Another Day, Another Art Museum

 

Yesterday we went to the University of Arizona Museum of Art.  I wanted to see a specific painting which I'll tell you about in another post.  I didn't realize that the museum has such an impressive collection of paintings.

Here is a truly wonderful Georgia O'Keeffe.  It's called  "Red Canna".

Above is an Edward Hopper called "The City".  It shows his love of New York City around Washington Square.

To the right is a Mark Rothko called "Green on Blue".

Here is a Jackson Pollack called simply "Number 20".  

Pollack usually worked on a massive scale but this particular painting was painted on the back of a game board. The game was called Autograph Baseball Game from 1948.

I'm glad I finally visited this museum.  It had some unexpected treasures.

The Arizona Inn

 

I arrived in Tucson around 11:30 and after having lunch at my favorite Mexican restaurant, my friend and I visited the Tucson Art Museum.  The museum has been expanded since the last time I was there.  It's almost double the size it was in 2019.  Above is a scene from the Arizona Inn.  My room is the two windows just above that statue.

At the Tucson Art Museum I saw a wonderful display of incredible ceramics dating back to 100 AD.  This group is from Western Mexico.  There were 3 rooms filled with ancient artifacts that were beautifully well preserved.  I had a great time reading about all of them.  Sometime next week, I'll show you a few more. I found them all fascinating.  

The museum even has its very own Chihuly chandelier.  One of the docents said it was a gift to the museum form one of its donors.  

Change of Scenery

 

I'm heading down to Tucson today and will be there through Saturday.  It's just a little spring break trip that will include a few museums and some relaxing time at one of my favorite resorts, the Arizona Inn.  I'm looking forward to a change in scenery and a taste of Tucson.  

Odd Assortment of Images

 

I have another one of my assortments of odd photos taken over the past few weeks and all snapped with my iPhone.

I happened to stop at a very upscale supermarket in Scottsdale a few weeks ago.  I was totally impressed by the very neatly arranged produce section.

On March 28th, I posted a photo of a flower from my friend Glenda's garden.  I learned that the flower is called a Lady Banks Rose.  I snapped this photo of my champagne glass with those roses behind it.

I had dinner with friends two weeks ago at a tiny little restaurant.  We needed to wait a bit for our table but since the place is so small, they've made an arrangement with a bar next door to handle the people waiting for tables.  It was a great place with all kinds of games lining the bar and I loved this "no dogs" sign.

This photo was taken from a moving car and through a window.  That explains the light glares.  I wanted to capture these great looking light fixtures on this street in Tempe.  I'm not sure when I'll get back there to take some better photos so this will do for now.

I told you these were going to be ODD shots!  😳

The Only Child

 

Those parking lot geese were raising quite a ruckus Sunday morning so I went out to see what all the noise was about.  I think they were announcing the arrival of this years babies.  Only there was only one this time.  

Even though there was only one little gosling, they were still proudly marching it around all the pathways in the complex.  

They seemed to be very proud of this little guy!

Earth Day Bounty

 

I've posted photos of blooms at public gardens, I thought on this Earth Day I'd post some blooms from right here at home.  There are a lot of blooming plants around this complex.

The bright red hibiscus blooms are always a favorite of mine.  

There are some new bougainvillea plants around with huge clusters of blooms on them.  

There are also a few of these plants scattered around.  I think this might be something called Texas sage.  Whatever it is, purple blooms always catch my eye.

The exotic looking African iris are also blooming.  

The landscapers have filled the place with red an white geraniums.  They are one of the first things I see when I arrive home.

There is a lot of Earth Day bounty right out my front door.

That Bottle Brush Tree

 

I drove past that bottle brush tree that I like to photograph every year and was happy to find it full of those wonderful brush-like blooms.  

I took all these photos with the telephoto lens from across the street so I was surprised to see that I had captured a bee on that one bloom.

However, the tree was looking a bit shaggy these days.  It looks like it might have lost some branches toward the top.

