A trip to the MIA always means a few minutes of staring at this massive work by Dale Chihuly. I saw an exhibit of his work once and it was really amazing to see so much of it all together - like walking into an alternate (albeit fragile) world.
This hand above and the weathervanes below are part of a permanent exhibit of American art and folk art from the 1700's-1800's. It's cool that they can put more of this kind of thing on display now since adding a new wing.
I was drawn to the painting below by the shiny, luscious fruits. No raspberries have ever looked that way - unless these were an heirloom raspberry that we have since stopped planting? Hmmm... still, I like the depiction of the fruit as little jewels.
And below is a creepy copper horse from China - must be a war horse, right?
This buddha below was originally gilded but was damaged in a fire. I really like the patina on it better than I would a smooth gold finish. I've read that a lot of the ancient statues and buildings were originally painted in bright colors (one prime example is the pyramids in Egypt and in Mexico). It's hard for me to imagine.....
