Favorites from Other Places

 

I was looking through my "Favorites" photo file over last weekend and since our summer heat has constrained some of my outdoor activities, I thought I'd pick a few photos from that folder to share.  Today's selection are all from places other than Phoenix.  Above is a photo taken at Watson Lake in northern Arizona.  It's a beautiful spot with all these boulders surrounded by clear water.  I love that one, round boulder that looks like it might topple down at any moment.

This one was taken in Tucson Arizona in a historic part of town full of old, adobe houses that have been lovingly restored.  This one opens into a little courtyard where a sculpture looms in the corner.

This photo was taken in Chimayo New Mexico.  It's the church called El Santuario de Chimayo and it has become a Catholic pilgrimage site.  It sits in such a beautiful setting, I must have taken at least 20 photos of it. 

Looking at all these photos makes me want to travel somewhere.  I need to get busy planning my next trip.

More Editing Fun

 

Do you remember when I posted this photo back in May?  It is an ancient ceramic piece called "Standing Male Dignitary" that was on display at the Tucson Art Museum when I was there.  

I thought this might be a good subject to run through some photo editing styles to see what would happen.

Here are the results.  This application made him look a bit like a child's toy.

This one has a cartoon drawing look to it.

This one looks a bit like a plastic doll.

This last one is using that recent effect that I've been playing with.  This one looks almost human.  He looks like a soldier in some type of armored uniform.  I said "he" but it could easily be a woman too.

I am fascinated by the differences in all of these.  

Pointing My Camera at Plants

 

I have a few more photos pulled from my archives today.  Above is a date palm laden with fruit in the khalal-stage of maturity.  I learned that the fruit of date palms go through four phases of maturity, Kimri, Khalal, Rutab and Tamar.  This photo was taken in Tucson several years ago.

I photographed the big patch of black-eyed Susans when I was in Oregon in 2022.  I can't help but smile when I come across a sunny group of flowers like this.

I took this photo when I was in Santa Fe last year.  I think this might be a flowering plum tree.  It was too pretty to pass up.

This one was taken in Oklahoma City just two months ago.  I saw hydrangea plants blooming all over the city center.  Since I never see them here, they were a treat for my eyes.

It was ten years ago when I was in San Jose California to go to the Egyptian Museum there.  That's where I saw an abundance of papyrus plants growing all over the grounds of the museum.  They fit perfectly into the Egyptian atmosphere.

Plucked From the Archives

 

I have a few more photos I found while organizing my photo files over last weekend.  Above is a scene from the historic neighborhood in downtown Tucson.  This was taken sometime before 2011.  I know that because when I bought my first MacBook laptop on July 20, 2011, the Apple tech guys transferred all my photos and documents from my old Dell laptop to the new one.  In the process, almost all of the photos lost their metadata and they all now have a date of 7/20/11.  This photo made me think I was exploring an old ghost town but this building is actually in downtown Tucson.  It's been spruced up and restored these days however, I really like the old and crumbling look it had back then.

This photo was also taken sometime before 2011.  I was wandering around the old historic part of Tucson when I spotted these fellows gathered in an alley.  It turns out they are characters in a historic reenactment that takes place at the site of the old Spanish settlement in downtown Tucson.  I just thought this photo was fun because of these men in period dress standing under a modern surveillance camera with a modern parking garage in the background.  I wrote a post about the historic reenactment here.

This last one is a photo of a plant that was also taken in that same downtown Tucson area.  It struck me at the time as very exotic looking.  I had no idea what it was but, my trusty iPhone now says that it is a Ricinus.  If any of you know it by a different name, let me know.  

I don't know about you, but I love sorting through old photos.  They bring back so many memories. 

Memory Lapse

 

I was doing some photo organizing this last weekend when I came across this photo I took back in April when I visited Tucson.  This is a painting I saw at the Tucson Art Museum by artist Brenda Semantic. It's called Corner Market and I recognized the building immediately.  So I took this photo for the sole purpose of posting it on my blog along with my photos of the actual building.  Needless to say, I promptly forgot all about it. 

