I thought I might take a short break from art for the first few days of my Spring holiday. I'm in Ireland right now taking part in a wonderful walking tour in the Wicklow Mountains. My so-called break from art was short-lived as I had two moving experiences with works of art on my first day of travel. One was in the Pearson International airport in Toronto. Feeling weary after going through many security screenings and passageways to get to my gate to Heathrow, I was rejuvenated when I had to walk through a Richard Serra sculpture. This is my first encounter with this piece and it is probably the most successful public sculpture I have experienced. It was so great to see this work amongst the endless succession of designer stores and boutiques selling a range of useless trinkets and gadgets. I enjoyed how you can experience the sculpture in multiple ways: by walking through it as if it was just a normal passageway, or by going through the narrower parts on either side. This sculpture made the benign airport come alive for me.

Upon arriving at the Dublin airport we were picked up by the walking tour leader and driven directly to our hotel Tinakilley. We were given twenty minutes to unpack and then brought to our first destination: Devil's Glen. This walk through a beautiful wooded area that follows the River Vartry, is dedicated to the Irish poet Seamus Heaney (plaques containing his poetry are scattered throughout the trail). And also throughout the trail were pieces of art made by a variety of artists and all constructed from wood. The pieces were installed in the early 2000's so many of them have fallen and have started to re-integrate into the ground. While it might seem sad to see somebody's handiwork in a pile on the ground, the sight of the fallen sculptures did remind me of how many First Nations tribes in BC leave their totem poles as is once they fall to the ground. I liked the idea that public art does not have to built to last forever. It could have a natural form of entropy built into it; in this case the original material, wood, was going back to its original source, the forest. 

One of the most memorable (and still intact) sculptures in Devil's Glen was a very simple sculpture called 'Panaroma' (see below). It was fascinating to see how effective such a simple device could have by just creating a frame through which we can view the forest. I thought it was interesting also in light of how whenever we see a beautiful vista we are tempted to take a photograph of it, so our propensity to photograph what we see gives us a perpetually 'framed' view of the landscape. This wood piece referenced the history of perspective in landscape drawing and painting, as well as our understanding of space through photography. 

So while I was thinking of having a break from art, I was delighted to have these immediate encounters with art without even trying to seek them out. Next week I will report on the contemporary art I see in Dublin.

As a regular reader of this newsletter you realize by now that art can definitely make your life better, so why not take one of our short six-week courses this Spring. We have 14 courses on offer including a some new ones such as Painting: Abstract Nature and Painting: Beyond the Rectangle.

If six-weeks is too much of a commitment in your busy schedule try one of our afternoon or day-long workshops that come with all all supplies included: Summer Workshop Schedule