Being Reborn

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Anybody who knows my visual art understands that I LOVE color.  It turns me on, provides me with an abundance of joy, and makes me want to dance.  I’m happiest when the sun is shining, and the sky is a deep, arctic blue and there are flowers blooming in the garden of every possible color. The bolder the colors the better. When I’m feeling down, it can be very pleasing to pull out one of those big boxes of Crayola’s and smear color all over an empty sheet of paper.

Yesterday was a dark, cold, rainy day.  Bill and I decided to make our way to Richmond, to see the Chihuly Installations at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. A neighbor who had gone to see the show before Christmas told me about it. She recommended that I go over and take a peak before it disappears in February.

The hour-long drive over to the museum was miserable with steady rain and poor visibility. I wondered why we were out on the road instead of staying home in front of a warm fire, drinking hot tea and reading a good book.  But once inside the museum and just beyond the entrance to the exhibition, I knew we had to be there.

I’m not one who is usually blown away by art glass, no pun intended.  It can be very beautiful, but it’s never really caught my attention … as in feeling that I was so excited, I was about to explode. My heart rate revved up and I felt like I was about to fly into one of those gorgeous sunsets we sometimes experience over the sea, in warmer climes, when there is lots of pollution in the air.

I was speechless. I was breathless. The installations are life-size, enveloping the darkened, but exquisitely lit galleries in bold reds, greens, yellows, blues, and every possible shade in between.  It took me a few minutes to calm down and begin to carefully listen to Dale Chihuly, talk about his work on the audio guide.  And as much as I love his glass work, I love his “drawings” more. They speak to me in soft whispers and loud shouts. I’ve never been “saved,” as in a church by Jesus, but I was certainly reborn yesterday as I stood before this magnificent, explosive work.

To be honest, I haven’t taken myself on any art dates recently.  The last time we were in New York, I didn’t step foot in a museum or gallery. I’ve been too obsessed with my memoir and writing.  But seeing this exhibit has inspired me so much, in so many ways, that I’ve decided I’ve got to get out more and see what’s going on in the visual arts world these days.

Seeing other people’s artwork is powerful medicine for me. I feel lighter. I feel happy. I feel giddy. I feel like writing. I want to dance. I want to live life to it’s fullest.

Do not miss seeing Dale Chihuly’s work should you find yourself within viewing distance of one of his exhibitions.