Above, the obligatory photographs across the Thames from the Tate Modern’s Member’s Bar Balcony.

I Never Know What to Expect

I have an unusual relationship with the Tate Modern Art Gallery. I love modern art. I am always willing to dive into something new and controversial. My heart sings at colors, the most abstract use of colors tells me things that others do not understand. Joao Miro and I share a birthday, I think that that, somehow, has made me a lover of art that is different and sometimes difficult. I recall the time I was introduced to Patrick Heron’s work at the Tate Modern, I didn’t know what to do. I felt like Jim Valvano after North Carolina State won the NCAA Championship in 1983, I wanted somebody to hug. I remember one of the guard/docents at the museum saying that she never saw anybody so excited by an art exhibit before. But, then there have been the other times. Times when, on an apparent whim, the collection has been moved around so that I can’t find my favorites anymore. Or worse, the dreaded news that something dear to me has been put in storage to make room or “is on loan.” But, to quote Maya Angelou, “still I rise.” Although, in this case, it is up the escalators to walk through the galleries and see what I can find.

Did The UK once own the Dominican Republic?

The first picture I saw was this one: Untitled (A Map of the British Empire in America) by Firelei Baez, a Dominican artist.

This was an enjoyable stroll through the galleries. Among the pieces I particularly enjoyed were:

Ardek by Olle Baertling who lived and worked in Sweden. His work was about spaces, contrasts and colors.

This is Fernan Léger’s Two Women Holding Flowers. Leger was French.

And

And then, this Nancy Spero (American) Sheel-la-na-gig/Artemis Totem 1. It, to me, is so reminiscent of the British Museum’s outstanding exhibition from 2022 on Feminine Power.

An Unexpected Encounter with the Art and History of the Former Belgian Congo

They Called it Capturing the Moment, I Captured a Better One Later

As a Tate Member, one can visit all the exhibits for free. So, since I was already there (and it was hot out), I decided I would take a chance on the “Capturing the Moment-journey through painting and photography” exhibition. The idea was an interesting and perhaps even provocative one to look at how the artist captures a moment in time through the lens or the brush. There were a few places where it worked, in the exhibit, but sometimes the pieces they had available from particular artists were not their best work and so the idea seem a bit banal. Here are a few of the ones I thought were worth sharing.

I thought these three were representative of the best of the collection. Ms. Riley being a beloved artist, Ms. Lange’s work being iconic and Ms. Crosby’ 2013 work pointing toward the future. I will always recommend the Tate Modern, its sister, the Tate Britain and the other Tate Museums around the UK. But you never know what to expect.

When I got back to Bloomsbury and checked in with my friends at Caffe Tropea, they were anxious to see me because they had found a lady from Florida who had sat down at the table next to them. She lived on the east coast, while my home is on the west coast. In another example however, of capturing a moment, it turned out that she was the next-door neighbor of the parents of a former colleague and good friend of mine. It is a small world after all!

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