The Frick Collection: Guido Cagnacci’s ‘Masterpiece the Repentant Magdalene’ (October 25, 2016, through January 22, 2017)

Often times we get lost in the glamour and beauty of the collections from the likes of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art that we forget about the off the beaten path works that are just down the street that can offer just as much creative inspiration when you are on holiday.

Have you ever heard of The Frick Collection?  The Frick is known for its distinguished Old Master paintings and outstanding examples of European sculpture and decorative arts.

The collection was assembled by the Pittsburgh industrialist Henry Clay Frick (1849–1919) and is housed in his former residence on Fifth Avenue. One of New York City’s few remaining Gilded Age mansions, it provides a tranquil environment for visitors to experience masterpieces by artists such as Bellini, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Gainsborough, Goya, and Whistler. The museum opened in 1935 and has continued to acquire works of art since Mr. Frick’s death.

A collection that inspired me during my visit to The Frick Collection was from Guido Cagnacci.  His ‘Masterpiece the Repentant Magdalene’ is swoon worthy and a true exhibition of a great master series.

Guido Cagnacci (1601–1663) is among the most eccentric painters who worked in seventeenth-century Italy. His works, mostly religious in subject, are known for their unashamed, often unsettling, eroticism. Even though his pictorial style was influenced by some of the greatest Italian baroque painters—the Carracci, Guercino, and Guido Reni—his figurative language always remained individual and highly recognizable. The unconventionality of his work led to his being almost entirely forgotten during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. After exhibitions in Rimini and Bologna in 1952 and 1959, respectively, Cagnacci was rediscovered by Italian art historians and writers, but he still remains unjustifiably little known outside of Italy. Cagnacci’s ambitious Repentant Magdalene, a large canvas acquired in 1982 by the Norton Simon Art Foundation in Pasadena, CA, is considered a masterpiece of seventeenth-century Italian art.   Accompanying the exhibition in the museum’s East Gallery will be the publication The Art of Guido Cagnacci by Xavier F. Salomon, Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator. Principal funding for the exhibition is generously provided by the Robert H. Smith Family Foundation.

Trained between Bologna and Rome, Cagnacci spent most of his life producing idiosyncratic pictures for religious and aristocratic patrons in his native Romagna, an area of northeastern Italy between the Apennine Mountains and the Adriatic Sea. He worked in different cities of the region, in particular, Rimini and Forlì. For nearly ten years, in the 1650s, he was based in Venice, after which, in 1658, he moved to Vienna, where he died in 1663. Cagnacci was known for his unconventional lifestyle. In 1628, he was caught after unlawfully eloping with an aristocratic woman, and he was often described as living with attractive young women disguised as male apprentices. 

 Highly theatrical in composition, The Repentant Magdalene is based on contemporary literary sources and religious plays. It depicts an event from the life of Mary Magdalene, the courtesan who converted to Christianity and gave up her sinful life after her encounter with Christ. Shown in her room after meeting with Jesus in the Temple, Mary is on the floor at the center of the composition, her long blonde hair cascading down her side, her face reddened by high emotion, her body barely covered by a white sheet around her waist. She has discarded her worldly possessions, throwing away her luxurious clothes and jewels, which are scattered all over the floor, creating an astonishing still life. Her sister Martha has found her in this state. Simply dressed, Martha sits on one of the cushions on the floor, consoling Mary. Behind them, two servants are leaving the room after having found their mistress in such a state. To the left, two allegorical figures are depicted: a standing angel, its hair blown by the divine wind that ruffles its evanescent wings, banishes a levitating devil, complete with horns and tail, who approaches the window in an attempt to flee the room. These fighting figures represent Virtue and Vice locked in combat as Mary chooses to follow her virtuous new Christian life.

The Repentant Magdalene was probably painted in the early 1660s in Vienna for Emperor Leopold I. By 1665, however, the canvas was in Italy, in the collection of Carlo II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, at La Favorita, his villa outside of Mantua. The Gonzagas were closely related to the imperial family, so this may have been a diplomatic gift to them, or an acquisition from Leopold I. In 1711, it entered the possession of the Bentinck family in England, first at Bulstrode House and then at Welbeck Abbey, where it remained until 1981, when it was sold at auction.

The next time you are in New York, make some time to check out The Frick Collection.  Its boutique beautifully curated works will give you a lot to reflect upon in the days that follow.

http://www.frick.org/

Review: National Museum of the American Indian in New York

Like the U.S., Canada has it’s own historical connections with our First Nations roots. But there is also a history that is so dark and painful that even now deacdes later our First Nations people are experiencing the grief, loss and devastation inflicted upon them by Canada’s first European settlers.

