Sonoran Light

 

The next exhibit to be installed at the Desert Botanical Garden was called Sonoran Light by artist Bruce Munro.  Munro has done massive light exhibits all over the world.  His installations are made from a vast variety of items.  Above is one that was lit with fiber optics.  

You can see the ends to lights in this close-up shot.

In one spot was a field of these round towers made from water bottles that were filled with water.

At night, the lights placed inside each tower made them glow with a rainbow of colors.

Most of the installations in this exhibit were best viewed at night when they glowed with the different modes of lighting.  To the left is one of four hanging pieces that also reflected sunlight and cast rainbow like reflections all over the plants below during the day.

This exhibit ran from November of 2015 through May of 2016.  

When Chihuly Returned

 

My little review of all the garden art exhibits that have passed through the Desert Botanical Garden over the years got interrupted by photos from my most recent outings.  So now I'll resume the posts going back to November of 2013 when Chihuly returned to the garden with a second exhibit.  The garden was especially honored to get a second visit from this fabulous artist because he has a rule of not exhibiting in the same location twice.  However, he really loved the desert setting here and thought it brought out the best in his glass creations.  

I posted many photos of these beautiful glass creations between November of 2013 and May of 2014 when the show ended.  I was lucky enough to be there while the glass creations were being taken down so I even posted photos as they dismantled and packed up these elaborate pieces.

Chihuly's work speaks to my soul so I could look at these over and over and never tire of them.  And now I can look at them often because between the two exhibits at the garden and my trip to his museum in Seattle I have many, many photos to enjoy.  He really is one of my favorite contemporary artists. 

Lots of Dogs & Unplanned Bokeh

 

There is a relatively new dog boarding service that recently opened near where I live and I noticed recently that there was  new mural painted along the side wall of the place.  Yesterday, I drove by to snap a photo or two. 

Apparently the sun was positioned perfectly over the top of me to create the sunspot bokeh effect in every single one of the photos I took.  At first I was a little irritated and thought about going back to get different shots.  But after looking at them for a while I decided I like the effect.  So here they are, sunspots and all.

I don't know the artist's name.  There was no signature anywhere. 

Taking part in Monday Murals.

Motorcycle Collection on Display

 

Eight years ago, I did a post about this house perched on the east side of Camelback Mountain.  At that time, this glass room appeared to be a living room.

Looking at it recently, it now looks like a display case for a collection of motorcycles.

Seems a strange thing to do.  This is prime real estate.  I can only imagine what the neighbors might be thinking.  Homes in this area are valued at well over one million dollars.  

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  Roadside Attractions is the subject.

The Fall Butterflies Are Here

 

The fall butterfly exhibit opened last week at the Desert Botanical Garden so I went Friday morning to see how it was.  You have to have a reservation and they limit the number of people inside the pavilion which makes it nice.  They also took out all the benches so you can't sit and linger.  I found my favorite butterfly to photograph, the malachite above.  

There were quite a few of these white butterflies.

The fall exhibit features monarch butterflies but there weren't many that I saw on this visit.  

I only saw one of the Gulf Fritillary.

Visiting the pavilion was a little different this year but it was still nice to see these beauties.  

Moon Shots

 

I love it when the moon shines brightly during the day.  I took this shot as a sort of abstract moon view.  There is even a bird sitting on one of the arms of that saguaro cactus if you look closely.

But I also zoomed in on the moon to see how much definition I could capture.  Not too bad.  You can see all the craters and hills and valleys pretty well.

I threw in a night-time view just to compare the two.  Every time I photograph the moon, I can't help but think about those adventurous and pioneering men who walked around up there all those years ago.  The mysteries of space intrigue me quite a bit.  There is so much yet to be discovered.

Birds...I Love Them All

 

You all probably already know this about me but I love watching all the birds when I go for my walks at the Desert Botanical Garden.  The fact is I love watching birds wherever I am.  I'm not a formal watcher with books and binoculars.  I just enjoy their company.  Today's selection are just a few of the many feathered friends I've observed in the last couple of weeks.  Above is a goldfinch enjoying the cool water at one of my favorite garden spots.

Here's a mockingbird I saw perched on top of a sprinkler head.

A peach-faced lovebird harvesting the seeds from some sunflowers.

The always busy cactus wren taking a well deserved break.

And a tiny little hummingbird taking a rest before he flits off in search of more blooms.

They are all captivating in my book!

What's Blooming?

 

I've got some blooming photos from my walks at the garden today.  There is always something blooming even in the heat of the summer months.  Above are some blooms on a Desert Willow shrub.

I'm not sure what this one is.  I always called it Owl's Clover but a sign I saw called it Gomphrena Fireworks.  It does look like fireworks exploding, doesn't it?

This is a bloom on a Toothpick Cactus.  This is one cactus that tends to bloom all year long.  Almost every time I go to the garden I see one or two blooms.  I see a bee is enjoying this one.

This last one is called a Baja Fairy Duster.  It's a pretty common plant here in the desert southwest but I love the broom-like booms it produces.  I'm certainly enjoying being able to get out to the garden once again.  

Twisted Cactus

 

I found something new on my recent walks at the Desert Botanical Garden.  The sign on this calls it simply "Twisted Cactus" but the official name is Cereus forbesii 'Spiralis'.  Twisted cactus is much easier to say. It certainly is very twisted indeed.  

