The Stories They Tell

     Our favorite Florida Museum, The James Museum ( https://thejamesmuseum.org/ ) in St. Petersburg, has done it again. Another fabulous exhibit is on display through May 14. If you don't know, the James is a museum of western and wildlife art, one of the best in the nation, at least top three along with the Booth Western Art Museum and the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.

    This exhibit is called "The Stories They Tell: Indigenous Art and the Photography of Edward S. Curtis," and it masterfully juxtaposes Curtis photographs with indigenous art objects, old and modern, Curtis is considered one of the premier photographers of American Indian culture in the late 1800s and early 1900s. At the time he made his photographs, he thought - as did most of the country - that he was documenting the last gasps of a dying people, racing to document as much of their culture as he could. Now, one must be careful to realize that he was a photographer with an artistic eye first, and an anthropologist or historian second, so there may be some mistakes made for artistic license.  Nevertheless, his photos are an important anthropological and historical record and, simultaneously, fantastic works of art.

    What the James has done in this exhibit is to display some photos alongside art works made by the people of the societies and locations depicted in the photos, demonstrating the continuity of the cultures that are still with us, thankfully. The objects range in age from the 19th through the 21st century proving the cultural resilience of their makers.  In most cases, the same activity depicted in a photograph is depicted in the accompanying art object.

    The works are divided by location, including several different pueblos of the southwest and the Northwest.  

    It really is a great experience, worthy of any museum. We're so fortunate to have it just an hour away.

Two (?) Artists, Two Revolutionaries

     In February, we had the pleasure of attending two exhibits focusing on two very different, but similar artists:  the 21st century anonymous street artist(s) Banksy and the late 19th/early 20th century French sculptor Rodin.  They work/worked in different media, and one's identity is unknown, but both were famous enough to be known by one name and forged their own, new path in art that diverged from the orthodox and mainstream.

    Last fall, I got word of a weekend long pop-up Banksy exhibit in the Tampa Bay area. In keeping with the air of mystery surrounding the artist, the location was to be revealed later. Also in keeping with the artist's persona, there was no official connection with Banksy whatsoever, not even a guarantee that the works featured were Banksy works. After all, the anonymous, suspected-to-be-British street and performance artist rarely signs or takes credit for his works, and they are often ephemeral, not meant to last. I bought tickets anyway. Several weeks later, I received an email stating that the dates would be rescheduled; there was some vague blame placed on Florida's hurricanes Ian and Nicole. Admittedly, I started to wonder if it all was a scam --- and wouldn't that be perfect for a Banksy exhibit? However, I eventually received the time and place in another email.

    The exhibit was a pleasant surprise. Obviously, ephemeral street art can't necessarily be moved around for exhibits, so many of the works were projected or shown in video displays. Nevertheless, there were 3-4 large-ish galleries filled with works that really made one think. Overall, it was an excellent show.

    The Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg ( https://mfastpete.org/ ) has hosted an exhibit called Rodia and the Age of Impressionism since November and through March 26.  The featured works normally reside at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, but that facility is being renovated, so the works got to travel. I'm a huge fan of Rodin's work; he's my favorite sculptor - well maybe tied with Michelangelo. The Imressionism, not so much. I can take it or leave it, preferably leave it, and, honestly, the exhibit doesn't really do much to explain the connection. Same time period, so what? But that's not what I went to see. I've been to the Rodin Museums in Paris and Philadelphia, and I've seen a few other Rodin exhibits. This one did not disappoint. Like Banks, Rodin was a revolutionary of sorts. While other French sculptors of his time were creating smooth, idealized beauties in bronze, his pieces are rougher, rugged, perhaps even leaning away from the beautiful, but every piece tells a story.

Savannah Book Festival 2023

     As usual, the Savannah Book Festival on February 18 2023 was a great event, our favorite book event of all. What's not to like? Thirty to forty authors of all genres present book talks, answer questions from readers, and sign books in multiple venues in beautiful, historic downtown Savannah, Georgia, and the weather is almost always perfect - sunny and 60 degrees this year.  Although we were somewhat disappointed by our hotel and one of the food/history tours we booked, it was another great weekend.

    We checked in Friday. The Festival includes ticketed addresses and gatherings on Thursday night, Friday night, and Sunday afternoon, but all of the events on Saturday are free.  Thursday evening we booked a True Crime Pub Crawl with Mad Cat Tours ( https://madcattours.com/ ), and it was quite an enjoyable walk, hearing a few stories and stopping in a few bars on the way.  The tour Guide Connor was excellent, and we would book other Mad Cat tours in the future. (Be aware that you're likely to trip over tour groups and bachelorette parties if you spend any time walking around downtown Savannah. Be careful.)

    Then, it was up bright and early for a short 20 minute drive into downtown and a quick breakfast before stopping in at the Book Sale tent to stock up on the authors' books. (They are not supposed to sign books not purchased on site that day.) As usual, we split up for the day, with my wife more interested in the fiction authors and myself more interested in non fiction. Also as usual, one has to make choices because there will be conflicting sessions.

Here's the schedule to give you an idea.

    I attended Stacy Schiff's session first. A fan of her Cleopatra and The Witches Salem, 1692, I wanted to hear more about her new biography about The Father of The American Revolution," Samuel Adams. Her talk did not disappoint. Next was journalist Patrick Radden Keefe, whom I was not familiar with, but his talk made me want to read his previous books in addition to Rogues, and listen to his recent podcast ("The Wind of Change"- Highly recommended). Gayle Jessup White spoke about her family history journey, the discovery that she was descended from not only Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, but another person enslaved by Jefferson. Ilyon Woo had already written The Great Divorce, a fascinating story of a woman's fight against the religious group called the Shakers over custody of her children, We listened to the audio version of the book on our drive to Savannah, and I can't wait to read her new book about the famous couple Ellen and William Craft who ingeniously escaped from slavery in Macon Georgia. (Unfortunately, copies of that book were sold out in the book tent.) I took the time to meet Dr. Woo and ask her to sign a copy of Divorce nevertheless, and it was a lovely conversation.  We wrapped up the day together hearing from British-American documentarian and journalist Marcel Theroux. Theroux has written in multiple genres, and his latest book, a novel called The Sorcerer of Pyongyang.  He spoke about his trip to North Korea a few years ago which inspired the novel, and his talk inspired me to give it a read and maybe catch up on his fiction and documentaries.

    An exhausting but thoroughly fun weekend. We can't wait until next February.  If you're into books and people who love books in a beautiful setting, make plans to join us! They start announcing authors in October on their website https://www.savannahbookfestival.org/ .