Author: cometsgirl

I’m traveling once again. This time to Santa Fe, New Mexico.  Known as The Land of Enchantment” because of the state’s scenic beauty and its rich history, it holds a special place in my soul.

It IS beautiful!  There is nothing like a blue New Mexico sky. Nor is there anything like the Sangre de Christo mountains as the aspen trees turn to gold. Or the pastel colored canyons of Georgia O’Keffee land. Or…..so many “ors”.

In May Sarton’s poem Of the Seasons, she writes,

While I will be there in fall, not spring or summer, I’ll be watching for views of leopard-land. Here’s a view from travel years ago.

I’m meeting a dear friend who will have celebrated her 75th birthday a couple of days before we meet.  We have been friends for 45 years, and we share some New Mexico history.  Her desire for this milestone in her life, was for us to meet for a few days in this land of enchantment.

My sons spent a month every summer in this place of wonder. The first year they came, in 1983, my friend and I drove from Houston to Pecos, NM, to pick up my boys and bring them home.

I was the new owner of a Toyota Celica. At a time when the United States had pretty much ceased producing convertibles, Toyota, sensing renewed interest in convertibles, was converting Celicas into convertibles. I bought one while the kids were at camp.

We drove the 800 miles from Houston to Santa Fe in “Flashdance”. It was quite a road trip across Texas into Northern New Mexico. I had just earned my Masters Degree in Public Health and would soon be employed, so this time of pre-employment life and of celebration, was a good fit for hitting the road with a good friend.

Adding a few days into the pick-up-kids itinerary, we traveled around this area of northern New Mexico. We booked our lodging at La Posada de Chimayó. It was a wonderful retreat from the usual lodging we had all experienced in the 70’s and 80’s.  Located near Chimayó, we settled into the guest house and began a friendship with our innkeeper, Sue.

We have remained friends all these years with this extraordinary woman. We will meet her in the village of Chimayó to share a meal and catch up.

I’ll be airborne shortly. Three hours later I’ll be back in the Land of Enchantment.

Traveling mercies.

Today I leave this place and journey home.

Sitting outside at Onyx Coffee, it’s a beautiful morning. The sky is covered with a variety of clouds just passing through.

Along with others, I have passed through this place as well.

I’m thinking about that as I prepare to depart while I enjoy my new favorite espresso drink, Cortado, served with sparkling water.

Eight others were seated with me in Skyspace the other evening.

A young woman we had just met outside the space. as we waited to enter. She was traveling from New York to Tulsa to Texas. Passing through Crystal Bridges she wondered if staying for the Turrell sunset “show” would be worth it. We assured her it was. As the experience came to a close, she mouthed “thank you”.

Two young men wearing headphones settled in on the floor.

A woman from Nashville with whom I had shared the hotel elevator earlier in the day.

A young couple perusing a map as they awaited dusk.

A woman who sat still, and although there was a phone in her lap, she never joined the rest of us as we constantly raised ours to photograph the changing images.

And my best friend.

Last evening we sat in the park on Main Street watching the fountains that encircle the confederate monument.

We were joined for awhile by frisbee-playing youth; a young Hispanic family; members of the 7th Confederate Bikers Battalion; a variety of couples and friends.

Mixtures in both spaces. Similarly seem in the finished mural.

In this time in which we live, where the “mixtures” don’t always mix, it gave me pause.

Probably every person is some mixture of wanting to feel a sense of commonality and shared experience with others but also wanting to feel completely singular and unique. Leslie Jamison

I’m soon to board my flight for home, knowing this place will call me back.

Traveling mercies.

As I walked in and out and around the museum today, I was aware of how the sunny day colored the museum structures and grounds. Compare the photos on an earlier blog with these to see how the light transforms.

When the sun’s light is let in, everything is colored with a sense of warmth and welcome.

So I’m thinking about light in “light” of where I am these few days.

I’ve journeyed to Bentonville specifically for Crystal Bridges Museum. I’ve walked the museum grounds for two days on trails lit by sunlight shining through the leaves of the forest. I’ve been physically warmed by that light.

