At MOMA

Yesterday, I took the kid to MOMA. I thought that she was at the age that we could go to a museum and she would be able to start recognizing some paintings that she had seen before in the books we have at home. I was correct, and she remembered “Starry Night,” and “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon.” And when I say “recognizing,” what I mean is that she would say, “I know that picture.” I think that’s a good start when it comes to art appreciation.

Out of everything we looked at, the kid really latched on to Gretchen Bender’s “Dumping Core.” I don’t want try to explain it here, as the link does a better job. When we went into the little theatre space that 13 tv screens were in, I thought the exhibit would be a stimulation overload for the kid. I was surprised at how serious she took it. When we left, I asked what she liked about it, and she told me that she liked how the music and pictures worked together.

What caught me was the Frank O’Hara exhibit. They had some of his original manuscripts, and drawings. I’m not the biggest fan of poetry, but something about his work, and how it was portrayed. It stuck with me; his work and what he was able to accomplish in his notebooks. It left me inspired, and wondering if there still aren’t new things I can learn and try.