When I visited the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian I was wary of what I may see and experience.  Instead, I immediately felt an instant emotional connection.  The beauty of the arts, costume and honour of America Indian culture is a beautifully curated in an inclusive and diverse manner.  The space also serves to kindly educate the public locally and abroad about what it means to be an American Indian and how important it is to dwell upon as one of America’s own First Nations.

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Lower Manhattan, the George Gustav Heye (pronounced “high”) Center, opened in 1994 in the historic Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House, one of the most splendid Beaux-Arts buildings in New York. The museum features year-round exhibitions, dance and music performances, children’s workshops, family and school programs and film screenings that present the diversity of the Native peoples of the Americas and the strength of their cultures from the earliest times to the present.

The museum is a branch of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The National Museum of the American Indian was established by Congress in 1989. The Heye Center in New York opened in 1994; the Cultural Resources Center, six miles from the National Mall building in Suitland, Md., opened in 1999; and the National Museum of the American Indian opened in September 2004.

Exhibitions

The museum’s permanent exhibition “Infinity of Nations: Art and History from the Collections of the National Museum of the American Indian” showcases some 700 objects from Native North, Central and South America. Objects include an exquisite Olmec jade head, a rare Anishinaabe man’s outfit and a remarkable Charles and Isabelle Edenshaw (Haida) spruce root hat. This unparalleled assemblage of American Indian cultural material represents the tremendous breadth of the collections and the richness of Native art.

In addition, the museum hosts a selection of changing exhibitions that present and reaffirm the Native voice. The schedule includes exhibitions developed by the museum from its collections, installations of contemporary Native art and significant traveling exhibitions from other institutions.

Cultural Arts

The museum hosts Native musicians, dancers, artists and elders in presentations of their art and cultural heritage and in informal programs that invite them to share directly with museum visitors the life ways and world views of Native peoples. Programs include dance presentations, hands-on workshops, storytelling programs and annual events, including the Children’s Festival and the Native Sounds Downtown concert series.

Film and Video Center

The Film + Video Center of the National Museum of the American Indian is dedicated to presenting the works of Native Americans in media. An international leader in the support and presentation of indigenous film and video projects, the Heye Center hosts the Native Cinema Showcase, an annual presentation of films held at the Santa Fe Indian Market in New Mexico. Screenings and discussions with filmmakers are also periodically held in the museum’s auditorium.

MUST SEE’s

‘Circle of Dance’ exhibit (October 6, 2012–October 8, 2017) Consistent across time and cultures is the use of the body to communicate and express—to tell stories, participate in the cycles of nature, mourn, pray, and celebrate. Throughout the Americas music and dance have always been an essential part of the spiritual, cultural, and social lives of Native peoples.

During your time at the National Museum of the American Indian, please check out their amazing and informative tours.  Specifically the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House Tour.  Tour highlights include a discussion of the history of the site, architect Cass Gilbert, and sculptor Daniel Chester French; viewing the Collectors Office with Tiffany woodwork; Reginald Marsh murals; and the 140-ton Rotunda dome by Rafael Gustavino.  It is a free tour and a great way to go a little bit deeper into what the museum has to offer on site.

Calendar of Tours:  http://nmai.si.edu/calendar/?trumbaEmbed=mixin%3d452896&filter1%3d_166522

http://nmai.si.edu/

Review: The Brooklyn Museum’s ‘Iggy Pop Life Class’ (November 4, 2016, to March 26, 2017)

At the Brooklyn Museum you can explore an extensive and comprehensive permanent collection that includes ancient Egyptian masterpieces, African art, European painting, decorative arts, period rooms, and contemporary art. You’ll also experience intelligent, cutting-edge exhibitions and programs that reflect a fresh view of traditional and historical works as well as engagement with today’s most important artists and artistic practices and ideas.

This was my second time to the Brooklyn Museum.  I love that I can navigate the space within a few hours, dwell on works that that I want to see without hovering over people and also be guaranteed with some interesting pieces I can take away with me in my memory bank.

An exhibit worth checking out before March of 2017 is the ‘Iggy Pop Life Class’.

In Iggy Pop Life Class, Turner Prize–winning artist Jeremy Deller uses the traditional life-model drawing class to stage a performative event with Iggy Pop as model and subject. The resulting drawings, created by twenty-two participating artists, will be shown at the Brooklyn Museum from November 4, 2016, to March 26, 2017. Along with works depicting the male body selected from the Museum’s historical collections, the exhibition examines shifting cultural representations of masculinity across history.

