New Territories at MAD

I had a bit of a stressful visit to the Museum of Arts and Design this afternoon, as I arrived close to closing and there were other issues going on. So I felt rushed as I went through the fascinating exhibition, New Territories: Laboratories for Design, Craft, and Art in Latin America. There was so much to look at I had trouble taking it all in. Also, didn't have my phone with me so I couldn't take photos (not necessarily a bad thing). 

Some works that stood out for me were the fantastical pink beaded creation by Nepomuceno (pictured in the second installation shot), the collection of high heeled shoes (all so different and funky and creative) inspired by different lovers, by Errazuriz. There were three beautiful white chairs like lace (didn't catch the artist's name), a beautiful table and chandelier. And these haunting dresses pictured in this installation shot. I may have to go back a second time to see what I missed!

Blue Valentine

Blue Valentine is a very sad, very difficult move to watch. It stars Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams as a young married couple whose relationship is falling apart. Both actors give marvelous performances.

The movie zeroes in on the the tension between them, almost microscopically. It also veers, through extended flashbacks, to the sweet beginning of their courtship. It does both these things very well, but there seems to be something missing. How did they grow that far apart? Did she just become sick of him (he still seemed crazy about her)?

Brooklyn Art

I was really underwhelmed and disappointed by the group show at the Brooklyn Museum showcasing Brooklyn Artists. There was something grim and plain and overly conceptual about most of the pieces. Very few grabbed me. Nothing was luscious and unforgettable. My favorite was the room of sky paintings by Cynthia Daignault, which made me feel momentarily transported to the out of doors and which meticulously studied variations of cloud formations.

Killer Heels

The Brooklyn Museum has a tantalizing show up now on the high heel shoe, Killer Heels. Every single piece I saw was spectacular and a pleasure to look at. Really engaging. Most of the works were very contemporary, from the last five years. I think I had expected a more historical perspective and wasn't prepared for so much current high fashion. It was still interesting. I think the small section on fetish footwear could have been more out there and elaborate, and was disappointed by the small appearance of just one (I think) Fluevog.

Anna Karenina, again

I just watched the Kiera Knightly version of Anna Karenina again. I saw it in the theater when it first came out. I had liked it then, although it left me dry-eyed. This time I liked it just as much, if not more, although again it left me unmoved emotionally.

I love the way the story was set, the tension and beauty created by the device of theatricality. It was stunning, and captivating, and engaging. But Anna Karenina seems to really need to punch you in the gut to be fully successful, and this wondrous version just doesn't take me there. Still, I highly recommend it.

Bluets

I read Maggie Nelson's astonishing and lovely Bluets in one sitting on the dreary rainy cold Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Bluets is what I give thanks for. A sweet, smart and sorrowful book. It is a true gift.

Deep and precise reflections on the color blue merge with the experience of personal romantic loss and the writing process in a way that comes together as a glimmering memoir and exploration of human experience. Suffering. Desire. Memory. 

Some entries:

"203. I remember, in the eighties, when crack first hit the scene, hearing all kinds of horror stories about how if you smoked it even once, the memory of its unbelievable high would live on in your system forever, and you would thus never again be able to be content without it. I have no idea if this is true, but I will admit that it scared me off the drug. In the years since, I have sometimes found myself wondering if the same principle applies in other realms -- if seeing a particularly astonishing shade of blue, for example, or letting a particularly potent person inside you, could alter you irrevocably, just to have seen or felt it. In which case, how does one know when, or how, to refuse? How to recover?"

"228. My injured friend is now able to write letters via voice-recognition software to keep her friends abreast of changes in her condition, of which there have been many. 'My life can change, does change,' she asserts -- and it has, and does, often in astonishing ways. Nonetheless, near the end of these letters, she includes a short paragraph that acknowledges her ongoing physical pain, and her intense grief for all she has lost, a grief she describes as bottomless. 'If I did not write of the difficulties under which I labor, I would fear to be misrepresenting the grinding reality of quadriplegia and spinal cord injury,' she says. "So here it is, the paragraph that roundly asserts that I continue to suffer.'"

Ani DiFranco at The Town Hall

Tonight I finally saw Ani DiFranco live! I've loved her music for the last 20 years and never had the opportunity to see her perform before.

She was energetic and soulful and very graceful. She sang mostly new songs, all gorgeous and full of funk and raw gentleness. Clearly a seasoned performer. I really liked the new songs, but I sheepishly confess that I wish she had sung some more of her work from the 90s. I'm thinking Not a Pretty Girl, Out of Range, and Dilate. She did end the evening with a beautiful rendition of "32 Flavors", with the entire audience singing with her. All in all a great evening.