A morning of art

Wednesday
With a forecast for another dismal wet day, we chose to go to the Taft Museum down in Cincinnati late this morning to see their exhibit on Ansel Adams. Ansel Adams: A Photographer’s Evolution traces his development to his signature style. In his earliest photographs, made in the 1920s, Adams embraced the prevailing Pictorialist style with intimately sized, soft-focused images. He shifted to sweeping, sharply focused views in the 1930s and ‘40s, then to larger images with dramatic contrast after World War II. The exhibition concludes with a selection of late prints Adams made from earlier negatives that he considered some of his greatest works. I’ve always enjoyed his work, but seeing the actual prints up close, rather than just in books, along with the accompanying information and explanation gave me a full appreciation for his talent, both behind the camera and in the darkroom. I found this quote by Ansel Adams, which seems so pertinent in light of the current administration
“It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment”
Naturally, I wasn’t able to take photographs in the exhibition, so instead my Blip is of a new installation in front of the museum, Far Flung by Patrick Dougherty, in which he has taken 6 tons of willow saplings, and twisted and turned them - with the help of over 100 community volunteers - into an amazing installation the width of the museum. Patrick Dougherty combines his carpentry skills and artistic vision with his love of nature to produce his works of art. Over the course of 30 years, he has built more than 250 sculptures on four continents, for some of the most prestigious museums, universities, botanical gardens, and other institutions around the world. In honor of Ansel Adams I chose to depict it in black and white. We had hoped to have lunch in their cafe, however, having failed to make a reservation, we found that they had no space, so instead we went to the Incline in Price Hill, which we had been to a few months back, with its great view  over the city, and since the forecast rain had still failed to materialize, we were able to eat outside on their deck.
What a surprising day in the World Cup, with Germany going out in the opening rounds! It’s shaping up to be a memorable tournament!
One year ago: Shady walk by the lake