Inside the Louvre

The Louvre is a wonderful, magical place filled with all kinds of art you can dream of (and more!)  Once a grand palace, walking around the Louvre will show you that it is pretty much a work of art itself.

Wesley and I went on a Friday night after dinner. In Paris. Talk about the perfect date night!!!! Ironically the worst date I have ever been on also happened at an art museum...I can assure you it wasn't with Wesley and it wasn't at the Louvre...but that's another story for another day ;)

The best part about going on a Friday night....Friday nights after 6PM are free for anyone 26 and under that has a photo ID.  Score!  If only we could go every Friday night until we are 27...if only...sigh.  The other thing that made it perfect is that it wasn't packed.  Granted, it's still the Louvre, so there was still a lot of people, but compared to peak times during the day, it was great.

Here were some of the highlights....

 As you enter the Louvre, you descend under the glass pyramid.  Pretty cool, right?!?

 Winged Victory.  One of the most famous pieces of sculpture on the planet. Are you drooling yet?  

You should be...

Virgin of the Rocks, Da Vinci.  Recognize this one?  It played a part in the Da Vinci Code...

 Everyone crowding to see...

 Mona Lisa, Da Vinci.  Fun fact...one of my college essays was about my experience seeing this for the very first time 8 years ago.  Yep, you can even write about art to get into college ;)

 The massive painting that is just opposite the Mona Lisa.  Apparently ^ one person thought it was not very impressive...

"Kristen, look, it's a young Tom Riddle."  Oh Wesley, that's why I love you.

 

I just loved these...

 

 

 This is why the Louvre is almost a work of art itself...

And they had even more art than I could dream of!!

 And when we left, the best art of all:

Bad Art

Let me preface this post by re-iterating how much I love art.  If I could do anything for a day for just me, it would involve either producing some of my own art, or leisurely perusing art galleries.  The idea for this post came from a conversation about what people think about art and how different people, obviously, have different opinions.  I in no way shape or form believe that my opinions should be regarded as fact, because I can assure you they are simply my own thoughts and in some of these cases, emotions...bare with me and you will see why ;)

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Dada. Yes, that is the name of the movement.  The Dada movement came about in response to World War I and you can read all about it {here}. In a nutshell "Dada rejected reason and logic, prizing nonsense, irrationality and intuition."  I don't know about you, but for me, my art needs to make sense.  And, since when did painting a go-tee on a print of the Mona Lisa cry out to the world "you really screwed up the world, World War I...shame on you!"?!?

My most passionate definition of "bad art" comes from Pablo Picasso.  Yes, I know he is one of the "game changes" in modern art.  Yes, I know he spear-headed the movement of Cubism which was a monumental movement that helped redefine who could call art, "Art."  But please for the love, explain to me how you can go from this...

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to this...

 

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I don't even know where to begin to express to you how much I hate this painting.  I have hated from the first moment I saw it in my eighth grade art class.  I have never like Cubism...its just too weird for me.  I don't know how to explain it other than whenever I see a Cubist work I just can't ever render a positive feeling from it. I also feel like Picasso WASTED his talent on this huge mess. Not to mention, its just a really vulgar paining. And it's of prostitutes.  Blah!
Phew...ok, just had to let all of that out ;)  I wasn't kidding when I told you I was the most passionate about this one.

Lastly for today, I bring you abstract art from Wassily Kandinsky.  Some of Kandinsky's work I do like.  But the composition pieces to me...are just bad art.

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Here is the story behind this piece:
"An interesting story that indicates Kandinsky’s intellectual examination in the creation of his works revolves around this composition. He became exhausted during the months of studying he went through in preparation for this painting, and decided to go for a walk. His assistant at the time, Gabrielle Munter, who was tidying up the studio in the artist’s absence, inadvertently turned the canvas on its side. Upon Kandinsky’s return, he saw the canvas, fell to his knees and began weeping at the beauty of the painting. His newly found perspective on the piece would change his artistic vision and direction for the rest of his life" {via}
Maybe you have to have a really special part of your brain active to understand abstract art... because I surely have not shed any tears in thinking that this is a great beauty.  I like to be able to make out images...and that is really difficult for me in abstract art.  I do like that with abstract art, every one's interpretation will be different.  But I honestly would rather spend my time looking at other art then trying to decipher the abstract.

