So the World Cup Soccer has started, Fred has found a pub, Netherlands was playing, so I had time to fuel other interests.The de Young Museum of Fine Arts in the Golden Gate Park seemed the spot to explore.
Fascinating building to start.
I have not focussed on the art of the Native Americans, in fact have been avoiding the tourist shops and their wares.
The de Young has an exhibition that interested me and I joined the docent tour, and as it happens Marlene is a South African living here in San Francisco.
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| Cheyenne Ledger sketches |
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| Navajo weaving, from the mid 1800's using churra sheep wool |
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| The 11th C Mimbre pots! |
I was enchanted by the ceramics, even though they are 11th century they have a modern, fresh appeal. The fine line work of the geometric shapes done with yucca brushes is distinctive on all the clay bowls.
June, was thinking of your ability to work as fine and as accurately! Inspiration?
Lines on the Horizon: Native
American Art from the Weisel Family Collection
May 3, 2014 – January 4, 2015
Lines on the Horizon highlights Native American art from the
collection of the Thomas W. Weisel Family. Spanning more than 1,000 years of
artistic creativity, the exhibition will focus on the indigenous arts of the
American Southwest, featuring 11th-century Mimbres ceramics alongside masterful
classic Navajo weavings from the mid to late 19th century and 20th-century
works by recognized artists such as the ceramicist Nampeyo of Hano Pueblo.
Singular pieces from the Northwest Coast and the first Plains ledger drawings
to enter the permanent collection will also be shown. The artworks, carefully
chosen over 30 years of collecting, reflect an emerging sense that, through
close visual and technical analysis, it may be possible to identify the styles
of specific individuals who created these diverse works. Even if we may never
know their names, we can still celebrate their works of art as expressions of
personal and communal worldviews.
