Tag Archives: Crystal Bridges Museum

The Art of Diego Rivera at Crystal Bridges Museum

My wife and I made a little trip earlier this month to nearby Bentonville, Arkansas for a little getaway and also to check out Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. They have a special exhibition of the art of Mexican artist, Diego Rivera.

Rivera was a controversial figure. He was dedicated to his fellow Mexicans and their struggles and was attracted to communism. He was a great artist by any measure. I knew him by his murals but he also painted a great deal.

My favorite work. The staggered man under the weight of the flowers, the colors. Everything about this seems perfect.

I love how he uses colors. The figures are very solemn and wooden. I think he did a great job portraying the culture of rural Mexico.

Portrait of Francie Ford Seymour and Frances De Villers Brokaw

This painting struck me. It is a portrait of Francis Ford Seymour and Frances De Villers Brokaw. Seymour was a wife of Henry Fonda and the mother of Jane and Peter Fonda. Brokaw is a daughter from another marriage. Rivera spent much time living and working in California.

They had some interesting HD video of some of Rivera’s murals. They were startling because these works of art are at street level and every once in a while somebody will walk by.

There are 120 works of Riveras on display and at the end Heather and I were worn out. We tried to look at the rest of Crystal Bridges but we gave up and came back the next day.

I am linking up with My Corner of the World. Go check it out!!

Skywatch Friday – 4th of July and a bit of Art

It is incredible how they time the fireworks. Here is a double stack.

Of course this being an American blog, you can expect some fireworks as we celebrated the Declaration of Independence on July 4.

Triple Stack

A couple of my Brit friends posted “Happy Treason Day, You Ungrateful Colonists” on facebook. All in good fun of course. At least I think it was all in good fun.

Quadruple Stack!!!

Enough of fireworks!!! How about a stainless steel tree!!

Enough of fireworks and politics okay. How about a stainless steel tree? It is a sculpture called “Yield” by the artist Roxy Paine installed at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.

I’m linking with Skywatch Friday

Glass by Dale Chihuly at the Crystal Bridges Museum

This past Sunday the family loaded up and ventured over into Bentonville, Arkansas to see the Dale Chihuly glass art exhibition hosted by the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

Chihuly’s art is amazing. Blown glass with all sorts of colors made into all sorts of shapes. Big pieces, little pieces, everything.

As good as the art is, the presentation is also special. The setting, the lighting, everything is perfect. Not only the glass but the shadows and the reflections are part of the installation.

All sorts of designs are his hallmark.

They had some of his paintings on display along with three videos of him in action. His painting technique fascinated me. This isn’t some guy with a beret dabbing at a canvas. He paints directly from the tubes in big bold strokes. He drips paint from buckets, it is all very physical. They had videos of the glass being blown. Big burly guys struggling with the big pieces trying to get the color and shapes right. This is very muscular art.

The exhibition has two parts “Chihuly in the Gallery” and “Chihuly in the Forest.” The piece above seemed to hover in mid air and seemed alive as it shimmered in the sun. It reminded me of something from a Stephen King story. This piece contains over a thousand individual pieces.