Deller’s collaboration with Iggy Pop as a nude model is essential to his concept. A pioneer rock musician—as a singer, songwriter, musician, and actor—Pop began performing in the 1960s, becoming known for strenuous and unpredictable stage performances—highly physical, deliberately aggressive events that often left his body battered and cut. These corporeally charged acts radically confronted the rock and roll trope of male sexual appeal. As Deller notes, “Iggy Pop has one of the most recognizable bodies in popular culture. A body that is key to an understanding of rock music, and that has been paraded, celebrated, and scrutinized through the years in a way that is unusual for a man. It is also fair to say that it has witnessed a lot. It was for these reasons that I wanted him to sit for a life class.” For Deller, the life drawing class offered the opportunity to study his body in direct and palpable terms.

On Sunday, February 21, 2016, the twenty-two participating artists gathered at the New York Academy of Art, where Pop was the unexpected model. The artists represent New York’s diverse community, ranging from 19 to 80 years of age with varying backgrounds, and include undergraduate and graduate students, practicing artists, and retirees.

Iggy Pop Life Class expands on the ways in which different cultures have traditionally considered the male body by including objects from the Brooklyn Museum’s collection, chosen by Deller, that represent male figures from different cultures and periods around the world. Works include sculptures from ancient Egypt, Africa, India, Japan, and Mexico; prints and drawings by Egon Schiele, Max Beckmann, and Daniel Huntington; and photographs by Eadweard Muybridge, Horace Bristol, Jim Steinhardt, Robert Mapplethorpe, and John Coplans. “Pop’s use of his body in his performances, and Deller’s multifaceted approach to examining it through this project, offers the opportunity to discuss maleness, and to consider how feminism has expanded to apply not only to women, but  to all genders on the spectrum,” said Sharon Matt Atkins.

Jeremy Deller is a London-based conceptual artist Jeremy Deller (English, born 1966) is known for orchestrating large-scale collaborative projects. In 2001, Deller worked with former miners and members of re-enactment societies to restage a violent confrontation between the police and striking miners that had occurred in 1984 during the yearlong miners’ strike in the United Kingdom. For It Is What It Is, commissioned by The Three M Project and Creative Time in 2009, Deller toured the United States with a car destroyed in a 2007 bomb attack in Baghdad, inviting journalists, Iraqi refugees, soldiers, and scholars to share their experiences. He has developed several music projects including Acid Brass (1997), a brass band performance of acid house music. More recently, he created Sacrilege (2012), a life-size inflatable Stonehenge, and we’re here because we’re here (2016), a modern memorial to mark the centenary of the Battle of the Somme. Winner of the 2004 Turner Prize, Deller represented Great Britain at the 55th Venice Biennale in 2013. His appreciation of academic drawing can be traced to his art history studies at the Courtauld Institute of Art and the University of Sussex.

Iggy Pop is a pioneer of rock music, Iggy Pop (American, born James Newell Osterberg, Jr., 1947) is a singersongwriter, musician, and actor. Born and raised in Michigan, Pop began performing in the 1960s. In 1967, he formed The Stooges, a band that significantly influenced the trajectory of rock music in the 1970s and 1980s. Pop became known for dynamic and unpredictable stage performances, a trademark throughout his career. His music has encompassed a number of styles over the decades, with well-known albums such as The Idiot (1977), Lust for Life (1977), Blah Blah Blah (1986), Brick by Brick (1990), and Skull Ring (2003). In 2010, The Stooges were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. March 2016 marked the release of Pop’s seventeenth album, Post Pop Depression, a collaboration with Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age.

Iggy Pop Life Class is organized by Sharon Matt Atkins, Vice Director, Exhibitions and Collections Management, Brooklyn Museum.

https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/

Art Gallery of Ontario: “Mystical Landscapes: Masterpieces from Monet, van Gogh & more” (October 22 – January 29, 2017)

This fall, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) invites visitors to accompany some of the greatest artists of the 19th and 20th centuries on a spiritual journey of self-discovery. Organized in partnership with the renowned Musée d’Orsay in Paris, Mystical Landscapes: Masterpieces from Monet, van Gogh and more breaks new ground by exploring the mystical experiences of 36 artists from 15 countries, including Emily Carr, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, Vassily Kandinsky, Piet Mondrian, Claude Monet, Edvard Munch, Georgia O‘Keeffe and James McNeill Whistler. This major exhibition, which features close to 90 extraordinary paintings and 20 works on paper, debuts on Oct. 22, 2016 and runs to Jan. 29, 2017, before opening at the Musée d‘Orsay in the spring of 2017.

The years between 1880 and 1930 were marked by rampant materialism and rapid urbanization. Disillusioned with traditional religious institutions, many artists across Europe and North America searched for an unmediated spiritual path through mystical experiences. They conveyed their feelings of unity with nature and the cosmos in some of the most famous landscape paintings ever created. Gauguin found inspiration in the faith of peasants in rural Brittany; Monet sought solace from the First World War through hours of contemplation beside his waterlily pond at Giverny; and van Gogh looked for consolation in the starry skies over Arles.

