This evening I once again picked up The Book That Will Not End, that is: Gustavo Gutierrez’ A Theology of Liberation, which I’ve been “reading” since winter. “I don’t know why I don’t just finish the thing,” I said to myself. It’s easy to talk to oneself when one’s wife and kids are out of town. So I read. In bed. From 4 to 6. Then I drove to Orderup and ate and read from 6:30 to 9. Then I came home, hopped into bed to finish The Book That Will Not End and was momentarily startled out of my skull by the cannonade volleys following the nearby performance of the 1812 Overture at Ft. Sam Houston’s Memorial Day shindig. I swear, for a millisecond I believed San Antonio was under some sort of attack. Boom! (I wish I could have heard the orchestral part) Boom! (but I could only hear the interstitial…) BOOM! (and then three more, and then more) Boom! BOOM! boom! and then the Blat-a-Blattatt of Fireworks followed.
Ah, but what did I do earlier in the day? If I told you I worshiped in church, you might think I was talking about Trinity House. That wouldn’t be wrong, but not what I meant:
You see, I had been wanting to return to the McNay Art Museum in order to see Villa America: American Moderns, 1900-1950. My temporary bachelor status afforded me the luxury this afternoon. And like Beuller's Cameron in front of Seurat, in my book art gallery = sanctuary. I went and I took my time, lingering over brushstrokes, contemplating compositional choices, even noticing the frames of the pieces for a change, and then lazily basking in the beauty of Marion Koogler McNay’s 23-acre treasure, the centerpiece of which is a Spanish Colonial Revival mansion realized by “fabled” architects Robert and Atlee Ayers — all this, mere blocks from my home. And I rarely take time to go.
How appropriate that an exhibit of Modernism starting more-or-less from the fruits of the Armory show would come to rest for a while in McNay’s home, for the Armory show was said to have certainly influenced Marion’s personal artistic path.
Villa America. Great show. Demuth, O'Keeffe, Philip Evergood, Grant Wood, Walt Kuhn, Wyeth. Get thee…
If you go, consider checking out my faves: here are ten paintings from Villa America that either captured my imagination, provoked me, or left me with more questions than answers, which is a good, good thing:
Walt Kuhn
Roberto, 1946
oil on canvas
40 x 30 inches
Ben Shahn
Death of a Miner, 1949
tempera on paper
14 1/2 x 21 1/2 inches
(poorly hung with bad lighting,
you might have to search for
this one; it’s stuck in a corner)
Theodore J. Roszak
Man at Machine, 1937
oil on canvas
24 x 40 1/8 inches
Theodore J. Roszak
Rectilinear Study, c. 1934-5
painted wood and metal
7 x 8 5/8 x 3 7/8
Gerald Murphy
Doves, 1925
oil on canvas
48 5/8 x 36 inches
Naum Gabo
Constructed Head No. 2, 1916
galvanized steel
17 1/2 x 17 x 17 inches
Robert Henri
Edna Smith, 1915
oil on canvas
41 x 33 inches
(was a scandal in 1915)
Jared French
Evasion, 1947
egg tempera on gesso panel
21 1/2 x 11 1/2 inches
(to me speaks of institutional church
and power and shame? who knows)
Max Weber
Two Seated Figures, 1910
oil on board
47 1/2 x 24 1/2 inches
Grant Wood
Return from Bohemia, 1935
crayon, gouache, pencil on paper
23 1/2 x 20 inches
Ah, but what did I do even earlier in the day? Ate lunch at Karam’s on Zarzamora with my church family. What did Cliff call the Trinity House twentysomethings this morning? The Youth Invasion. :) I’ve come to really love this congregation. One of our couples is getting married on Saturday. Weddings. Beautiful. Sacramental. (see, I have been reading Gutierrez.) Speaking of Beauty, I’ve also been reading Elements of Design: Rowina Reed Kostellow and The Structure of Visual Relationships. Which also deals with Beauty in a more spiritual way than Reed’s contemporaries realize. Or at least let on.
Ah, but what did I do even earlier in the day? Helped facilitate worship at Trinity House. Where we talked about mission. And our commitment to the Kingdom work outside the walls of the church. Here’s where the Gutierrez text comes in handy. I agree with much but not all of his points. You know, that’ll need to be another blog post for another day.
Off to finish The Book That Will Not End.
didn't know we had a website....
Posted by: mark | Monday, May 29, 2006 at 01:11 AM