Mark L. Van Name's Blog, page 33

I miss common courtesy

I miss it most days, but I particularly long for it when spending hours walking the floor of a massive trade show, such as the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where I am now.  My mom brought me up to believe that when you're in a crowd, you have certain responsibilities, including to be aware of your surroundings, to be considerate of others in the crowd, to watch where you're going, to apologize when you bump into someone, and so on.

Either my mom was unusual in teaching these lessons, or the people at this trade show have decided the rules simply do not apply here.  People stop in the middle of busy walkways to stare at their phones.  They smash into you while staring at their phones or in conversation, and then they glare at you or curse at you.  Each person acts as if they are alone in the world, with their decisions having no effect on others.

As you might imagine, I hate this behavior.  At times, I get so frustrated that I have to find a wall to lean against for a short break in a tiny zone of personal space.

It strikes me that if we all were more considerate of others in every way, including these small ways, we might all be better off.

Gaudi's last house commission

After Gaudi's success with Casa Batllo, which I hope to see tomorrow, the Mila family commissioned him to build from scratch a home and building that was to be more ornate, bigger, and just more in every way than Casa Batllo.  The result was Casa Mila, which was so far out that people started ridiculing it with the name "La Pedrera," the stone quarry.

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Gaudi was right, and the critics of his day were wrong.  Since that time, La Pedrera, which I visited today, has become a widely acknowledged masterpiece, with UNESCO declaring it a World Heritage Site in 1984.

I absolutely loved what the tour allowed us to see of the building.  (Much of it is off-limits, because people still live there, and some businesses operate out of it.)  From the stairways in one of the two inner courtyards,


to the view upward in that same courtyard,


to the arches of the attic,


the building embodies Gaudi's obsessions with nature, mathematics, and God.

The roof, with its eerie collection of figures, each both striking and serving a useful function,


and its undulating surface, a waveform that evokes the ocean, struck me particularly powerfully.

I chose to wedge this visit to La Pedrera between my first work partial day (at Mobile World Congress) and my second (email), and though that choice cost me sleep, I am very glad I made it.

When the Mila family disliked his creation, Gaudi swore off home commissions and focused all of his creative energies on La Sagrada Familia.  I understand and appreciate that choice, but I am very glad that he first created the wonderful La Pedrera.

La Sagrada Familia continues to humble and inspire me

I spent hours there today, walking the available spaces and frequently sitting to ponder both the feelings the magnificent cathedral inspires in me and the astonishing genius of Antoni Gaudi.  From this soaring section

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to the breathtaking main chamber


Sagrada Familia makes me feel as if I am in the body of something at once both part of the Earth and entwined with the divine.

I sit in the sections reserved for prayer and look around me and sometimes close my eyes, and I cannot escape the power of the biology, mathematics, and devotion that Gaudi blended to create the plans for this amazing structure.  The contemplation both energizes and exhausts me; though that combination should be impossible, it is not.

I owe a huge debt to Scott, who turned me on to Gaudi and who led us to Barcelona for a magical week together seven years ago.  With him, I first saw Sagrada Familia, and without him, I may never have learned how much I love it and Barcelona.  Thanks, Scott, and I love you.

Barcelona and the late dinner

When I went down for dinner a bit before ten p.m., the plaza was still hopping, with petite squads of men and women crossing to and fro, guitarists and squeezebox players working far enough apart that they didn't hurt one another, and every restaurant open and barking for business.  
The tables glow oddly from the light of the heat lamps under every table's umbrella.  

My meal was good, the people-watching superb, and the music so-so, with one of the worst busker renditions of Hallelujah ever.  Still, on balance, it's fine to be in Barcelona, even on a winter night.

Moving on in the morning

It's after midnight here in Florence, I am having some bad intestinal issues (no worries; they'll pass, so to speak), and in the morning I must find my way to Barcelona, so I'm going to keep this very short.

Rain fell all day today, but that didn't stop me from walking around the city, spending many hours in the Palazzo Vecchio, and, of course, grabbing some Grom gelato.

Now, though, it's time to pack and crash.

Tomorrow, Spain!

