Corning

Richard Marquis'
"Teapot and Beaded Cozy"

The last time I went to the Corning Museum of Glass (CMOG) was a week before their new contemporary gallery was to open. So when Nanette visited recently and this museum was on her request list, I was happy to oblige. We set off early, with the goal of visiting not just CMOG, perhaps fitting in a glass-blowing lesson, but also taking in the Rockwell Museum (which has nothing to do with Norman Rockwell), and having lunch and shopping in downtown Corning.

"Forest Glass"

"Endeavor"

We quickly abandoned our downtown lunch plans, since it took us the entire morning just to get through the regular glass collections. My fascination with their extensive paperweight collection hasn’t abated, and I will never tire of Tiffany. After fortification in the perfectly acceptable cafeteria, we rewarded ourselves with the new Contemporary Art & Design Wing and finally the regular contemporary glass exhibit. We were both particularly taken by several large-scale installations – one composed of a multitude of drinking glasses, arranged to appear like three large trees (Katherine Gray’s “Forest Glass”), and another of some hanging pieces that, to me, resembled boats (Lino Tagliapietra’s “Endeavor”). We didn’t have time to watch a glass-blowing demo, let alone take a lesson, and we skipped the educational exhibits entirely, since spending time in the gift shop “gallery” was also a must. To read Nanette’s more in-depth blog about our trip, and see her photos, click here: http://nanettesnewlife.blogspot.com/2016/05/getting-modern-at-corning-museum-of.html

painting by GC Myers
at West End Gallery

Rockwell's "The Buffalo Hunt"

"Untitled"

Our heads were spinning as we drove downtown, and we had very little time left before the Rockwell Museum and the galleries would be closing. Undeterred, we managed to sample some galleries and do a bit of shopping (there was a painting and a sculpture in one gallery that I didn’t buy but wanted!), and still squeeze in the Rockwell Museum (my estimate to Nanette that we could ‘do’ it ten minutes was spot on). This tiny gallery has an eclectic mix of “Art about America,” including Indian artifacts, guns, works by Remington and Warhol, and, yes, a Norman Rockwell (no relation to the museum’s benefactors). My favorite piece was Deborah Butterfield’s Untitled bronze sculpture of a horse.

Corning is definitely worth a day trip, and perhaps even an overnight, to allow for more leisurely gallery-browsing, and perhaps a glass class the first day and pick-up the next…

Frank Lloyd Wright in Buffalo

Even though I went to the Darwin Martin House in Buffalo just last fall, I was eager to return when my friend Nanette visited recently from Florida. We made an entire day of it by looping in Graycliff Estate, as well.

Darwin Martin House

I found I had forgotten more of the previous tour than I recalled, although it’s also possible that each docent emphasizes different things. For example, Wright’s architecture for the 1.5 acre site was meant to “act as recuperation,” to appeal to Darwin Martin’s desire for a true home (which he hadn’t had during his challenging childhood from a broken family). Martin dreamed of uniting his fractured past in Wright’s design of spatial openness, tempered by a warm, human scale (although the main house is anything but warm!). I was reminded of Wright’s fondness for hiding the front door, to make visitors really examine the house, and of his art of lowering the entrance to a room so that you would feel a sense of “compression and release.”

Art glass windows

The house fell into disrepair after it was abandoned by the family, after their financial ruin in the Great Depression. Curiously, Wright, who owed Martin a considerable sum of money, never repaid the debt, but instead purchased back furniture and art glass from Martin’s wife, Isabelle, to try to keep her afloat… This house was built before Wright began “client-proofing” his houses by building most of the furniture in, to prevent the residents from deviating from his floor plan! In the intervening years, three of the structures were bulldozed to make room for apartment buildings, to finance renovations on the main house (the apartment buildings have thankfully since been razed).