Mystical Landscapes was conceived and developed by Katharine Lochnan, the AGO‘s senior curator of international exhibitions, together with guest curators Roald Nasgaard and Bogomila Welsh-Ovcharov, in addition to Guy Cogeval and Isabelle Morin Loutrel of the Musée d‘Orsay.

Over the five years it has taken to develop the exhibition, the AGO has been assisted by a multi-disciplinary advisory group drawn largely from senior faculty at the University of Toronto. Leading experts in the fields of theology, history, astrophysics, medicine and psychology have looked at nature mysticism and art through different lenses.

“These masterpieces convey experiences that cannot be put into words”, says Lochnan. The feeling of connecting with a deeper reality—a power much greater than ourselves—is a mystical experience. These experiences may reach any of us through the contemplation of nature and the cosmos. We are moved by the beauty of sunrise and sunset, the stars in the night sky, the reflections of the moon on lakes, the power of the ocean waves and the vision of snow-capped mountains. These paintings convey the artists “mystical experiences of something greater than themselves. It is primarily through the contemplation of nature that they have seen with greater clarity.”

Mystical Landscapes will take visitors on a journey through Europe, Scandinavia and North America, beginning on a path through the woods and ending with a view of outer space from a mountain top.

Highlights of the exhibition include:

Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night over the Rhone at Arles from 1888, which prompted him to write about feeling ―a tremendous need of —shall I say the word—religion…so I go outside at night to paint the stars‖;

Paul Gauguin’s vivid Vision after the Sermon (Jacob Wrestling with the Angel) from 1888, painted during his sojourn in rural Brittany;

Claude Monet’s Water Lilies (Nymphéas) from 1907, which he painted after hours of Zen-like meditation beside his Japanese water garden;

Edvard Munch’s The Sun, created to inspire students in the wake of his well-publicized nervous breakdown between 1910-1913;

Georgia O’Keeffe’s Series I – from the Plains from 1919, showing the terrifying power of an approaching thunderstorm in Texas;

A series of mystical lithographs by the recently rediscovered French artist Charles-Marie Dulac, which illustrates St. Francis of Assisi‘s Canticle of Creation.

“We have been given extraordinary support for this project from institutions around the world,” says Lochnan. “Many of the loans are ‘magnets’ in their home museums and are very seldom lent. This unprecedented level of generosity reflects the very genuine excitement and commitment to the ideas explored in this exhibition which have never been fully addressed through art historical research.”

Lenders include the Musée d‘Orsay; Tate Britain; National Gallery of Canada; National Gallery of Scotland; National Museum, Stockholm; National Gallery, Oslo; National Gallery, Prague; Leopold Museum, Vienna; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Art Institute of Chicago; and many other institutions worldwide.

After stepping through its doors, visitors to the exhibition will feel an immediate sense of escape from the world outside. While designing the in-gallery experience, AGO Senior Interpretive Planner David Wistow has carefully considered ways to help audiences draw their own emotional connections to the art works. “We welcome people to contemplate the role of spirituality in their own lives, and their connection to a deeper reality,” says Wistow.   The artists’ mystical journeys prompt us to ask our own questions of, ‘Who are we, and why are we here?'”.

An illustrated catalogue will accompany this exhibition—one of the most ambitious publications in the AGO‘s history—and will be available in English and French. Featuring essays by 19 scholars and curators from across Europe and North America, including those who served in an advisory capacity, it will be for sale in shopAGO.

AGO members receive free admission to this time-ticketed exhibition. More information on the benefits of AGO membership can be found at http://www.ago.net/general-membership.

Mystical Landscapes: Masterpieces from Monet, van Gogh and more is organized by the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto and the Etablissement public du musée d‘Orsay et du musée de l‘Orangerie, Paris.

http://www.ago.net

The Idea of North: The Paintings of Lawren Harris ( July 1 – Sept. 18, 2016) at the Art Gallery of Ontario

A founding member of the Group of Seven and a major figure in the history of twentieth-century Canadian art, Lawren Harris (1885-1970) remains largely unknown in the United States. This year the AGO is partnering with the Hammer Museum to introduce Harris’s iconic landscapes to audiences in Los Angeles and Boston. The Idea of North: The Paintings of Lawren Harris will be the first major solo exhibition of his work to be shown in the United States, and opens  in Toronto in July of 2016.

The exhibition is curated by comedian, musician, actor and writer Steve Martin in collaboration with Cynthia Burlingham, Deputy Director, Curatorial Affairs at the Hammer Museum, and Andrew Hunter, Fredrik S. Eaton Curator of Canadian Art at the AGO.