Another day, another church

Florence is bursting with lovely churches, and I've visited quite a few of them.  Today, though, was my first trip to the rather imposing Great Synagogue of Florence, aka the Tempio Maggiore Israelitico di Firenze.

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Though very different from its Christian counterparts in many ways, this church was nonetheless a grand and moving place of worship.


The small museum it houses tells the story of the place, with a particular emphasis on the horrors that WWII and the Nazi Germans brought it.

Without trying to dive into politics, I must say again that we as a race should never let this sort of nightmare occur again.

I wander a lot in Florence, walking everywhere and generally not worrying about getting too lost, because the key parts of the main city are easy to find.  Today, my wandering took me by this odd piece on the corner of a quiet road.


After some delicious Grom gelato--I've missed gelato only one day in Florence so far--I meandered by the main square in time to see a bubble-maker in a tux entertaining kids.


Ancient beauty is everywhere here, so seeing the beauty of bubbles in the wind and laughing children was a pleasant and different treat.

A few high points from today in Florence

Getting to see in person Botticelli's Madonna and Child with Saint John the Baptist and Two Angels, which is now in the entry room at the Accademia.

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I toured an exhibition of Giovanni dal Ponte


whose work is lovely and who was new to me.  I can't show any of his paintings here, however, because the gallery forbid photography in those chambers.

I spent a great deal of time admiring and communing with this big guy,


which I consider to be one of the few perfect pieces of art and the sight of which always slays me.

Wonderful gelato at Grom!


Touring outside and then inside the Duomo.


Pasta stuffed with pear and a cheese mixture at Coquinarius.


A lovely day in Florence.

Special bonus clothing blog

I am definitely no expert in the science, construction, or marketing of clothing, but to the best of my knowledge, it's time for this sock

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to head to the great sock drawer in the sky.

That said, I admire its grit and dedication, and I retire it with reluctance.

Back to your regularly scheduled blog.

Spending the day with an astonishing old friend

The Galleria della Uffizi is one of the world's more amazing art museums.  I've visited it enough times that each trip feels like spending an afternoon with an old friend, a friend so much more knowledgeable and wiser than I am that I can only listen with rapt attention to all it has to say.

Today, I again walked through all of the galleries, and I again found myself repeatedly overwhelmed with emotion and thoughtfulness at the art I saw.  With paintings from the 13th to the 18th centuries and statuary primarily from older times, the Uffizi overwhelms you with beauty wherever you look.

One of the greatest gifts of this gallery is that it lets you see moments in the history of art when someone so obviously better than their contemporaries suddenly bursts onto the scene and throws down the gauntlet, challenging everyone to pick up their games.

One of my favorite examples of just this sort of leap forward in art is the work of Botticelli, whose work regularly makes my heart ache.  Yes, I'm enough of a traditionalist that every single time I round the corner and see his Birth of Venus, it takes away my breath.

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It's not like he has only one incredible piece, either; his body of work is astounding.  Consider, for example, one you may not know:  The Columny of Apelles:


It's more amazing in person.

And then there's the Michelangelo, which fairly leaps off the canvas.


I could go on and on, but the bottom line is that if you want to study Western European art or simply love the subject, you need to visit the Uffizi.

This old friend once again filled my heart to overflowing and sent me away happy and humbled.

Simple joys in Florence

A simple and light but tasty sandwich at a random restaurant for lunch.

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With most museums closed, hours of ambling Florence's streets filled the day, with a short sitting break on the concrete in front of the Pitti Palace.


Some delicious gelato from a shop on the other side of the Arno.

This pigeon, commanding the Arno from its perch on a piece of a bridge.


This couple, posing for pictures on the other side of the same bridge.


Running across the Chiesa di Santa Trinita by chance, always by chance, as when Sarah and I found it, and being struck yet again by the splendor and powerful feel of this old church.


How have I managed not to remember the amazing and stunning Chiesa dei Santi Michele e Gaetano?  I don't know.  I'm honestly not even sure if I've entered it before, but I stood before it today,


and then I went inside, and it blew me away.


Such a wonderful place, with people actively worshipping in it.

A Diet Coke in a "PINKO" can


and a lovely salad


as part of dinner.

Just another day in Florence.