated and prepared. I've already talked about guided tours in galleries or museums here and here. Usually, I prefer just going through an exhibition by myself at my own pace. But I find it also very helpful to understand an artist and his or her work through a guided tour. It is certainly an excellent option if you have time.

Diego Rivera's exhibit goes through May 14th. Don't miss it!

Cultural Thursdays - Calder

Wouldn't you love to have one of these in your children's playroom?

P. and I went to see these beautiful mobiles by Alexander Calder that are currently exposed at the Pace Gallery. They are so simple. So delicate. And I love the play of light and shadow that appears from their reflection.

And what about this one for your living room?

Dreaming is for free as are the visits to galleries. If you are in New York, take advantage of this. There are always beautiful things being exposed in the hundreds of galleries that are spread throughout the city. It is also a good way to learn about new artists and their work.

Currently, you can see Calder, Braque, Magritte and Matisse among others.  

"Cultural Thursdays" - not working out...

Another not-so-cultural-Thursday... The weather was awful today and... my mother arrived. Therefore, I'll be strolling much more than I usually do this week and I will probably be posting less.

I'll try to catch up with my cultural plans tomorrow. We are planning on visiting the Frick collection where they are currently showing some drawings by Picasso and it looks like a "must go" exhibit.

Not so "Cultural Thursday"

Marquise do Ibirapuera - São Paulo, Brasil (I took this picture a year ago)

When I started this blog a week ago, I had decided to devote my Thursdays to culture, by visiting a nice exhibit, museum, gallery, etc. However, today was not as cultural as I would have liked it to be. In fact, there was no culture at all. I had to take my son to the pediatrician for his 2 year-old check-up. The poor little fellow received two shots, so wasn't very pleased with our outing.

Then, since we were already in the neighborhood, we went to then new Fareway on the upper east side. No culture there as well.

But to save the day, let me share with you the work of this photographer Vivian Maier that I just discovered today. She was a nanny in Chicago and for 60 years did street photography, at a time when almost nobody was doing it. She died in 2009, just a few months before her work gained notoriety. There's a book about her work coming up, in the next month or so, called Vivian maier: Street Photographer.

Cultural Thursdays - MOMA

Yesterday P. and I went to the Moma. We arrived a few minutes before the Museum opened and it was already full. We headed to the 4th floor, because I wanted to see Cy Twombly's sculptures. There are only a few of them, and I actually prefer his paintings. Then, we went up to the 6th floor to try to take a look at de Kooning's exhibit, the real objective of our visit (it is there until January 9). However, the rooms were packed and I was pushing P.'s patience a little too far, since we ended up spending more time that I would like on the 4th floor. I decided to leave and I'll try to come back at another time. As we were heading towards the exit, I saw that on the 2nd floor there was a special installation of a white fabric hanging from the ceiling. So we went to check it out. It is actually an installation from Brazilian artist Carlito Carvalhosa (there until November 14), consisting of this white, kind of translucent material hanging from the ceiling to the floor in an elliptic way. You have to walk in the middle and it is a very interesting feeling. In a way, the experience is very similar to the Richard Serra's elliptic sculptures, but with a completely different approach of textures and colors. And I have to say that taking a 2 year-old there is a lot of fun. He loved it! He ran around twice, touched the fabric, played with it. It was really cute. I'm sorry that I can't share any pictures with you, but I was myself running after my son. This is something that I actually love about taking my kids to more "serious" places. You end up doing things that you would never ever do if you were by yourself, surrounded only by adults. It's as if you were allowed (at least under my perspective) to be a child again. It was absolutely delightful to run around all those white drapes and hearing him laughing.

We ended our visit by going to the Material lab. We had already been there once and it's a fantastic place to take children of all ages. There you'll find different materials to explore, books about art, construction and wood blocks to play with, art supply and also some computers with a digital painting program that really gives you the feeling of painting with oil on a canvas (you paint on the screen with a digital brush). However, you can't print or send your picture once you're done, which I found a little disappointing. Anyway, if you are planning on going to the Moma with your kids, it is worth spending some time at the Material lab as well. The entrance is on 54th street, right next to the Museum entrance (but it's a different building) and you'll need to show your ticket to get in.