Tag Archives: San Francisco

Insights into Artist Books

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Any regular (or irregular) reader of this blog knows that art and books are important to The Art Caravan.  We’ve looked at a few significant books  and authors  amidst the scores of posts about art.

Artist books seem a match made in heaven, don’t you think?  I mentioned them briefly in this post about the Athenaeum Music & Art Library (speaking of heaven….)   I’ve explored making them, too – creating various structures and enclosures.

If, edition of 5, 2015, intaglio

Intaglio, relief print, marbling, paper cutting

X marks the spot…., 2016, accordion book and clamshell box

If you’d like to know more about artist books, I recommend The Book as Art, one of a series of short videos in Insights, from the de Young and Legion of Honor Museums in San Francisco.  Also in the series, Iliazd: Publishing as an Art Form,  is a remarkably beautiful ten minute video focusing on Ilia Zdanevich’s fifty years of creating original hand-made books with prominent 20th century artists.

de Young Museum, San Fransisco, T. Vatrt image

May we all be enjoying time this summer reading books.  If you’re looking for suggestions, head to the Good Reads page on this blog.

Libreria Palazzo Roberti, Bassano del Grappa, Italia, T. Vatrt image

8 reasons not to miss the de Young Museum when you’re in San Francisco

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You can add the de Young Museum in San Francisco to the list of my favourite art museums.  (I know, the list is getting longer, and longer.)  Here are some of the reasons why you should visit it…

Location:  Golden Gate Park.  Home to other museums, speciality gardens, an historical carousel and much more, Golden Gate Park‘s western border is the Pacific Ocean.  Need I say more?  One could spend days enjoying the park.

Japanese Garden, Golden Gate Park image by Terry Vatrt

Japanese Garden, Golden Gate Park image by Terry Vatrt

image by Terry Vatrt

image by Terry Vatrt

Architecture  The museum is gorgeous, covered in varying textured metal sheathing. The current building, designed by Herzog & de Meuron (Switzerland) and Fong & Chan (San Francisco) Architects was opened on October 15, 2005.

de Young Museum (Terry Vatrt image)

de Young Museum (Terry Vatrt image)

exterior: de Young Museum image by Terry Vatrt

exterior: de Young Museum image by Terry Vatrt

exterior: de Young Museum image by Terry Vatrt

exterior: de Young Museum image by Terry Vatrt

exterior: de Young Museum image by Terry Vatrt

exterior: de Young Museum image by Terry Vatrt

Sculpture Garden  It’s always a bonus to have a sculpture garden as part of an art museum.  To discover a permanent Turell installation as part of the sculpture garden is, for me, a gift.

Tunnel to Three Gems, James Turrell( image by Terry Vatrt)

Tunnel to Three Gems, James Turrell (image by Terry Vatrt)

Three Gems, James Turrell (image by Terry Vatrt)

Three Gems, James Turrell (image by Terry Vatrt)

Three Gems, James Turrell image by Terry Vatrt

Three Gems, James Turrell (image by Terry Vatrt)

Three Gems, James Turrell ( image by Terry Vatrt))

Three Gems, James Turrell (image by Terry Vatrt)

View  The Hamon Tower Observation Deck offers a 360 degree view of San Francisco in all its splendour.

de Young Museum (SF Chronicle image)

de Young Museum (SF Chronicle image)

de Young Museum (LA Magazine image)

de Young Museum (LA Magazine image)

Gift Shop/Book Store  There are two floors of great shopping;  I ran out of time.

Cafeteria  Lots of food choices, but best of all:  indoor and outdoor seating looking onto the Sculpture Garden.

de Young Museum (Terry Vatrt image)

de Young Museum (Terry Vatrt image)

The Art!  The museum was founded in 1895, and has a vast collection.  I saw some great work, which will provide abundant material for future postings.

Ruth Asawa hanging (Terry Vatrt image)

Ruth Asawa hanging (Terry Vatrt image)

 

 

 

From Alcatraz to Grace Cathedral….agony to ecstasy

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I think I gasped  when we entered San Francisco’s  Grace Cathedral for a Sunday morning service.  I was expecting to enjoy ‘regular’ cathedral grandeur;  I didn’t know about the art installation.

Can you think of a better place to exclaim “OMG?”

There are nearly 20 miles (miles!) of ribbon suspended in the cathedral.  The artist, Anne Patterson, worked with the congregation to create this art work.  Some of the ribbons have prayers written on them.  Movement and heat from the congregation cause the ribbons to sway and shimmer.  I love how the idea of the spirit (in Latin, spiritus, the breath) is evident in this work.

The colours of the ribbons reflect the colours in the stained glass.  Those windows are worth a trip (and a couple of hours) alone!  And I haven’t even mentioned the sculptures. The church does have docents available, who are more than happy to talk about the art work in the cathedral.

Anne Patterson was the church’s Artist in Residence for 2013.  Because the installation is so popular with the congregation and visitors to the church, its showing has been extended to the end of 2014.

So now you HAVE to go to San Francisco.  There are worse things on your ‘To Do’ list, right?!