Pursuits : Elizabeth Thomsen

The Democratic National Convention is about to open in Denver, and I feel like I have a role in the event…not politically, but artistically.

A couple of years ago, I was at a conference in Denver, and I stepped outside between meetings and took a couple of photographs of “I See What You Mean,” Lawrence Argent’s sculpture of a big blue bear that peers through the window of the Convention Center. Not great photographs — I was rather disappointed at the time that the blue came out looking darker and duller than it really is. But I posted them on Flickr anyway. Good librarian that I am, I included the name of the artist and the sculpture in my description, with a link to the Denver city government’s page describing the work.
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Last Tuesday I participated in a professional meeting at Tower Hill Botanical Garden in Boylston, Massachusetts. It’s a beautiful place, and I enjoyed walking around outside during the breaks to take a few pictures of flowers and statues.

But after the meeting, I headed off on a quest to get the picture I really wanted, a shot of Chet’s Diner in nearby Northborough. I have been wanting to get this one for my collection, but I seldom seem to be in that part of the state.
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I’ve started a new Flickr group for photographs of the work of American sculptor Bela Lyon Pratt, 1867-1917.

Pratt’s best-known works include the statues of Art and Science outside the Boston Public Library in Copley Square, the statue of Nathaniel Hawthorne in Salem, Massachusetts, and the statue of Edward Everett Hale in the Boston Public Garden.

Bela Lyon Pratt — Here’s the link to the Flickr group

Bela Lyon Pratt Links

• Bela Pratt — Wikipedia article
• Bela Lyon Pratt — Artcyclopedia article
• Bela Lyon Pratt: Overlooked Designer of Two Underrated Coins — Article by Ed Reiter on the Professional Coin Graders website

My local library had a Scarecrow Fashions program yesterday, great fall fun. The kids brought the old clothes, the library supplied the hay, they served cider and doughnuts, and by the end of the day, the Children’s Garden was filled with creative, colorful scarecrows.
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I love the strange and wonderful work of sculptor Nemo Gould, who makes kinetic sculptures using found materials. My favorite is the Giant Squid, which you can see in all its moving glory on this YouTube video.

Links

• Giant Squid Kinetic Sculpture from Found Materials — If you want more detail, he has documented it all on Instructables
• Nemomatic — This is the artist’s website, with news, articles, images of works for sale and work in progress, and much more

Sólfar is a sculpture in Reykjavík, Iceland. This semi-abstract work by Jón Gunnar Árnason represents the original Viking settlers arriving in longboats.

I first saw this work in November, 2000, on my first visit to Iceland. I took a few photographs of it, like most tourists, but I can’t say that I really liked it. I thought it had a rather odd and awkward appearance.
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Dale Chihuly is one of the most celebrated artists of our time. His dazzling glass works of all sizes are widely exhibited, and can be seen not only in museums and galleries, but in permanent and temporary installations around the world.
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