Sometimes Sam and I just need to get out of the house. He gets stir crazy, which makes me... just plain crazy. So we go to the zoo or the park, or this week, the art museum. We're still working on teaching Sam about inside voices, but he loves looking at all the bright colors (and hearing his voice echo off the high ceilings!)
This exhibit had a lot of things for Sam to touch and engage with as well, which was great. It meant our trip was almost a full hour! That's one of the great things about just springing for the year pass; I don't feel like I have to "get my money's worth" if we go and Sam just wants to look at three things and then split. It's easy to just pop in and out and have it not be a big ordeal.
I'm so inspired by the art created by these crafters and artisans from cultures past. I absolutely love learning about the visual culture of ancient people. So often we think of ancient cultures as having a less rich aesthetic life than we do, but that is most definitely not the case! And so many of these patterns and styles would look right at home next to a similar contemporary item. Don't you think they're fantastic?
There were these intricately woven bags. I can't remember what they were called, but they were like a man purse, sort of like a smallish messenger bag. The placard next to the display said that the bags were worth more than a horse! I guess high fashion and accessories as status symbols isn't a new idea:)
I love looking at objects that would have been made by women so long ago; practical, daily items embellished and beautified just for the sake of having something pretty. I think of them as the equivalent of the frilly apron I wear to make doing the dishes more fun, or the onesies I made for Sam with pictures painted and sewn on. They go beyond the mere, utilitarian purpose, elevating it and therefore lifting the seemingly mundane tasks that fill our lives, reminding us of the beautiful purposes behind feeding, clothing and caring for a family.
