A Lousy Neighbor

 

This piece of mosaic art is part of the collection at the Albright Knox Gundlach Art Gallery.  It is a picture of our Lady Libertie mourning the loss of her sister during the Tienam Square uprising.  I feel that way now that the US has taken drastic and undeserved actions against our sisters on this American Continent.  I am horrified that our Canadian friends are being treated so poorly, and not happy about the way the president is treating Mexico either.  Our house is five minutes from the Northern border. Canada is part of our life.  The thought that our leader is punishing our friend and neighbor just makes me sick.  It's what I thought of when I stood in front of this piece at the gallery today.

This sculpture hit my gut too, as I think about how women's rights are being taken away.  The foundations of personal liberty we have come to know, is being ripped out from under us.  I see the same rights being taken from ethnic, social, and gender groups, and it makes me sick.  Our media is being censored, and I hope that the art world will carry the torch our leader and his lemming-like followers are trying to extinguish in the media world.  People who say the arts aren't important don't fully realize the power an artist can wield.  

I decided that since it was too cold to spend much time outside, I'd go for a walk in the gallery.  The AKG is just five minutes (by car) from our house.  Since I don't like to pay for parking, we leave the car in the History Museum lot and walk a block to the gallery.  The AKG is what drew me to the city I now call home. So rather than being depressing, I will share some of the great pieces in the permanent collection.  

I've seen these pieces so many times, that I have lost count.  But these were also in my Art History textbooks when I was in college.  We are lucky to have a world class gallery in our city, and it's a great place to escape. Even if some of the pieces give us a cold dose of reality.

Once Tommy retires this summer, we will have more opportunities to view the collection and special exhibits on weekdays, when the crowds are smaller. But for today, it was nice to pop in for a couple of hours to take advantage of what this awesome institution has to offer.

As for domestics, I got the living room put back together last night. I do have other covers, but these needed to be washed anyway.  The lint filter had to be emptied three times! Frankie doesn't have long hair, but it sure does accumulate -- even if it's not obvious.

Also, dinner was my middle finger salute to fast food value meals.  100% grass-fed, 90% lean ground beef cheeseburgers (1/3 pound each). Romaine and navel orange salad, with lobster mac & cheese on the side.  The beef and M&C were marked down deals. The entire meal was maybe $11. Much cheaper than a value meal, and probably less than one plate in a sit-down restaurant.  I'll be mixing up a batch of ice cream for and after dinner snack.  There is a third burger that will be crumbled into chili tomorrow.

Even though there is so much bad stuff going on in the real world, at least we can make good for ourselves.  How are you feeling about this upheaval?