I'm not sure if this is new to the garden or if I just hadn't noticed it before.  Either way, it is certainly an interesting species.  As many times as I walk the garden trails, it seems I can always find something new to see.

Fly Away Little Bird

 

I took another early morning walk at the Desert Botanical Garden yesterday, this time after sunrise.  The garden switched their early hours on October 1st so the early hour for members is now 7:00 am instead of 6:00.  That meant that I watched the sunrise on the drive over rather than from the high spot at the garden.  While I was there I saw a group of goldfinches chowing down on sunflower seeds.

And then this one flew away.  I don't think I've ever captured the underside of the wings of a goldfinch before.  He wasn't leaving because of me.  He just flew over to another plant looking for more seeds.

Drawn Waters

 

I mentioned yesterday that I went to the freshly opened Phoenix Art Museum on Friday and was blown away by a new exhibit of work from artist Teresita Fernandez.  

When I walked through the door to this small side gallery, I actually said "wow" out loud.  It was like entering another world.  This piece is called Drawn Water and it is composed of natural and machine graphite and steel.  

Fire and water were not the only elements presented in this vast exhibit.  I'll show you more next week. 

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  I'm flying out of Venice Italy.

A Milestone of This Pandemic

 

On October 1st, the Phoenix Art Museum opened to members only for the first time since the pandemic lock-down occurred in mid-March.  If all goes well, they plan on opening to the public on October 14th.  I made a reservation and went yesterday morning at 10:00.  It felt so good to do something I enjoy so much but have been unable to do for so long.  

And the best part is, they had two fabulous contemporary art exhibits.

My favorite one was a mid-career retrospective of the art work of Teresita Fernandez called "Elemental".  I was blown away by her amazing talent and creative mind.  This portion of the exhibit was called "Fire".  It consisted of several large glazed ceramic images of fire along with a circle of stretched yarn that also looked like fire.  

The "Fire" portion of the show extended into another similarly themed exhibit called "America" which consisted of 57 pieces of charcoal shaped to represent all of the contiguous states.  Running along the wall of both exhibits was a long horizon line of rough-hewn blocks of charred wood encircling the gallery.

Here's a close-up of that line and the smokey whispers around it.  "Through this work Fernandez is saying something essential about the United States, about its conbustable politics, its simmering rages, but more subtly she is suggesting that to understand a place, one has to grasp the essential characteristics that lie beneath its surface - or you are lost." (quoted from a book about her work) 

Of course looking at these four photos won't convey the true impact of the exhibit.  It really was simply stunning to see.  I'll show you a few more pieces tomorrow.  

My Latest Bouquet

 

I treated myself to a bouquet of flowers from Trader Joe's last weekend and I wondered how long they would last.  Sometimes when I get bouquets at grocery stores, they don't last very long.

I was really worried when one of those cute pink flowers snapped off right at the base of the bloom.

I took that little pink bloom and put it in a dark blue bowl with water and it's still looking as good as new today!

And just yesterday, the lily buds in the bouquet have opened up.  I might have to get flowers at Trader Joe's again.  They seem to do very well.  

Theme Day: My Response to Covid-19

 

First of all, I know I said that theme days were ending last month but it turns out that they have been resurrected.  So the City Daily Photo Bloggers theme for October 1st is "Your Response to Covid-19".  I had to give this some thought because my response has evolved as I'm sure it has for all of us.  At the beginning, I stayed home all the time and only left the house to buy groceries.  Now that we've learned more about the virus, I find that I'm doing a lot more like getting my hair cut, seeing doctors and this week having my car serviced.   The photo above represents a new activity I've indulged in.  My friend David and I have been sending each other post cards ever since this craziness started.  We both seem to have quite a collection of post cards from travels and other sources and what started as a bit of fun has turned into something we both enjoy and look forward to.  The photo above shows a few of the cards that David has sent me.  We never know what location or work of art we will see in our mailbox next.

It should be noted that I'm doing all of my outside the house activities with my mask on.  And I've decided that if I have to wear a mask, why not make it a fashionable one.  I've got eight masks in various colorful fabrics so I can mix and match them.

The things I haven't been doing is traveling which I'm not happy about.  I just heard yesterday that some international flights are going to start again in October but with the infection numbers ticking up again in so many places, that doesn't seem to be a wise decision.  

I also have not eaten at any restaurants in six months.  That's a long time for someone who managed to eat out once or twice a week before.  I have picked up a lot of take-out food but that really isn't the same as being served freshly prepared food in a great environment. 

I'm very thankful for technology like Zoom!  At least I can meet up with friends virtually.  And, I do meet them via Zoom on a regular basis.  We've even had Zoom dinner parties.  They have involved multiple kitchens but at least we get to eat together.  Thank goodness for Zoom!

More Early Morning Views

 

Here a few more early morning views from the Desert Botanical Garden.  This one is looking north-west toward the Phoenix Mountains Preserve and Piestewa Peak.

The photo above is from the trail that offers views into the lives of native peoples who lived in the desert in the past.  I loved the way the light was shining on that shade cover.

To the left is a view of the cattails that surround the little pond.  I looked and listened for some of the frogs who live there but they were all quiet that morning.