Our first stop was to be the Nasher Sculpture Center, but it wasn't yet open when we arrived. The Trammel & Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art was open and so we popped in there for a few minutes before going to the Nasher.
The entrance sets the stage for this wonderful collection.
The fountain provides a lovely setting for the downtown area. I was hoping to see some birds taking advantage of the water, but there weren't that many around this morning.
The urban birds seem to be dominated by pigeons, grackles, and English sparrows.
We went to the The Nasher Sculpture Center just as it opened for the day. I've been to several museums that specialize in sculpture, but this has to be amongst the best collections I've ever had the privilege to see. The building and garden are spectacular settings for the sculptures.
This one is "Midsummer Circles" by Richard Long.
I'll post images of the cards with the sculptures. If you click on the image, it should come up in a large enough format for you to read if you'd like more information.
A detail of the sculpture. Having been to England to see some of the ancient stone circles, I appreciated this sculpture for the visual aesthetic as well as the memories it brought to mind.
This first gallery featured an exhibit called, "Beyond the Grasp: Sculpture Transcending the Physical." It was aptly titled. Each of the sculptures needed some time for contemplation to think about the different layers of meaning.
Here's a partial view of the first gallery.
The other gallery on the main floor.
I enjoyed seeing this sculpture. It reminding me of some of the abstract paintings of Picasso.
I studied this one for quite a while. I was fascinated by the geometric patterns captured in this space.
This one needed a closer look, too.
One can reflect on our current times and think about the human condition throughout the world. The images coming from China after the recent earthquake or the tragedy of the 2004 tsunami, or (your tragedy here. . .).
I've seen a number of figurines from Africa during my travels that use this symbology. It was pretty impressive to see it in a format that is larger than life.
I have to admit that I didn't read all the sexuality into this sculpture that is attributed in the description. . .
David Smith - untitled. Calipers, compass and other machinist or turning tools - cool.
From one angle, the sculpture looks like a tangled mess. However, when viewed in silhouette, the human figure appears. This sculpture could be my self-portrait when the chaos of my busy schedule takes over my life. There are always so many connections and loose ends to accommodate when I'm trying to balance my various lives - family, career, art and music.
Clay shared a Buddhist quote with me, which will perhaps be helpful to keep things in perspective: "Suffering comes from attachment to expectations."
The outdoor exhibit was just as spectacular as the gallery space. The garden is lovely, and there were a lot of workers tending to upkeep of the grounds and sculptures.
This view actually shows the next sculpture we visited - its the building peeking between the trees on the right.
Clay didn't tell me what we were going to see inside the building, but just went inside and sat on one of the benches lining the room. Then he looked up, and this was the sight.
The edges of this frame are as thin as a knife blade, which, visually, brings the sky so close that you should be able to reach out and touch it.
Here's the description card for Turrell's sculpture.
The walls of the sculpture garden were made from limestone. The weathering of this stone made for some very interesting textures. This reminds me of bone at high magnification.
The encapsulated organisms erode out of the limestone, which leaves these interesting voids.
Clay said this was one of his favorite sculptures at The Nasher. I can understand that sentiment.
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