The AGO’s installation offers an expanded experience, curated by Hunter. It opens with a selection of Harris’ early paintings from the 1910s, many of which depict the complex and culturally diverse Ward neighbourhood in Toronto, where the artist spent his formative years. Visitors will then experience the core of the exhibition, followed by a special epilogue that explores the influence of Harris’ landscapes on Canadian identity (“the idea of north”) in relation to the city. The impact of Harris’ art and legacy can be seen through historical photogaphs by Arthur Goss in addition to the works of several contemporary Canadian artists including Nina Bunjevac, Jennifer Baichwal and Nick de Pencier, Tin Can Forest and Anique Jordan. Combined with the core exhibition, this enhanced presentation of The Idea of North features over 80 works in total.

http://www.ago.net/

Chihuly: From Sand. From Fire. Comes Beauty. (June 25 – January 2, 2017) at the Royal Ontario Museum

The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is proud to present CHIHULY, featuring the dramatically colourful creations in glass by internationally acclaimed artist Dale Chihuly. On display from June 25, 2016 to January 2, 2017 in the Museum’s Garfield Weston Exhibition Hall, CHIHULY includes installations created especially for the ROM’s exhibition, in addition to series favourites.

Dale Chihuly has been exploring glass as a medium and creating striking installations for 50 years. His monumental works defy his material’s fragility. Chihuly’s pieces bring together a centuries-old team approach to glass-blowing with his unique artistic vision – resulting in ground-breaking artworks. Chihuly said, “I want people to be overwhelmed with light and colour in a way they’ve never experienced before.”

“CHIHULY is a mesmerizing exhibition highlighting the monumental works of this singular artist. His stunning installations transform the ROM—encouraging us to think differently about both art and nature,” said Josh Basseches, ROM Director and CEO.

Diane Charbonneau, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Decorative Arts at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art, is the guest curator of CHIHULY at the ROM. She commented, “With Nathalie Bondil, MMFA director and chief curator, we are pleased to have helped this initiative from the very beginning with the ROM, our great partner. A key figure in the realm of studio glass, Dale Chihuly executes works that reveal a fertile imagination expressed through an extensive vocabulary borrowing freely from nature, his main source of inspiration. His wondrous pieces are the result of a perceptive exploration of colour, form, light, and space. To experience Chihuly’s installation works is a must!”

Exhibition

Dale Chihuly is renowned for his site-specific installations. CHIHULY features 11 immersive installations; some newly created for the ROM’s exhibition. These include:

Lime Crystal Tower, standing over 14 feet high, greets visitors in the entrance of the ROM. Its 118 crystals are made of solid Polyvitro, a term for a type of plastic coined by Chihuly, and a material that transmits light and colour very much like glass. However, at 3,000 pounds, this transparent work weighs much less than if created in glass.

Boats: Two weathered boats, Ikebana Boat and Float Boat are presented on a black Plexiglas surface. Chihuly first filled boats with his glass pieces in Nuutajärvi, Finland in June 1995 during the Chihuly over Venice project. At one point, Chihuly began tossing glass elements into the river, allowing them to float downstream. As local teenagers in small wooden rowboats gathered them, the artist recognised the opportunity for a new installation.

Laguna Torcello creates an intricate garden of glass. Introduced in 2012, this is part of Chihuly’s long-standing series, Mille Fiori (“thousand flowers” in Italian). Visitors can stroll around this garden, taking in an outstanding range of Chihuly’s forms. The installation’s name references a lagoon island in Venice, Italy, the artist’s favourite place in the world, and pays respect to that city’s glass-makers.

Jerusalem Cylinders are bold and dramatic. Taking preformed glass elements in the shape of sharp-edged crystals, Chihuly fuses them onto cylindrical vessels. Part of a series launched in 1999 when Chihuly was preparing an exhibition in Jerusalem, the crystals evoke the massive stones making up the walls of the ancient city’s Citadel.

Sapphire Neon Tumbleweeds: Chihuly has created neon sculptures throughout his career. Neon Tumbleweeds were first exhibited in 1993 as part of a larger neon and ice exhibition in Tacoma, Washington.

Red Reeds on Logs are presented atop a cascading composition of Ontario-sourced white birch logs. First created in 1995, this series is brilliant on many levels but especially for Chihuly’s use of materials giving strong contrasts between colours, densities, and textures. Incredibly, some of the reeds reach three metres long, his glassblowers achieving this by pulling the hot molten glass downwards from a mechanical lift.

Persian Ceiling stands as one of Chihuly’s most popular and enduring works. Brightly coloured Persians dominate, arranged in layers over plate glass, while many of the artist’s hallmark elements also appear in this installation. Subtle lighting ensures the ceiling creates a colourful kaleidoscopic effect.

