City Garden, St. Louis

   If you haven't seen it yet, it's worth a trip to visit the new "Citygarden" sculpture park in downtown St. Louis. This beautiful 3-acre park is filled with interesting works of art and the landscaping and flowers are a welcome addition to the city atmosphere. Here are a few of my images from a recent visit.

Each red dot on the free park map shows where a sculpture is located. The park has three sections: the Floodplain band, the River Terrace band and the River Bluffs band each of which reflects a different topographical region found in the area.

"Untitled" (Ringed Figure) by Keith Haring

"Untitled" (One of Two Rabbits) by Tom Classen

"Aesop's Fables" by Mark de Suvero

"Untitled" by Martin Puryear

"Big White Gloves, Big Four Wheels" by Jim Dine

"Tai Chi Single Whip" by Ju Ming

"Eros Bendato" by Igor Mitaraj

Interior of above sculpture

"2 Arcs x 4" by Bernar Venet

Reflecting pool with City Courts building in background.

"La Riviere" by Aistide Maillol

"Bird" by Laura Ford

"Night" by Tony Smith

"The Door of Return" by Kan Yasuda

"Zenit" by Mimmo Paladino

A serpentine wall mimics the gentle curves of the nearby Mississippi River.

ArtEast 2009

   I guess I have to post pictures from my very first art exhibition! Yvonne McCall and I had a joint art show in conjunction with ArtEast, the annual artwalk/studio tour held every fall in Edwardsville and Alton. Over 150 artists exhibit in 50 different venues.
   We were located at Springer Creek Winery, a very cozy and relaxing environment. Yvonne does beautiful pastel drawings and acrylic paintings and I displayed abstract photographs. Here are just a few scenes of the weekend.

The proud artists

Were we ever surprised to see Yvonne's brother and niece from Virginia drop in unexpectedly!

Yvonne shows off our spread of refreshments.

"Spring Prom"

"Drawing With Light"

The photographs I had on display are something of a new art form. They are all time exposures. I hold the shutter open for 4-5 seconds and wave the camera around over lights at night. This produces  pictures of light swirls in an abstract shapes. All except these first two are then mirrored in some way to create a symmetrical pattern.

"Light Fantastic"

"Nova Storm"

"Angel of Light"

"Emergence"

Don and Carol showed up to see some art.

Yvonne with her friend Michelle.

The mirroring creates a new version of a Rorshach test. People who looked at these photos claimed to see different shapes embedded in the image.

"Blue Portal"

"Love Godess"

"Bright Eyes"

The Blains helped us celebrate.

My brother Bill and sister Kathy posing with me.

"Eye To Eye"

"Magic Mushroom"

"Energy Flow"

"Fly Away"

"Magic Tower"

My Napoleanic Complex

John Badman sticks it to Napolean.

With coaxing, even Patty got in the spirit!

Yvonne with a plaque she woodburned for the winery.

"Love Light"

Nashville Parthenon

   On a recent trip to Nashville, I finally toured the interior of the full-scale reproduction of the Greek Parthenon in Centennial Park.

   Originally built for Tennessee's 1897 Centennial Exposition, this replica of the original Parthenon in Athens serves as a monument to what is considered the pinnacle of classical architecture. Visually, it would reinforce the city's claim to be the center of southern arts and therefore the "Athens of the west". Unlike the real Parthenon, which is just a stone ruin, this Parthenon allows you to see what the original would have looked like at its peak, including the 42 foot gold statue of Athena in its center.

  

   I first learned of this structure in Robert Altman's 1975 film "Nashville"', where it was used as a backdrop for a political rally.

An elaborate grouping of classical figures forms a pediment on each end of the structure.

The original building had not been built with permanent materials so the entire structure was re-built in the 1920s, Some of the original pediment statues are on display in the main chamber.

There are scale models (approx 20 feet long) of the pediment groups so you can see them clearly.

The statue of Athena in the central hall is an imposing sculpture in brilliant gold.

This giant shield is at Athena's feet.

Golden relief sculptures along the statue's base.

Brass Door Ornament

Outside Portico