The great thing about art, it that you get to decide what you like and don't like; even what you consider to be art or not art.  What kind of art do you love, or love to hate?!?

As always...have a great weekend!!

{DIY} Scrapbook Fridge Magnets

 

Aren't these adorable? I love them and they are so easy to make.  We've got a stainless steel fridge, so I can only use the tiny space on the sides that stick out.  I wanted some magnets that "went" with the kitchen and I fell in love with these metal scrap-booking charms.  They are little pieces of art! Hmmm...maybe I"ll get some mini Monet's next time ;)  You can pick them up at any craft store in the scrap-booking section.  I got the magnets at a craft store too.  Of course, the super glue I already had.  Yes, between the {DIY office storage} and {no-sew burlap table runner}, you could probably tell that I am obsessed with love super glue. 

This little project couldn't be any easier...

You will want to press and hold the magnet onto the charm for a good 10-20 seconds to ensure that the super glue adheres. The other great thing about using the metal charms, is that they are already going to want to grab hold of the magnets.  The super glue just makes sure that they stay in the spot you want them to. Easy, right?!?

Kate Stone

I fell in love with another artist while we were in Charleston.  Kate Stone blew me away with her figures and still life. Here are two of my favorites:

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Of course, I had to look her up as soon as I got home.  I fell in love with her even more when I found this amazing interview of her and her husband.  They are both artists (dream life, right?!?) her definition of art blew me away:

"Anything can be art these days, but personally I feel that good art should succeed in at least two of the following: it affects the viewer, either with positive emotions or unsettling ones; it inspires respect for its technical execution; it is beautiful, either in a conventional or sublime way; or it resonates with the time period and culture that produced it."

Could not have said it better myself!  You can check out the full interview {here}

David Hettinger

I think if Monet lived in our day, the subjects of his paintings would be a lot like these.  David Hettinger is a painter from Illinois and I'm in love with his style.  I saw these two paintings at a gallery in Charleston and fell in love with their intensity of color, Impressionistic brushstrokes and modern subjects.  The first one is titled Pink Pillows and the second Reading and Texting.  Yes, that's right, texting is now a subject in paintings. 

Once I got home, I had to look up more.  These were two of my favorites that I found:

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Girl with a Textbook

Oil

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Autumn Landscape

Oil

Beautiful, right?!? Makes me want to pull some paints out and go to town!

Imaginary Getaway

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If I could get away for just a day...I would go here.  I may have to pull a Mary Poppins to get there, but I would do it in a second.  It seems so peaceful and relaxing. I could take a stroll around the gardens, and read in the shade.  Although I would definitely need an ice cold Coke to sip on...and maybe a few Dove dark chocolates to pull out of my pocket.

If you could go anywhere for just a day....where would you go?

Jewelry Organization

In case you already didn't know, I hate clutter.  Of all of the things I have, jewelry seems to be the easiest thing to go from neat and tidy to mass chaos.  I'm such a visual person, so I tend to organize everything by color.

I got this jewelry stand a few months ago.  I love it.  It is such a great way to display some of my favorite pieces....which in this case are all of the ones that match the decor in our bedroom. It's become an art piece in the room!  I used to keep everything in the jewelry drawer that came with our dresser.  But I've gotten so much, that it was way too cluttered and I couldn't see everything that I had.  By pulling out quite a bit to hang on the new stand, it left plenty of room to spread out the remaining pieces.  Now everything has a perfect color-coordinated spot!

I also LOVE these Pinterest ideas too:

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This is so cute and inexpensive to put together...just a shower curtain rod and rings.  And It's color coordinated so definite winner in my book!

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Another great idea for a closet space...painted peg board with hooks!

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Loving this shadow box organizer...imagine the millions of possibilities lining it with great craft paper or fabric.

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I do love storing things away in drawers and I love this idea of using the separate cups and canisters to group your pieces.

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This frame is stunning and another good example of how to use your pieces that match your color scheme as part of your decor.

Happy organizing!

Linking up with Shanna and The Vintage Apple