Fire Orange Baskets: Impressed by a presentation of Northwest Coast Indian baskets in the Washington State Historical Society in Tacoma, Chihuly sought to replicate the effects of weight, gravity, and time and started the Basket series in 1977. With this site-specific grouping, Chihuly continues to push scale with his artworks. These Baskets are among the largest he’s created.

Icicle Chandeliers and Towers display two forms that complement each other like cave stalagmites and stalactites. Chihuly began his Chandeliers series in 1992, achieving great massing of colour by taking hundreds of pieces of blown glass, assembling them around sturdy steel frameworks, and lighting them from external sources. His Towers followed soon after as an upside-down version. The exhibition’s installation comprises two chandeliers and two towers. The artist, choosing icicles as a unifying theme, has created a wholly new triple tower.

Persian Trellis, created specifically for the ROM, features Chihuly’s Persians. From their 1986 origins, the making of these forms involves blowing glass to produce a herringbone pattern. Striking arrangements of them can be mounted anywhere—including on ceilings, in wall displays, on chandeliers or, in this instance, mounted on a large wooden trellis framework, allowing visitors to walk through to enjoy the artwork from a number of angles.

The Northwest Room presents selections from Chihuly’s early experiments in the Baskets series.It is augmented by a sampling of the artist’s personal collection of Northwest Coast Indian baskets, American Indian trade blankets, and Edward S. Curtis photogravures.

Admission to CHIHULY is timed ticketed: Members: FREE; Adults: $29.00; Seniors/Students: $26.50; and Children (4-14 years): $21.00. Tickets are now on sale.

Visitors of all ages can enhance their exhibition experience with outstanding programming offered throughout the ROM’s presentation of CHIHULY. Visit rom.on.ca/chihuly for details.

About Dale Chihuly

Dale Chihuly, an American sculptor, has mastered the alluring, translucent, and transparent qualities of ice, water, glass and neon, to create works of art that transform the viewer experience. He is globally renowned for his ambitious site-specific architectural installations in public spaces, and in exhibitions presented in more than 250 museums and gardens worldwide. Major exhibitions include Chihuly Over Venice (1995-96), Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem (1999), Garden Cycle (2001–present), de Young Museum in San Francisco (2008), the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (2011), Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond (2012), and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal (2013.) Chihuly Garden and Glass opened at Seattle Center in 2012.

http://www.rom.on.ca/en/chihuly

Review: ‘Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art.’ At the Royal Ontario Museum (April 2 to September 5, 2016)

The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) opens its new exhibition, Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art., on Saturday, April 2, 2016. On display in the Museum’s Roloff Beny Gallery, the show explores the multifaceted world of tattooing and the complex relationship between tattoo artists and tattooed. Coming from the musée du quai Branly in Paris, Tattoos showcases a visual history of body art and markings along with prints, posters, ancient tools, and commissioned tattooed silicone body reproductions inked by some of the most respected tattooists in the world.

The ROM’s exhibition is curated by Chris Darling, Senior Curator of Entomology, and Kenneth Lister, Assistant Curator of Anthropology. Featured are over 200 objects including many loaned from the quai Branly, and private lenders across Europe, along with nearly two dozen objects from the ROM’s Arctic, Egyptian, Pacific, East Asian and Natural History collections. Tracing tattoos across continents and over time, the exhibition examines tattoo artists and the tattooed, exploring the factors that have made tattooing an important cultural practice, an art form, and a worldwide modern phenomenon. Highlights include nine documentary videos showing various aspects of tattooing in different cultures and 13 silicone body parts inked by leading tattoo artists including Tin-Tin (France), Horiyoshi III (Japan), Filip Leu (Switzerland), Paul Booth (USA), Chimé (Polynesia), and Yann Black (Montreal).

“The exhibition brings to life the more than 5,000 year-old history of tattoos, exploring these ancient practices and their cultural significance. It will inspire ROM visitors to consider how the complex traditions of ink under the skin are constantly changing and have led to the global phenomenon of body art,” said Chris Darling, Senior Curator of Entomology, Royal Ontario Museum.

The original exhibition, Tattooists, Tattooed, curated by Anne & Julien, founders of the magazine HEY! Modern Art & Pop Culture, was on display in Paris from 2014 – 2015 and drew record crowds to the musée du quai Branly.

Tattoos is a separately ticketed exhibition. Tickets are available for: $8.00 (Adults), $6.00 (Seniors and Students), and $4.00 (Children). ROM Members enjoy the exhibition at no cost.

The exhibition is complemented by a series of ROM events. Highlights include:

Borneo: Explorations of Nature and Culture

Thursday, May 26 | 11:00 am | Free with General Admission

ROM Curator Chris Darling discusses the exploration of the biological and cultural diversity of the world’s third largest island with reference to historical and modern tattooing traditions.

