Off the Porch...

One of the pleasures of summer is sitting on the porch whiling away a summer afternoon.  At some

point, one needs to get off the porch and see a bit of the world.  I traveled by train to Chicago earlier this month to see the exhibition, Charles White: A Retrospective and prints by Elizabeth Catlett at the Art Institute of Chicago.  I had the pleasure of spending three days meandering through the museum discovering a painting by Alma Thomas, works by Constantin Brancusi and a

showcase full of Joseph Cornell's assemblages.  By the third day, my energy did not match my enthusiasm and I decided to venture into the museum's Pritzker Garden located in the Modern Wing.

Though the garden is an open-air space, it has the feel of an interior courtyard, with the Modern Wing

surrounding it on three sides.  Ellsworth Kelly's, White Curve graces a garden wall.  Made of painted aluminum and 54 feet in length, this monumental sculpture is the largest artwork Kelly has ever made.  As I entered the garden, I noticed a young woman reading.  She looked up from her book and said,

  "You've never been in here before, have you?"  I responded no.

  "Well you are going to love it."

Settled into one of the Luxembourg Chairs designed by Frédéric Sofia, the young woman startled me when she came to sit directly across from me and began speaking.

"I've been watching you.  You are not like other visitors who wander into the garden for the express purpose of using their cell phones.  You sat down, looked around and took in your surroundings."

"Do you work here?"  I asked.

"No, I just needed a quiet place for a moment.  Actually, I work for Chicago Public Schools in their IT department and I needed a day off, so I decided to visit the museum."

We introduced ourselves.  I told her I was from Michigan and why I was visiting the museum.

Sam asked, "Have you seen the John Singer Sargent exhibition?"

"No, I saw Sargent's work at the Detroit Institute of Arts years ago and I am not particularly interested in seeing his work again."

"You might want to rethink that decision.  I bet you have not seen his works on paper, they are phenomenal."

"I'm tired; besides, it's after 1:00 p.m. the exhibition is crowded."

"Just, reconsider, you will not be disappointed."

"Okay, Sam.  I will visit the exhibit."

We shook hands and I headed off to see Sargent.  I was glad that I did.  Sargent's charcoal drawing of 

Harriett Pullman Carolan is extraordinary.

Lugging my backpack up Adams toward Union Station, I kept thinking I wish I had mastered the art of traveling light but remembered that the return trip to Detroit was six hours.  I needed reading material.  Books are heavy but they are a source of solace on a long journey.