Last week, I took Amtrak into the Windy City with a friend. We love doing these one day excursions. Hop on the train in Holland, Michigan and ride it into Chicago. You can walk or cab it to the Chicago Art Institute. While on the train, you can read, sleep, return emails, work, or just look out the window. It is great!
We walked and arrived before the museum opened. So, walked around a bit more.
I have been asking myself to watch for a “simple magic” each day. I think for me it was watching a young couple race each other up the downward flowing escalator. They were laughing and just having fun.
We saw the three special exhibits: John Singer Sargent and Chicago’s Gilded Age; Charles White: A Retrospective; and George Jensen: Scandinavian Design for Living. My favorite was the Charles White Retrospective.
Charles White was a gifted draftsman,printmaker, muralist, and painter. He focused on African American history and culture. For me, the hands always seemed a bit larger than life. I wonder if he was trying to get us to think of the use and work of those hands. This artist focused on the Black Americans and only two white men. I am amazed by the talent. Loved this quote by White, “I like to think that my work has a universality to it. I deal with love, hope courage, freedom, dignity – the full gamut of human spirit.” My favorite pieces of art seen at the Institute on this trip.
And, then, we headed to Shaw’s Crab House, a REQUIRED restaurant when in the city (for me).
What a fun day, living the creative life with a great friend. Take care everyone. C2