The Cultural Heritage of Indigenous Tattooing: Medicine, Myth, Magic, and Meaning

Tuesday, June 14 | 7:00 pm | Ticketed Event

Leading anthropologist Lars Krutak shares his journey to understand the impact of tattoos and other forms of body modification.

Art Fusion, Presented in Partnership with Northern Ink Xposure

Thursday, June 16 | 7:00 pm | Ticketed Event

International tattoo artists bring their talents to the ROM, creating collaborative art in the Museum’s galleries along with live music, and entertainment. Access to the exhibition is included.

Visit rom.on.ca/tattoos for tickets and exhibition details.

Review:

Forget Kat Von D and LA Ink, The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM)’s, ‘Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art.’ will shine a light into tattoo art history that you will never see on TLC. ‘Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art.’ is beautifully curated while also providing an honest portrayal of the creation of tattoo art and the people who wear them.

Even if you don’t have a tattoo there is no need to be shy – the ‘Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art.’ will demystify the art form for you, show you why people gravitate toward it, why it makes it so personal based on the art that is chosen and where on the body it is placed.

The cultural inclusivity of the exhibit was authentic, respectful and brimming with stories that you would be hard-pressed to find online or in a documentary. The photographs, images and silicone body pieces are intimate, simple but also so rich in storytelling that it leaps off the skin in singing unison.

The ‘Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art.’ is an important exhibit to get truly lost in over the summer break with friends, family and out of towners. For those of us who are keen tattoo enthusiasts the Sailor Jerry vintage work will surely make them swoon.  For those of us new to the art form and need a shot of tattoo education at its best – the videos, sideshow tattoo art and gorgeously maintained tattoo art tools and artifacts will scrape the surface into a journey that will be far from over once you leave the ROM’s premises.

http://www.rom.on.ca/en

Book Report: ‘Lost Ocean: An Inky Adventure and Coloring Book’ By: Johanna Basford

From the creator of the worldwide bestsellers Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest, a beautiful new coloring book that takes you on a magical journey beneath the waves

With Lost Ocean, Johanna Basford invites color-inners of all ages to discover an enchanting underwater world hidden in the depths of the sea. Through intricate pen and ink illustrations to complete, color, and embellish, readers will meet shoals of exotic fish, curious octopuses, and delicately penned seahorses. Visit coral reefs and barnacle-studded shipwrecks, discover intricate shells and pirate treasure. Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest fans and newcomers alike will welcome this creative journey into an inky new world.

For Lost Ocean, Johanna picked a crisp ivory paper that accentuates and compliments your chosen color palette. The smooth, untextured pages allow for beautiful blending or gradient techniques with colored pencils or are perfect for pens, allowing the nib to glide evenly over the surface without feathering.

Review:

I’ve never had patience to colour as a child. I did it for a while but I don’t remember it being a big deal.  These days with the adult colouring book craze being what it is – I have found myself watching a film late at night after work with some new pencil crayons, a cup of tea and some toast doodling away in the lines with Johanna Basford’s ‘Lost Ocean:  An Inky Adventure and Coloring Book’.

Johanna Basford is the Queen of colouring books in the moment. Her work is ornate, magical, and mythical and has so much whimsy you can help but smile during and the end of your colouring journey.

I loved ‘Lost Ocean: An Inky Adventure and Coloring Book’.  It was slim enough that I could tuck it into my purse with some pencil crayons, take it to work or have it at home.  The prints were clear and full of motifs that were varied and true conversation pieces.

I have coloured some sheets and popped them onto my desk cubicle at work as art. I was even thinking of using some sheets to wrap small presents for friends and family.  Who needs wrapping paper when you can make your own?

My adult friends are keen on Basford’s work and I could also see myself giving this book to my 9 year old niece. ‘Lost Ocean:  An Inky Adventure and Coloring Book’ is so beautiful and a road worthy instant stress reliever.  Pick up a copy for yourself soon!

http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/534363/lost-ocean-by-johanna-basford/9780143108993

Royal Ontario Museum: ‘Pompeii – In the Shadow of the Volcano’ from Saturday, June 13, 2015 – Sunday, January 3, 2016

As part of my staycation, I checked out the ROM’s ‘Pompeii: In the Shadow of the Volcano’  exhibit which tells the dramatic story of an ancient civilization frozen in time and features 200 remarkable objects, many of which appear for first time in Toronto.