I’ve experienced the coming and going of the sun and its light by sitting in Skyspace. This art of light transforming night to day and back again was a profound experience for me.

After days of trails, I have finally stepped through the doors into the museum.

Art itself has the ability to color, warm and welcome.

Yes, that’s Michelle Obama. Talk about light!

We’ve been watching the progress of a mural painting in town. It is in conjunction with the upcoming Art for a New Understanding; Native Voices exhibition.

We had a lovely conversation with the artist, Yatika Fields, as he took a break. He spoke about the Native American presence in this area, and in context with bringing light to their historic experience.

Alice Walton was driven by a desire to make art available to all. She yearned for art as a child, but access to art was elusive for her and for other children in this community.

Through Alice’s determination and passion, light had come into the lives of children and adult alike in this place.

I feel as though I’ve been fed by light during my time here, and I’ll most certainly return.

Late this afternoon I returned to Skyspace for the day’s transition from dusk to night.

The description of what we might experience enticed me to sit in this space at the close of day.

“At dusk, as you gaze at blue sky through the oculus, the lights inside begin to change. Then the sky may appear as pink, green, or white depending on its contrast with the changing interior colors. Once the sun has completely set, the oculus appears solid black. What follows is a dazzling burst of fast-moving color that completely fills the space.”

Count me in to be dazzled.

Just as with sunrise, the lights began to change as the day became dusk and then night. Colors transformed the space.

Dazzling!

And silencing as well. It’s hard to describe the experience of having been led through colors that accompany the day’s end, but it dazzles while also silencing.

From Skyspace we took that silent moment to the Buckyball installation. Created by Leo Villareal, it honors geodesic dome designer, Buckminster Fuller.

It’s an “out-loud” dazzling experience as lights in perpetual motion illuminate the double geodesic dome.

We deemed frozen yogurt a fitting way to bring this dazzling day to a close.

One of the joys about Crystal Bridges Museum is the fact there is outdoor art beyond the inside collection and exhibitions.

A series of extensive trails wander around the grounds, through the woods and the natural beauty of this area of the state.

There’s even a trail map app that lets you see where you are, along with the myriad of trail options seen as you begin your walk.

Artist installations are found along the trails.

My Fitbit is recording a record number of steps. Yesterday I had 10,000 steps by 11am!

It’s a peaceful and peace-filled place.

According to Picasso, “The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls”.

I have been washing the dust off my soul as I’ve walked through trails of both Creator art and art created by human hands.

When I visited Crystal Bridges Museum four years ago, I had a major disappointment. James Turrell’s Skyspace, The Way of Color, was closed for upkeep. I was so sorry to miss seeing and experiencing this work.

For over half a century, James Turrell has worked directly with light and space to create artworks that engage viewers with the limits and wonder of human perception. An avid pilot, he considers the sky as his studio, material and canvas.

I have experienced several Turrell installations.

The Quaker Meeting House in Houston was my first.

Turrell states “I’m interested in the sense of presence of space; that is space where you feel a presence, almost an entity — that physical feeling and power that space can give.”

I have walked the Turrell tunnel at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts.

Art critic Calvin Tompkins writes, “His work is not about light, or a record of light; it is light — the physical presence of light made manifest in sensory form.”

I’ve sat in the Turrell space at the University of Washington,

and at Arizona State University.

Each space has transformed me for the period of time I spent in that space.

This morning we woke early and walked to Turrell’s The Way of Color in the dark. We took our seats in the space and awaited dawn.

Over the next hour we sat in the Skyspace, a naked-eye viewing chamber open to the sky. As dawn slowly crept, the space was awash in perpetual color shifts and changing conditions.

Sounds I heard beyond the Skyspace as dawn turned to day: hooting owls, chirping crickets, cheeping birds, people visiting and greeting one another along the trails.

We walked out into a new day, filled with solace, stillness and transformation.

Time to go get coffee.

