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The year 2023 started out for me with a grand tour to southern states. The pinpoints on the map included Washington, D.C., Richmond, Va., Florence, S.C., Orlando, Fla., Biloxi, Miss., and Montgomery, Ala. Washington was for the "Sargent and Spain" show at the National Gallery of Art and I got to spend about half an hour in the show with the curator Sarah Cash, with whom I'd worked at the Amon Carter. I also got in plenty of other art including a fine show at the Renwick Gallery and an exhibition on MASS Design Group at the National Building Museum. The new Institute of Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, designed by Steven Holl, had been on my wanna-see list but it was exteriors only since the museum was closed for the holidays. But I did get to the Branch Museum of Architecture & Design, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and Valentine Museum. I had a good visit with Jeanette and Wanda in Florence and then on to pauses from driving in Charleston, S.C., Savannah, Ga., and St Augustine, Fla. I spent a few nights in Orlando with Elizabeth. We went to see the new Calatrava building at Florida Poly and the Florida Southern campus by Frank Lloyd Wright. Time to head west. The Ohr O'Keefe Museum in Biloxi is focused on the pottery work of George Ohr ("The Mad Potter of Biloxi") and the building was designed by Frank Gehry. It was really great to see the building and the collection. On to Montgomery where I was thrilled to be able to see the National Memorial for Peace and Justice (designed by MASS Design Group) and the Legacy Museum, and also the Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald House Museum. After a pause to see the Paul Rudolph chapel and other buildings at Tuskegee University, I pressed on toward home, stuffed with memories.
The rest of the year rather disappeared (as usual). The ARLIS/NA annual conference was held in April in Mexico City and, boy, was it great. It was good to see friends. Bill and I went to a concert at the Palacio de Bellas Artes and sat up in the high balcony, close to the Tiffany stained glass dome. We also went to a fine Remedios Varo show at the Museo de Arte Moderna. We joined Carol for a tour of Frida Kahlo's house (Casa Azul). And a really fine reception at the Museo Franz Mayer. The street life was lively and colorful. I visited Bill again when we spent his October birthday weekend in Ogunquit, Maine (after some Sargent in Boston). I got up to Buffalo several times to see Paul who is in an assisted living facility, one time his daughter was there and we went to the zoo. Something different. I still haven't been inside the new Albright-Knox Art Gallery building, designed by Shohei Shigematsu of OMA New York. The museum is now called the Buffalo AKG Art Museum. One of the museum receptionists in the swing space said the name change was partly because a web search on "buffalo art museum" did not necessarily find the Albright-Knox Art Gallery.
The MostArts music festival and young pianist competition had been cancelled for three years and it was delightful to have it back again in July. My favorite part is the noon concerts of chamber music, with a wide variety of work. Elizabeth and I did go up to the Shaw Festival in Niagara on the Lake (Ontario) to see "The Amen Corner" by James Baldwin.
One of my favorite, and most productive, places to read is when I'm eating away from home. There are the distractions of home and I don't know why but I get drowsy pretty quickly when I sit in a comfy chair at home and try to read. That doesn't mean that I didn't get through a couple dozen books this year. Some of my favorites were Flâneuse by Lauren Elkin, Germania and Danubia by Simon Winder, The personal librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, Girl, woman, other by Bernardine Evaristo, and Every good boy does fine by Jeremy Denk. Reviewing the list is enjoyable because when a book is finished, it moves to some brain storage place until it is evoked, intentionally or not. So I'm enjoying this recollection moment. The Denk memoir may win the "favorite book" award but it was read pretty late in the year (aka not so long ago).
Life carries on in Alfred. It has been too long since I was in Europe. Five years. I did get my passport renewed so I'm ready. My main meetings for ALA have shifted to meeting virtually and going to the physical conference has paled. I did get to see some friends outside ALA when I was in Chicago in June (and also some art at the Art Institute and Driehaus and a concert of overtures at Grant Park with Karen). Bus service between Alfred and New York City has not recovered from the pandemic. We used to have three buses a day in either direction. Now there is one bus on Friday and one on Sunday. I have generally driven to Poughkeepsie, parked at the Metro-North station, and taken the train into the city. But then of course I don't get all of that wonderful reading time that comes with leaving the driving to them. What's that? You suggest audio books?
I dream of road trips and getting to Europe but why is it so easy to be a lazy bum? Oh, I guess it's time for a New Year's resolution to get up and go. I hope you have had a good holiday season and are ready for a new year of joy and peace (dare we ask for that?).
Sherman Clarke
33 South Main Street
Alfred, NY 14802