Exploring Pompeii and its fate through six distinctive sections, the exhibition’s introductory experience underscores what we know about the city and the ancient Romans who lived and died there. Three key displays establish that the exhibition’s focus is on those people, the volcano that buried them, and the wealth of objects remarkably preserved by the destruction. The volcano, introduced in this section, remains a looming, menacing presence throughout the exhibition. Here, visitors are able to touch a large piece of pumice from Mount Vesuvius. From the mid-18^th century, extensive excavations of Pompeii provided unparalleled knowledge of ancient Roman life. The exhibition’s Out of the Ashes  examines the rediscovery, establishing that, with its eruption, Mount Vesuvius transformed a relatively minor Roman city into one of the world’s most famous archaeological sites. Pompeii is a veritable “time capsule” of well-preserved artifacts.

The exhibition’s central dramatic moment comes with Time Runs out for Pompeii . An immersive experience engulfs visitors as the disaster’s chronology is explained and visitors learn how and why the eruption was so catastrophic.

Finally,  The Human Toll reveals the devastating loss of life.   The dramatic story of discovery and preservation is enhanced as visitors encounter casts of the inhabitants of Pompeii at the moment of their demise. These people, whose lives were similar to ours in many respects, reveal life’s fragility in the face of natural disaster.

If you would like to go to the ROM on CityPASS please take advantage of my giveaway!  Toronto @CityPASS Ticket Booklet Giveaway! https://thirtyfourflavours.wordpress.com/2015/11/10/toronto-citypass-ticket-booklet-giveaway/

http://www.rom.on.ca/en#/gallery/recent

Royal Ontario Museum: ‘Friday Night Live – Light’ (Friday November 20, 2015)

If you have not yet caught one of the Royal Ontario Museum’s ‘Friday Night Live’s’ – you are missing out.  It is clearly the hottest ticket in town even when it’s 1 degree Celsius outside and you are trotting up Bloor Street West in the cutest cocktail dress, heels, your hair polished and make up on point.

Upon approach to the Royal Ontario Museum we were greeted with a line that was wound tight around the city block.  People were bundled up and ready to pile in.  With a 7 p.m. start people were clearly waiting for a good 30-45 minutes in the cold.  They didn’t look bummed in the slightest.  All we could see were smiles.

As we entered the space our coats were taken, we were directed to where we could buy ROM drink and food tickets and were given a map of the best exhibitions to take in.

The night’s theme was ‘Light’.  A perfect motif as the amount of daily light is slowly starting to diminish due to the season.  Perhaps this is about celebrating the light that we do have and reacquainting with it in a different way during the day.  In the mean time ‘Light’ shone on us inside the ROM as we started our evening in good measure.  The vibe in the space was upbeat, fun, filled with nostalgic tunes from a cool DJ and the scent of hot food.

As we ate some spicy buns, teriyaki and sipped delicious cocktails we watched as the crowd from the outside slowly start to bellow into the ROM.  People were in chipper, full of laughter and clearly ready to party.  The Fall chill had nothing on us.

As we glided up stairs to see the featured exhibition of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.  The space was heaving with people getting lost in the vulnerability, tenderness and raw emotion of the photos.  It was a sight to see so many people having deep emotional connections to the photographs.

It seemed every floor we tip toed into had a Nuit Blanche feel.  There was always a treasure to be found.  Be it musicians playing upbeat tunes, delicacies like haute couture cupcakes, volcanic ice creams, chic hamburgers, specialty drinks and healthier vegetarian options.  Check out Fidel Gastro’s and Randy’s Roti – they were a hit!  Clearly, next time we don’t eat dinner before we come to Friday Night Live at the ROM.  The ROM has curated a night that is for a discerning customer that is sophisticated, well travelled, a foodie and only the best will do.

Like in Alice in Wonderland, we got lost looking for Sergio Hernández Martinez’s ‘Day of the Dead Ofrenda made for the ROM’.  But when we did find it we were greeted by ROM staff that were exuberant to tell us all out the exhibit and also invite us to have our glamorous photo taken with the Pixel Stick in the adjacent space from The Museum out of Kitchener.

It was a gobsmacking experience as we revelled in the Ofrenda’s flowers, cut outs, bottles of beer, ornate crucifixes, angels and various sweets and foods left for those returning souls who once appreciated personal moments with these pieces when on earth.  At one point we were feeling extremely over stimulated but we shook that off after we paid our respects at Sergio Hernández Martinez’s ‘Day of the Dead Ofrenda’ and then took off for our next adventure.

Musical performances from Countermeasure, Repartee and Common Deer offered us a nice reprieve as we sipped our Peroni’s and chuckled about the past week.  What a lovely civilized way to have fun with your friends in the company of gorgeous art, succulent eats and drinks a plenty.  We all have to grow up at some point don’t we? Why not do it with the ROM in the heart of the city and then head off for fun and frivolity after 11 p.m.?  Lastly, there are two more FNL’s left for the year – get on it!

http://www.rom.on.ca/en#/gallery/recent