Note the glass of sparkling water in the photo. It’s an European practice that serves to cleanse one’s palette during the drinking of certain espresso drinks, thus enriching the taste itself.

Glenn Gould says “the purpose of art is the lifelong construction of a state of wonder “.

That resonates with me. I often feel a sense of wonder in the patterns and palettes I notice all around me.

Just this morning…

looking down from my hotel room,

along the walk to get my morning cappuccino,

Even- or, especially, latte art.

Walking back to the hotel, we spotted a banner outside the OLD STATEHOUSE.

Talk about patterns. And history as well.

A video accompanied the show, featuring a number of descendants of the quit makers. One woman stated, “quilts are documents that can be read and from which we can gain great knowledge.” Using just scraps of cloth, these wondrous quilts were sewn.

On our way out of town, we stopped at Little Rock Central High School. Now a national historic site, Central High was the place of forced integration after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1954 that segregation of public schools was unconstitutional. The Little Rock Nine were nine African American students who integrated the school, accomplished only after President Eisenhower called in the National Guard.

Check out the design of the school which looks just as it did in 1954. Standing across the front grounds I gazed in wonder, both of the beauty of the structure, but wonder also about bravery and intentional justice.

We then headed north, taking by-ways instead of interstates. Our destination was Thronecrown Chapel in Eureka Springs.

The American Institute of Architects named the chapel 4th in the top buildings of the 20th century.

At one with the Creator God’s landscaping, it offered quiet wonder.

I ended this day with a personal taste of wonder. Cotton Candy!

Instead of taking the plane train to my terminal, I walked. I was treated to a couple of art shows.

An aviary cacophony,

and rock art,

Then from above, more art.

A quilt,

and sculpture.

This evening even more art.

Guacamole hand crafted at the table,

a God painting,

and a light show.

A fine preview of museum art to come.

Today I will be in the air and on the road once again.

This time I’m headed to Bentonville, Arkansas. While Bentonville is primarily known for being the home of Walmart, my destination is Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

Founded by Alice Walton (daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton), Crystal Bridges’ permanent collection “spans five centuries of American masterworks ranging from the Colonial era to the current day”. Included in the collection is Asher B. Durand’s Kindred Spirits, Norman Rockwell’s Rosie the Riveter, and Andy Warhol’s Coca-Cola [3], as well as major works by modern and contemporary American artists, including Georgia O’Keeffe, John Baldessari, and James Turrell.

Alice Walton stated: “I knew this museum was needed. I grew up here and didn’t have access to art and I knew we wanted to change that.”  In addition, she wanted all people, especially children, to have the opportunity to visit the museum.  Consequently, admission is free.

Nestled in the Ozarks in the far northwest corner of Arkansas, the museum takes its name from Crystal Spring, a natural spring on the museum’s wooded site, which feeds into the museum ponds; and from the unique glass-enclosed bridge that links the structures.

While the majority of the art is displayed in the series of buildings that make up the museum, sculpture trails throughout the grounds and adjacent woods offer other art-viewing opportunities.

Even “do-it-yourself” art.

As you can see, I have been to this place.  Four years ago a birthday celebration brought me here, and I have long wanted to return.

And so I shall do just that. I hope you’ll join me.

Traveling mercies.

 

I journeyed to North Texas this week for the purpose of experiencing firsthand the new spaces and places where members of my Texas family find themselves today.

Retirement, college, employment.

Time to visit a place often visited in the past.

A last coin challenge.

Time to commend and celebrate.

Time to visit the new.

And walk into dorm life for a visit.

Time to knock on a new door.

And catch a glimpse of employment.

And time to continue a decade-long tradition.

I have been in the midst of this family for a few days, and caught a glimpse of new wings. I navigated and negotiated Texas highways through gridlock, confusing highway signs, and thunderstorms.

I’ve had laughter, wonderful conversations, and walks where I caught a glimpse of others engaged in passages. Literally.

Now time for me to journey home, I’m filled with images of passages, memories of shared spaces, and joy in having experienced pieces of these passages myself.

Traveling mercies.