Starry Variants

Posted on by Thor

I am seeing signs that the arts in Central Florida are looking to make a come back. I have been invited to mount an exhibition in Winter Park at The University club at the end of next month. April Fools Day, April 1, 2021 is the opening date. Rather then having an in person opening reception, I plan to have a virtual tour of the exhibition online.

Van Gogh Alive, was an exhibition that was mounted at the Dali museum in Tampa during the pandemic. The exhibition features more than 3,000 Van Gogh images at enormous scale, viewed through high-definition projectors and synchronized to a powerful classical score. The exhibit remains pen through April 11, 2021.

Snap Orlando now has an  exhibit called the The Van Gogh Affect. Photographers Lynn Johnson and Patricia Lanza followed Van Gogh’s footsteps through the places he lived, studied, and paid tribute to what they see as his “most enduring muse, the sun.”

As the country races to vaccinate as many Americans as possible against COVID-19, both New York and California are reporting new virus variants that might be more contagious than the original strain. Florida is still leading the country in coronavirus variants, with more than 400 cases have been reported to the CDC, far surpassing any other state.

The Salvador Dali Museum

Posted on by Thor

The Dali Museum is in Saint Petersburg Florida. The city has a definite “Artsy” vibe. The museum is right next to an airport. It was actually a bit chilly on the morning I was there. I got to the museum before it opened and decided to sketch the building and gardens before going in. The cement “bench” was in the sun. I leaned back against a light pole and warmed up as I sketched. The architecture of the museum is fascinating, with a glass dome wrapping around the back of the building like an octopus. The garden was arranged as a maze with surreal melting benches. A gentleman admired my work. He tripped on some grass and fell on top of me. I broke his fall. I got a comment from a reader the other day saying that my work is kind of literal, and they would like to see me work in a more surreal or impressionistic style. As soon as man discovered how to make art, there was the art critic.

In the lobby there was an old vintage car that had a mermaid in the back seat. Windows were dripping. The driver wore a heavy metal divers helmet. From the book, “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay” I remember reading about Dali showing up at a party in such a diving helmet. The faceplate got stuck and Dali almost suffocated to death.

A security guard made me leave my artist stood downstairs when I checked in. I wouldn’t be relaxing and sketching any galleries. The collection has work from Dali back from his student days. I respect the fact that Dali was expelled from art school because he felt he knew more about art than his teachers. Some of his paintings were huge. One piece showed a woman standing and looking out at an ocean through a cross shaped window. There was a small portrait of Lincoln hidden in a panel. Later from across the room I saw the painting again in a whole new light. The hole huge 20 foot high canvas was a portrait of Lincoln but I couldn’t see it from up close. These sort of inspired surprises are when Dali is at his best. I remember hearing that Dali got annoyed that the paper used at Disney Feature Animation had peg holes in it, when he was doing developmental work for Destino back in 1946.