at the dixon gardens

the day was a beautiful almost-spring day
with blue skies and sunshine.  the temperature
was just about 50 degrees.

we went to the dixon gardens for a pottery sale,
but got so much more for our complimentary
admission.

as we entered the building, we were greeted with
a hallway full of artwork from the hutchison school.
the assignment was to use recycled objects to create
fashion.  the photographs of the finished pieces
were magnificent.

after viewing the pottery (and, of course, purchasing a few pieces), we walked out into the gardens.
the pools and raised beds led to the conservatory where the orchids are maintained.
following the walkways and paths that led across small bridges, we enjoyed the bare branches
and the bright green foliage of the emerging plants.

 

the crocus were in bloom.....spring is not far away!

common market, architectural salvage

i love to shop at architectural salvage places,
and Memphis has a 3 floor warehouse called
the Common Market.

it was a sunny day and the high windows
allowed streams of light to illuminate and cast
shadows on the pieces, adding to their
already phenomenal character.

most of what i saw was way too large for
my small space planning needs, but it was
fun to imagine the mansions those big doors
and windows may have come from.

 this was the most surprising find.....an old dental drill complete with spit bowl...i could almost hear the drill! and see the water swirling around that bowl.

 there was one area with lots of old books, stamps, postcards, and maps.  i also found a box of old french keys, along with door handles, knobs, and faceplates.

art walk

on the last friday of the month,
there is an art walk on south main street.
only memphis calls it the "trolley tour"
because trolleys transport people down
to the galleries since parking is at a premium.

tonight i found a parking spot and walked
down the street, popping into the galleries
looking for inspiration.

i was surprised at how many collages and
mixed media were hanging...

similar to the slow introduction
of photography as it began to be considered
"art" not so many years ago.

at the college of art,
the exhibition was  called
singular masses, an examination of racial identity

this was  "The Reclamation of Color" by
Anthony Lee.
an excerpt from the catalog:
there are terms issued to colors that connote
race--or, perhaps better stated, color words that
define specific skin colors.  this exhibit reclaims 
these color works by assigning them a different
color, attempting to visually recondition the
viewer's association of color with the word.  
words like mulatto conjure thoughts of the beige, 
because it is applied to color solely in terms of race.
what if the context of race was removed from this
color word?  

these were wood block prints on muslin

by Yashua Klos

at the russian cultural center, a class of belly dancers performed