Blues

Ever since my Literature & Arts courses in college I have loved visual art. Here are a few of my favorite paintings. The first one if probably my favorite because of the bold colors and many shades and tints of blue that are used. You probably recognize it from my twitter page background. Someday I hope I can hang it in my house somewhere. The second painting is one of my favorites from the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It’s much better in real life. You actually feel like you’re standing on that street with the ships to the left and shops to the right. The third is one of my favorites from school. We spent a lot of time talking about this painting in class: what it means, the vibe it gives, etc. Even thought he’s reached the highest peak he’s looking forward at the next mountains to climb. It’s very optimistic. The next painting is by one of my favorite painters. All of his pieces include one or two or three people in normal settings. He makes the everyday, common, monotonous task seem beautiful and important. Then there’s the van Gogh. Obviously it’s super famous, but I love the bright colors. This one is in my room now. The contrast of yellow and blue makes this one impressive. And finally, the last painting. I love it because I do this all the time. She is sitting there, dressed in black, looking out the window, drinking her coffee or tea. I also love the title of the painting. And there’s my wonderful culturally enriching synopsis. Enjoy.

Edgar Degas – Dancer in Front of a Window
John Atkinson Grimshaw – Liverpool from Wapping
Caspar David Friedrich - Wanderer Above the Mists
Johannes Vermeer – The Milkmaid
Vincent van Gogh – The Cafe Terrace on the Place du Forum, Arles, at Night
Jack Vettriano – In Thoughts of You

Which one do you like best?
Do you have a  favorite painting or artist?

A Day Date…

Between class, work, driving, sleep, and family time there are only a few hours/evenings every week that I get to spend with friends or spend alone… and this past weekend after 6 very full days of class, I spent the ENTIRE day with my best friend. We went downtown and it was absolutely wonderful. I love Philadelphia.

 

After church we drove downtown and it was so gorgeous out that our walk to the Art Museum from our car didn’t seem long at all! We were lucky and didn’t have to face the heat and humidity that we’re suffering through this week…

One of my favorite things about this city is that view from the top of the Art Museum steps that looks back towards Center City - Logan Square, Love Park, and City Hall.

Mark and I also obviously had a little fun while perusing the art… I spent so much time looking at all of the furniture because I learned so much from my class at Temple last week (more on that soon), that we got a little silly and felt it was 100% necessary to photograph that goose and that schnahze… Seriously! Look at those things!!

And then in typical us-fashion, we drove to Manayunk and had sushi and delicious sandwiches at the Manayunk Brewery. The USA Women’s Soccer World Cup game was on so we kept checking the score every time everyone at the bar yelled!! So sad they lost but I think Japan may have needed this one… I always love to see triumph bring hurting people together. Ok enough Remember The Titans love…. back to dinner - The live band played the most relaxing, summertime music I’ve ever heard and made us feel like we were actually on vacation somewhere along a beach… instead of the stagnant brown/green Schuylkill River :) On the drive home we got to see the sun set on the flip side of the Art Museum and then took 95 all the way home along the Delaware…

The fabulous weather, delicious food, inspiring art, and wonderful company made Sunday a wonderful day date… I wish I could relive it all over right now :)

If you’re every in Philadelphia I STRONGLY encourage you to go to the museum, take your picture in front of the LOVE monument at Love Park, and definitely eat a cheese steak!