the moma report

MOMA was spectacular. Special treats (for me) included Van Gogh's The Starry Night, Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, Matisse's The Dance, Picasso's Three Musicians, and this monumental Jackson Pollack.

There was much more, of course; I could post images of dozens of Picassos and Matisses that I loved, along with twenty other artists. The building is dazzling, including the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden, full of works by Henry Moore, Picasso, Alexander Calder, David Smith and other modern sculptors. I am very partial to sculpture gardens of all types, and this was no exception.

We also had a fabulous meal there. The restaurants and cafes are all run by Danny Meyer, one of New York City's great restaurateurs, whose signature Union Square Cafe happens to be our favorite restaurant. Meyer is famous for serving amazing, creative food in an elegant - but always friendly and unpretentious - atmosphere. His work makes even a cup of tea and a light snack at MOMA an experience. We ended the day with a late lunch (and a good deal of imbibing) at The Bar Room, the less formal area of the restaurant called The Modern. If you feel like parting with a large amount of cash to complete your MOMA experience, I highly recommend it.

Not much Canada-related news to report. I'm following the political situation, but I don't feel qualified to comment on it. I know, why should that stop me, it doesn't seem to stop anyone else...

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I also remembered that I had visited MOMA more recently than I thought, though still many years ago. They held a Chuck Close retrospective in 1998, which I attended in order to write about Close. (Most of the article is here.)

I hung out with the artist in his studio, and even saw a painting in progress, which was so cool. What you won't see in the story is the huge gaffe I made in the print version. Close, off the record, dissed Christopher Reeve - but I misunderstood where his "this is not for publication" caveat began and ended.

Close was hugely pissed off at the magazine, but considerate enough to let me off the hook at the same time. I felt really bad, not to mention I'll never be able to speak with him again. Such are the vagaries of journalism. Sometimes the missteps are truly unintentional.