one more step accomplished...

My visa arrived today!

I leave on January 12th for Rangon, Myanmar.

Metropolitan Museum

lattice work in the Arab collection

Took a day trip to NYC and spent most of the time in the MET. The new Arab Culture section is quite overwhelming; needs a whole day to see everything.

DeMuth 'Number 5'

Another special exhibition was the Steiglitz Collection and this was one of my favorites. That is aside from favoites from Georgia O'Keeffe [Steiglitz' wife].

bloginfo: Also visited the Frick. Beautiful building and great collection. Caught a few Picasso drawings from the special exhibition.
blognote: Don't miss the video explaining the background of the building.

a day with[out] art...

Visited Real Art Ways this afternoon to engage in any of today's events. This is AIDS Awareness Day. The place was deserted but I did watch parts of the documentary in the video gallery. I had missed Aricoco's performance last month so was able to see her construction. Being alone in the gallery with  her home/cocoon/trailer was a  great experience.

news flash...

Looks like I will be going to Burma in January. Details forthcoming...

DIRT Salon Opening...

Anne Cubberly

Anne Cubberly

Gabriela Galarza-Block

Went to the opening of the DIRT Salon in Hartford and it was amazing. What a great new place for artists [and onlookers like me]. Met so many people I knew. There was food [a great looking paella] and liquor [had a nice glass of vinho verde] but room after room of studio, work space, gathering space...

bloginfo: Invite called it the DIRT Flirt!

blognote: Keep up the good work and keep inviting me over!

Truk Talk

Trukese artifacts

Gave a 'Truk Talk' or 'Chuuk Chat' this morning at the monthly Men's Coffee Social here at CVOC. The presentation was very well received with a full audience in the dining room. Many questions at the end of the talk. This was, of course, about my four years living in Truk in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in Micronesia, 1963 to 1967.

bloginfo: Truk was the name of the island district when I lived there. Now after joining the Federated States of Micronesia it is called its original name of Chuuk.

blognote: CVOC is Covenant Village of Cromwell where I have lived for the past three years.

'Poster Boy' Opening

Attended the Poster Boy opening tonight at RAW in Hartford. Trinity's loss is definitely Real Art Ways' gain. It was a great show and people were still streaming in when I left.

New Britain Museum of American Art

I will never be able to forget this painting and each time I view it, it continues to stun me. This is Graydon Parrish's 'The Cycle of Terror and Tragedy'. I had the privilege of viewing it once again yesterday on my visit to the NBMAA to view their 'Provincetown' show once more before it finishes this weekend.

room with a view...paris...2011

just across the blvd montparnasse
was my new favorite basque restaurant
oyez paxox

room with a view...belo horizonte, brasil...2008

looking out over the jami campus
from my apartment window in the morning

room with a view...havana, cuba...2010

from my window in the parque central hotel in old havana
you could see the intersection of prado and calle neptuno

room with a view...santiago de cuba...2011

ringing the melia santiago hotel
were the sierra maestra mountains

room with a view...trinidad de cuba...2009

waking up in the morning
in the trinidad iberostar hotel
with a view of the church in the plaza

Boat Trip

We had lunch at the El Cayo Restaurant in the Santiago harbor. You had to get there by catamaran.

El Cayo Restaurant

a ride around el Morro on the way back

Callejon de Hamel

An interesting art find in Havana was the Callejon Hamel where devotees of the Santería religion gathered and showed off their artwork. We spen some time there and I bought an eye symbol of Obatálá, one of the major orishas of santería.

Danza Contemporánea de Cuba

The aging dancer and two dancers from the esteemed Danza Contemporánea de Cuba which had toured the United States and performed in May in Boston. They allowed me to have my picture taken with two of the leading dancers. It was fifty years ago that I soloed with the Truda Kaschmann Modern Dance Group at the Bushnell Memorial with the Hartford Symphony under the direction of Fritz Mahler.

blognote: Thanks to Diane and Kathleen for the pictures

Dance Cuba...

ProDanza is Laura Alonso's school and company in Havana. She is the daughter of Alicia Alonso, the famous ballerina. This dancer had just finished rehearsing and let me take her picture.

In Santiago de Cuba we visited the Folkloric Ensemble de Oriente. This was also at the Heredia Theater but in a different studio on the seventh floor [and the elevator was out of operation].

Mission Donation in Havana

Donated Materials and Medications

Elderly Housing Complex

Vibora, Havana, Cuba

Sisters of St Vincent de Paul