A Lady Writing ...

"Flower Beds in Holland," Van Gogh

"The Houses of Parliament, Sunset," Monet

Today I broke from my new daily ritual of sleeping in until 9 a.m., lounging around until noon and then going to Target/IKEA/Bed, Bath & Beyond to spend more money on things that may or may not be vital to my new existence. So of course I did not give up the sleeping in or lounging around (we all know how much I enjoy wearing my pajamas for as long as possible), but instead of going to the store, I went to the Mall with a Capital M. Yes. I went to the National Gallery of Art. Now, I have been there a few times, and I have been to many other art museums (well, not that many, but the main ones in London, Paris, New York ...) and I know that I do not love art museums and appreciate them the way some people do. This time I wanted it to be different. I even read a book about the history of art before I moved here in a valiant attempt to love art museums. Now, I do not hate art museums. I actually like them. I can just only take them in small doses. (I get overwhelmed with so much standing and realizing that while I like the painting I am staring at, I do not know nearly enough to properly appreciate it.) Today's dose consisted of first, a trip to the museum cafe. If I am going to have a chance at appreciating art, it will NOT be with a growling stomach. Then I just went to a few sections of the museum, the ones I knew I would like (thanks to my book). I only lasted about an hour (including the eating, I am afraid) but I managed to choose three favorite pieces of art. I have pasted two of them above ... obviously, I went to the French section of the museum ... but my real favorite I could not find a postcard of to scan and post. So I will describe it. It is a Vermeer called "A Lady Writing" and it depicts a woman wearing a yellow coat of sorts writing at a table. Unfortunately, the lady looked quite ugly, but I liked her all the same ...