The thing about art is that it means nothing but everything at the same time. So much meaning can lie in just a few brush strokes or pencil lines.
I was never able to grasp this concept before my trip out to the city. It was so silly to me to believe that paint splatters were a work of art. After all, they are just paint splatters.
But one frigid afternoon changed that. The girls and I decided to duck inside the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) to give free reign to our inner art critics and escape the cold. I'd like to say the realization of art's magnificence was immediate...but it wasn't. I meandered through the museum in search of understanding and often came up blank. I saw several disturbing movies and pondered a number of paintings that had people around me saying, "What a masterpiece!" "Marvelous!" "It speaks to me!" whereas I was looking at them googly-eyed asking myself what these people were on and where I could pick up some for myself...
Sure I appreciated the way the artwork looked but that's only half the battle (if that). I wanted to get into the painter's mind. Who? What? Whhhhyyyyy? The obvious questions always popped into my head as I analyzed each piece...
It was all fun and games until we started hitting the big dogs' works.
Dali.
Picaso.
Pollock.
But I stopped asking questions when I saw this piece.
That's right. We saw the one...the only..The Starry Night by van Gogh.
Once my eyes met paint, I knew that while getting into the painter's mind is important, it's not everything. Sometimes, simply admiring a work for what it looks like is what's most important. The creativity in the brush strokes. The careful choice of colours. The way in which they tango together to depict a place only the mind can visit. This straightforwardness may seem shallow, but sometimes our minds need a break from over-thinking...I know mine does at least. I revel in the fact that I can turn off my thoughts and simply exist and appreciate the things as they come. We are constantly fishing for a greater meaning in the smallest things so it's a nice break to just be.
Philosophizing that much worked us up an appetite, so we made our way over to tourist-attraction Shake Shake for some burgers and shakes.
Nearly collapsing off our barstools, we decided it was time to continue on with the tourist attractions and make our way to Times Square.
The next evening, we went back to TS to see the
tree nearby and the classic NYC giant Christmas ornaments.
Each of us having bottomless stomachs, we headed
over to a classic Irish pub to grab some grub (sorry, I couldn't resist).
The glorious meal was washed down with
some Irish hospitality and we set off with our new accents in search for a sweet treat to tie the night up...which we found residing in a small local bakery.
Another fulfilling few days in the city where
pounds were gained and memories added to the bank.
