Modern

While last week was crazy it was awesome to take some time out and just enjoy, contemplate, and be down right puzzled by the Modern.

When you walk in, immediately to the left in its own conclave is Book with Wings by Anselm Kiefer.
 It's an open lead book with two wings. One wing is slightly higher than the other. According to the description, Kiefer was intrigued by books and the wisdom they had to offer the world. The irony being that they can speak such great words, yet they are silent and terrible vulnerable to destruction. The irony behind the wings was that they symbolized the "flying" one could do with the knowledge of the book, yet the wings were lead and would never be able to fly. The different level of wings are both the hope the wisdom represents and the drudging reality of it's condition. I am a huge fan of sculptures. The ability to mold pieces into something else has a deeper meaning to me. Basically they speak to my soul and the play on irony with the lead and book captivated me for a solid five minutes before I remembered there was an entire museum left to see.

In the next room I found Aschenblume by Kiefer also attention worthy. On the surface, it appears to be a collage of cracked mud, grass, and twigs. When one steps back though, it becomes the inside of the the rebuilding of the Third Reich. I can sympathize with Kiefer's idea behind this one: Germany wanted so badly to rebuild their history yet it was a dirty and messy process that was going to take some time. The vastness of the piece alone was astounding.

I didn't realize our museum would have as many amazing artists as it does. For some reason I have it in my head that Fort Worth is similar to my hometown of 10,000. I'm still pleasantly surprised when I find the hidden gems. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise. When I found the Jackson Pollack "Number 5" I was ecstatic. Jackson Pollack was an artist we studied last year in Art History and ever since he's been a favorite of mine. I like the idea of a planned chaos. Of letting go with boundaries set.

Humor seems to be an underlying theme in modern works. Take Ellsworht Kelly's "Curved Red on Blue" I laughed out loud. While it appears to be a section of a red question mark on a blue field, on a second though one realizes it's just what it says: A curved red on blue. Sometimes we over think ourselves and art. Sometimes, things are just what they are, nothing more, nothing less.