art from there to here

It's always good to get off the Rock. We enjoyed a rare visit to the Amherst home of James Steinberg and Paola di Stefano, fellow artists and fond friends from way back. Their feisty chickens inspired this quick pastel.

After a breakfast of fresh eggs, James gave this wee book he illustrated to our juggling daughter.

I love their art collection, especially a mask with some Year of the Snake spirit.

 

They pointed us west and we headed to Mass MoCA, where we were riveted by Xu Bing's Pheonix Project.

It's gigantic and resourceful, made entirely from construction debris in Beijing, referencing new wealth and excess.

The enormity of it, over 20 tons in all, is jaw-dropping, and yet the fluid design is breathtaking. Metal canisters and hard hats become frilly embellishments.

 Another exhibit, O Canada, featured other surprises. We all wanted to hug this, titled Widow by Janice Wright-Cheney.

This mural made us wonder how the Forward on Climate rally was shaping up in DC. Maybe not everybody in Alberta wants to drill for tar sands.

Sol Lewitt's retrospective of wall drawings made us all SO happy. What's not to love about color immersion?

It fueled us for the long haul to Boston, where our hotel had some art on view as well.

After a trip to the moon and beyond, we browsed around, taking note of the current owl invasion, this one at Anthropologie. Window dressing is an art in my book.

 

Same trend only different over at Paper Source.

Mannequins never cease to please me, this one at Betty.

This one at Boomerang in Jamaica Plain had character to spare.

There's just no resisting Marimekko, is there?

Even a small thing, a polka dotted mug, can make a trip complete. That, and drawing it!

There's beauty to be found in moons, chickens, dots, everywhere I look.