Over the Memorial Day weekend, Rachel and I drove up to Boston. It was the first time either of us spent any real time there and I left wondering why it took me four years on the east coast to begin exploring the gems it has to offer.
The clear highlight of the trip was the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park. The museum is just north of Boston in a scenic wilderness area next to Walden Pond (yes, that Walden Pond). On the grounds of the museum are dozens of memorable sculptures including the Trojan Piggybank (pictured) by Aristotle Georgiades and Gail Simpson. Though many of the works were whimsical like that pig, the most impressive were somewhat understated and played off the natural beauty of the outdoor environment. Jim Dine’s Two Big Black Hearts was especially suited to the landscape. Our consensus favorite was Kitty Wales Pine Sharks. The metal creatures were oddly peaceful swimming above our heads.
The DeCordova’s indoor galleries were equally impressive. We had a hard time picking favorites from the annual exhibition of New England artists that had just opened the week before. The museum’s staff were also very welcoming and helpful, a nice and unexpected plus.
The rest of the trip had a hard time competing with DeCordova. We accidentally stumbled upon the home of Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius. We got lost on our way to Salem and met a very young gas station attendant who asked us why we’d want to go to Salem, anyway (“there’s just a bunch of old people there,” he said). Salem was a bit of a disappointment, mainly because we arrived well after the town went to sleep (including the pirate museum). Our jaunt through New England towns the next day was rather idyllic, however.
Exploring the actual city of Boston was a real pleasure. While exploring the neighborhoods, we wandered into the Boston Center for the Arts where a subtle installation filled the main gallery with the soothing blue light of slow-motion surfing scenes and the sounds of the waves falling on a beach. Again, we were impressed with the friendliness of the staff/volunteers on hand. We were most fascinated by some oddly shaped pillows sitting on the reception couch that weren’t even part of the BCA’s exhibitions. They were cone-shaped with lots of eyes and reminded me somewhat of Yoshitomo Nara‘s creations. When Rachel expressed interest, the volunteers brought out some tinier creations and suggested that we leave a note for the unknown artist. Still no word in response…
Gallery: Boston Photos