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns.  Have you ever heard of the Fourth Plinth?

Tribute to a Great Artist

 

When I was at the Wrigley Mansion last Saturday, I spotted this gorgeous Arizona sunset painting by Ed Mell in one of the dining rooms.  I mentioned Ed Mell in a post on March 6th, just days after he passed away.  There wasn't any sign and I didn't ask, but I'm pretty sure that candle was placed in front of the painting to pay tribute to a great artist and great man.  

In another room I found another Ed Mell painting.

There were two tributes to Ed published in the Arizona Highways magazine however, the one above was a personal tribute from the magazine's editor.  I've seen many such tributes over the past few weeks.  Ed was much loved in the Valley of Sun and around the world.

I'll make this post my own little tribute to a man whose art work I have greatly admired.  

The Wrigley Mansion

 

I was with friends at a birthday celebration at the Wrigley Mansion last Saturday night and was able to tour around the building once again.  The last time I was there I posted photos of the grand staircase.  This time I have some photos of other rooms.  At one time, the room above was a bedroom for the Wrigley family.  Today it is a special meeting and dining room.

The room above was the families main dining room.

The room to the left was another bedroom.

It's always fun to wander around in this majestic place.  I always seem to learn something new on every visit.

You can see more photos from this place here, here and here.

The Other Flowers

 

The iris and the baby ducks weren't the only beautiful things that caught my eye at the Japanese Friendship Garden.  There were several shrubs in full bloom with these dainty pink flowers.

On the water were several very gorgeous water lilies.  

Scattered among the bed of iris plants were these two-tone blooms.

And, these pretty lavender flowers were also popping up here and there.  There were a lot of spring flowers to enjoy.

And Then There Were Eight

 

The flowers weren't the only thing I enjoyed seeing at the Japanese Friendship Garden last weekend.  I spotted a very proud momma duck showing off her tiny brood of ducklings.  Here she is teaching them a bit of rock climbing.  I see six little ones in this shot.

After climbing the rocks, she shows them how to cool off in the grass.  Now I could see seven little babies gathering around momma in the cool spot.  

Finally she decides to cross the path and head toward the water.  Now I can clearly see that she had eight little ducklings following her lead.  

This little encounter with the duck family was just an added bonus to a sunny walk at the Japanese Friendship Garden.  

Spring at the Japanese Garden

 

I made a trip to the Japanese Friendship Garden over the last weekend to see how spring was looking in that environment.  As it turns out, it was looking very good.

I was hoping I'd find some flowers that I don't usually see and I wasn't disappointed.  

The iris patch was full of beautiful blooms.

The blooms were impossible to resist.

I must have taken a dozen photos of these delicate blooms.   

The trip to Japanese Friendship Garden was a colorful success.

Barrio Murals

 

I snapped this photo the same evening I had dinner at the Barrio Cafe that I mentioned a couple of days ago.  This mural is in the alley behind the restaurant which is a space full murals.  In fact, I've posted photos of other murals in this alley before but it's been a while ago.  This isn't the best photo.  As you can see, I was shooting into the sun.  Not always the best idea.

Taking part in Monday Murals.

Orchid Tree

 

I saw this orchid tree as I was driving past and decided to stop and snap a few photos.  I love these trees especially when they are blooming and full of their beautiful flowers.

Spring has been making a colorful showing this year in the desert southwest.  I'll keep my eyes open for more flowering signs of spring.

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  Public art is abundant in London.

Birds at the Garden

 

I did take the time to capture a few birds with my camera when I was at the garden last weekend.  Here is a favorite, a Gambel's Quail perched on a rock.

This fellow was examining the tables and chairs near the little cafe.  I checked my bird guide and I think this might be an Abert's Towhee.  

This female Gila Woodpecker was busy poking her head in and out of the hole in the cactus.  She might have been feeding some young in there.  Either that or she was looking for a new nesting spot.