look for it

the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

king of the road

andrea zittel sfmoma

kiss

it's january, a good month to go to a museum.

sure

photos: vt

6 maple honey caramels [one winter in the city]

san francisco

they do some

emily

the

first thing which kindles

ardor in learning is the

greatness of the teacher

st. ambrose

transit/rest

Substitution

About a week ago, I wrote -- offhandedly, actually -- something in response to a question. The question was asked by someone whom I respect, someone with an excellent work ethic and an eye that will take him far.

My response surprised me.

I don't usually admit it to myself anymore.

It was something that, years ago, I was quite certain of. But I lost the gist...somewhere, in the mill that life becomes, I lost the simple meaning of what I wanted. To pursue design as a sort of career (something, for me, that would fit well in the small crevices of personal time that were part of the geography of being a mother of four) seemed a more-than-acceptable substitute.

But a substitute is always that. A substitute.

"What kind of work do you do?"

The answer to his question is the one that I can't get out of my mind.

(P. S. I have loved design, and always will. Like Pippi, I am a thing-finder.)

"I am a Thing-Finder, and

when you're a Thing-Finder,

you don't have a minute to spare."

sfmoma

olivetti

bonjour mademoiselle levy

henri matisse to harriet lane levy

sfmoma anniversary show

(...to love #9) ART OF THIS CENTURY

It was a lovely sunny day in the city.

Fort Mason was beautiful; the colors

of the sky and the water and the bridge

were not to be equaled. It was pretty much

like heaven (in that sweet San Francisco way).

After excellent lunch + book visiting + art

shopping, zoomed over to the SFMOMA &

found the Anniversary Show in full swing

& it's a doozy. You ought to stop by, if

you already haven't. Did you know that

(in days gone by) you could sometimes

arrange to purchase art as it was being

exhibited in museums? The sketches

above are from papers that Calder sent

with an installation of his art...it's magnificent

to see his directions for setting up the work, but

the truly critical bits of information, as I see it,

are the numbers (prices!) scrawled below the

diagrams for each piece.

$300 for a Calder, anyone?

(long ago and far away)

The other correspondence (all snapped with

my trusty old iPhone, which seems to always

be there when I need it, unlike my trusty

camera) is between Peggy Guggenheim

and the founding director of the museum,

Dr. Grace Morley. The pics aren't great,

but you can click on them and sort of

get the gist. What really got me was

Peggy's fabulous business stationery.

And the price of the Pollock.

Art of this Century (and forevermore).