Several of the spaces I’d previously seen were off limits, due to the ongoing $50 million restoration project (when asked when the project was projected to end, the docent replied, “at $50 million”!). The 15,000 piece glass mosaic for the fireplace should be complete by the end of this year, so another trip in 2017 will probably be in order…

Graycliff Estate

Isabelle Martin had poor eyesight, so when the Martins engaged Wright to design their 6800 s.f. “lake cottage,” she was the client of record, and worked with the architect to design a more open house with lots of light (and none of the customary art glass), and lots of passive solar. Construction took advantage of free matieral: some of the Tichenor limestone of the cliff that had fallen to the beach, complete with fossils and the rust from the stone’s ore content. Other novel features included one room’s recycled slate from Buffalo sidwalks, when they were being replaced by concrete; a 16-story steel tower to descend from the house to the beach; a separate heat hut for the steam heat; recessed radiators; and octagonal doorknobs.

model of Graycliff

fossils and rust

The Martins continued to occupy Graycliff for five years after they abandoned the city house. In the 50’s, it was bought by Hungarian priests for student boarding, and their modifications upset Wright the one time he visited. The Graycliff Conservancy is in the midst of several phases of restoration, so this house will also continue to evolve and be worthy of return trips. The lake setting was beautiful, even in late winter, and I can only imagine what it will look like when I visit again some summer, and everything is in bloom.

A cool house on Old
Lakeshore Road

For Nanette’s version of the visit, click on DarwinMartin House and Graycliff Estate.

Rochester City Ballet Rehearsal

A while ago, with extended family, I attended the Rochester City Ballet’s performance of The Ugly Duckling. Our two great-nieces were enchanted and transfixed; I had only ever seen them that hypnotized by cartoons before. I wondered how awkward it was for the dancers to switch gear from ‘real’ ballet to a performance geared to children, but admired their attitude – they certainly seemed to be having fun. This Thursday evening, four soloists danced to Piazzolla’s Tangazo, on the RPO’s program. The choreography, by former Artistic Director Jamey Leverett, was ‘real’ ballet, and it must have been a pleasure for the dancers to perform with live music for a change.

In between, I had the privilege of attending a rehearsal of the RCB, in the inconspicuous building that also houses the Draper Center. David Palmer, their recently appointed Artistic Director, was running the troupe through his most recently choreographed work Under the Moonlight:, in preparation for their upcoming performances at Nazareth College. In a major coup – other dance organizations had requested the rights but been denied – Palmer has secured the rights to choreograph to the music of the late David Bowie. 

The rehearsal was a complete run-through – the dancers had obviously already learned their parts, and it seemed like they were at the point of fine-tuning. The energy was performance-ready, and there was no compromise in their dancing or expressions. And there was no stopping and restarting to work something out, although the dancers occasionally applaud each other as they completed a section. It was thrilling to be in the rehearsal hall, so close to the dancers. At the end of one song danced by six ballerinas, we could hear them breathing hard, in unison to the fading beat. The rehearsal was being videoed, and it made me wonder how choreographers worked before the advent of this inexpensive technology!

At a break, Palmer chatted with the handful of onlookers, sharing some of his inspiration for the Bowie piece. He liked “the cynical nature of the lyrics,” calling Rock & Roll songwriters “today’s poets.” He also communicated the need to be current – to put ballet steps together in a contemporary way, to contemporary music, and reminded us that Mozart and Beethoven and Tchaikovsky were the rock stars of their day. He also described his interaction with the Bowie estate, which opened up the catalog to him (“give us the list of what you want” must have been music to Palmer’s ears), and he chose the ones that fit the mood he wanted, not just the big hits (although he did fit in “Changes,” my personal favorite!). Given his relationship with them, he might be able to add additional songs later, as he works this piece into the RCB’s regular repertory, and adapts it as the makeup of the company changes. He also shared his aspiration to create a triptych – David Bowie, Pink Floyd, and the Beatles.

His only observation about the actual rehearsal was that some of the dancers are not yet trusting each other, and that, as their new Artistic Director, he’s working with all of them to build trust with him and each other. My only disappointment with the piece was that the women weren’t on pointe. But I guess the audience has to trust the Artistic Director as well! I have a feeling we’re all in good hands…

For information and tickets to the upcoming performance: http://www.rochestercityballet.org/currentSeason.php