Monday, August 23, 2004

A man named Joan.

Mrs. TBF and I went to the Foundation Beyeler yesterday to see the Calder - Miró exhibit. It was a pretty cool exhibit, which I guess is pretty much the norm for exhibits at the Beyeler. This exhibit "...sheds light on interests shared in common by the two artists, from circus and play as forms of pure poetic expression to art in the public space." In my opinion, this is just a fancy schmancy way of saying that these two guys liked hanging out together, and their art inspired each other. Miró mostly did paintings, and Calder did wire sculptures (mobiles and stabiles), which ended up looking very similar to each other's work. For anybody who makes a trip to Basel, I'd have to say that the Beyeler would definitely be worth your while (the number 6 tram stops right in front of it). Along with having excellent special exhibits, they also have a pretty amazing permanent collection - especially for such a small museum. My guess is that they probably have about 30 Picassos, along with Monet, Klee, Van Gogh, etc., etc. Plus the fact the the place is pretty small is perfect if you have a VERY short attention span like yours truly.
Let's see, what else did we do this weekend...? On Saturday evening, Christian and Nimashini came over for a BBQ. I barbecued some pork and lamb ribs, along with some polenta squares. We had some stuffed mushrooms, a Jamie Oliver salad, and a great (and very easy) chocolate dessert made with Bushmills Irish Whiskey. It was a veritable gorgefest. We had a good time only hampered (for Nimashini) by the fact that she had some kind of allergic reaction to our cat, and she ended up with one bloodshot eye.
On Sunday morning, Jo Ann played tennis with Rammy, we went to the Beyeler, we barbecued a couple of steaks for dinner, and then we watched the Olympics. Is it my imagination, or have there been a lot of empty seats at these games? Anyway, I particularly enjoyed watching the gymnasts on the rings. Those biceps give me something to work toward at the gym!

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