Here is one of my photos taken in 2012 when I visited Tucson.  This old building has been standing on this corner for a very long time and it doesn't seem to change much.

This photo was taken in 2011.  I didn't take a photo of it on this last trip but I did drive past it and it still looks the same.  It makes me wonder if there are any plans to save it.  All the other buildings in this area have been restored.  

I'm glad I saw the photo of the painting over the weekend so I could post it as planned.  Better late than never.

Standing Woman.....in Ceramic

 When I was at the Tucson Art Museum a month ago, I saw this sculpture in a small sculpture garden and I thought I recognized a particular artist's style.  

It looked as though the Standing Woman might be related to the Nude Man who wanders around the many galleries at the Phoenix Art Museum.  I say "wanders around" because I never know where I'll find him when I visit the museum.  They move him around quite a bit.  He first appeared on my blog in 2011 and then I revisited him in 2018.  I was happy to find his "ceramic" relative at the Tucson Art Museum. Both sculptures are by Viola Frey.  

Unusual Piece of Art

 

We all know that art comes in a vast variety of forms however, here is one that surprised me.  This is from my trip to Tucson and it was hanging in one of the galleries at the Tucson Museum of Art.  It's called "Everything in my Apartment, 2006" and the artist is Paho Mann.  Here is the description:

"One day in 2005, Paho Mann dismantled his Tempe apartment. Mann photographed everything he owned, each object in the same thumbprint size, a car key equal to a bra, a chili pepper equal to a book.  Then he arranged the photos into a grid and made a gigantic Inkjet print. In this manner, the artist speaks about the insignificance of things while also  commenting on how much 'stuff' we all accumulate."

Here's a close up of one tiny section of the piece.  

It's certainly a unique way to create art.  

Ancient Ceramics From Central America

 

I mentioned last Friday that I'd show you some more of the ancient ceramic pieces I saw at the Tucson Art Museum.  

This one was my favorite.  I'm  not quite sure what it is about this one that I find so fascinating.  It is so beautifully detailed and well preserved.

It was described as a Standing Male Dignitary found in Veracruz Mexico.  It dates between 400 and 800 AD.  See what I mean about "well preserved"?

This fellow is described as a seated male orator with raised hands.  It dates to 300 AD.  He looks like he's telling a story.

Here is an athlete.  It's described as a ballplayer and dates between 100 and 300 AD.  Another beautifully preserved piece.

One thing I found interesting about all of the figures in these displays were how elongated the faces were on all of them except the one in the top photo (above).  That top figure has a completely different look.  

Beautifully Landscaped

 

One of the many things I love about the Arizona Inn in Tucson is its beautifully landscaped grounds.  Everywhere you turn there are special places to admire.  One of my favorites is this little spot with the fountain and flowers.

The grounds are full of flower beds that were bursting with spring flowers.

I admired all the flowers but I have to admit I have a special fondness for the pretty hollyhocks that surround the tennis courts. I don't see many hollyhocks in the Phoenix area.

Curious Things to Ponder

 Today I have three photos all taken in Tucson and all things that gave me something to think about.  This ceramic platter was hanging on the wall of the lobby of the building where my hotel room was located.  I paused to look at it almost every time I made my way through that lobby.  I was trying to figure out what was happening in the image.  It looks to me that the man is telling the woman he wants two eggs for breakfast and it looks like the woman might be contemplating smacking him with the skillet.  What do you think?

This curious little metal box was attached to the door of a small closet in the hallway outside my room at the Arizona Inn.  I snapped a photo so I would be sure to investigate what a Detex Watchclock was.  It turns out that a watchclock was a mechanical clock used by security guards for tracking their routine patrols.  It's a relic of the past.

I found this very tattered dictionary in the library room at the Hacienda Del Sol resort where we stopped on our way home from Tucson.  This dictionary has been brutally used.  I hate to see any book in such a tortured condition.  

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  Look at a little bit of Scotland in central London.

A Little Mystery

 

When I was at the University of Arizona Art Museum in Tucson last week, I fell in love with this painting.  I love the abstract style and the bright colors.  Reading the information card, I found a bit of a mystery.  Not a big mystery like the one for the Willem de Kooning painting I mentioned two days ago, just a little mystery.  You see, the card said the artist was Minda Hess with a birth date of 1906 but a question mark was in place of a date of death.  It said she was a native of Baltimore and that she studied with Morris Louis known for something called Color Field Painting.  

I was curious as to how such a talented artist could leave this earth with no record of her passing.  I did some online research and could find no other information about her except that the top price for any of her art was $1000.00.  

I like her painting so much, I made it my current "wallpaper" on my iPhone.  She may have faded away from the art world's records but, I'll remember her.

All About Color

 

I spotted this garage while I was in Tucson last week. It faces an alley-way that was adjacent to a parking lot where we parked the car while having lunch nearby.  The neighboring garages looked rather dull compared to this eye-popping color combination.  

I Love a Good Mystery

 

Last Saturday, I posted about a visit to the University of Arizona Art Museum in Tucson and I mentioned that I'd tell you more about the the artwork I wanted to see at that museum.

This is that painting, "Woman-Ochre" by Willem de Kooning.  I didn't want so see it because I was especially fond of it, I'm not.  I wanted to see it because of the mystery that is now attached to it.

You see, on the day after Thanksgiving in 1985, this painting was stolen from the museum by a man and a woman.  The woman distracted the guard with questions while the man cut this valuable painting from its frame, rolled it up and hid it under his coat.  

The pair left the museum 15 minutes after they entered and made a quick get-away in a red sports car.

In 2017, the painting was purchased along with furniture and other things for $2000.00 at an estate sale.  The buyer was the owner of an antiques store in Silver City New Mexico.  The estate sale was at the home of Jerry and Rita Alter, two retired teachers who lived in the small town of Cliff New Mexico. The painting had been clumsily re-framed and was hanging behind the bedroom door in the Alter home, a place where it was only seen by the couple when the bedroom door was closed.  When the owner of the antiques store learned that the painting was stolen, he returned it to the U of A Art Museum.  From there, the painting spent several years being carefully restored before returning to the museum in 2022.

So many questions remain a mystery today.  Did the Alter's steal the painting, which seems likely, and if so why?  Had they stolen other works of art that were never discovered?  And, how did two retired teachers have the money to travel to 140 countries?  There are so many more questions.

It's a fascinating story.  If it interests you, check this Wikipedia page.  It has a lot of information.  I also discovered that a documentary was made about the painting, the Alters and the entire mystery.  It's called "The Thief Collector" and it's available on Amazon Prime.  I watched it and it reveals even more mysteries about the couple and it opens up even more questions.  

Like I said, I love a good mystery.  

Inside the Historic Arizona Inn

 

One of my favorite things about the Arizona Inn is this room called the Library.  This room is set up with coffee in the morning and it's a quiet place sip a cup and read a paper.

I don't drink coffee but holding a real newspaper in my hand is kind of a treat.  I don't think I've held an actual "paper" news source in ages.  

I love these beautiful light sconces that are found throughout the hotel.  

It's a warm and inviting room and a perfect place to spend some relaxing time.  

Hacienda Del Sol

 

On the way out of Tucson on Saturday, we decided to stop at the Hacienda Del Sol Guest Ranch.  My friend Glenda had just been there a few months ago for a tour of the grounds and it sounded like a beautiful place to have a look around.

This resort is another one that is on the Historic Hotels of America list.  It sits in the foothills of Catalina Mountain so the views all around are beautiful.  And, as you can see, the grounds are very welcoming too.

It's another magical option for visiting the City of Tucson.  

Tucson has a lot to offer the visitor.

Breakfast Guests

 

We were having breakfast on the patio at the Arizona Inn when these two stopped by for a visit.  The waitress said "oh, that's Hector and Joslyn".  She said they stop by for breakfast most mornings.  They hung around under the tables the entire time we were there.

I wonder who gave them those names.

After enjoying the beautiful morning by the pool, we packed up and headed home.  This little get-away is over now but, I do have more photos to share in the future.

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns.  More public art to think about.