Maastricht...and Friends- Part 1 of 2

Coffee and biscuits with two incredible feltmakers...

...Kim and Annemie.



Annemie's shop is full of wonderful things...

...the very best in felt books and magazines...

 

...hand-dyed ribbons, merino and silk-blend roving...

...fabric, tools and lovely finished felt pieces.

 

Back at Kim's garden studio, we used carved wooden textile stamps...

...to decorate cotton fabrics.



Here's the hem of my new Hema tee shirt!

 

We also did a little natural dyeing...

...with fresh eucalyptus leaves.

 

A rolled-up wool scarf ready to pop into the pot...

 

...and again, later, in all of its colorful glory! :)

 

While visiting The Netherlands...

...I was lucky enough to get to spend several days with my long-time blog friend, Kim.

Though it was our first time meeting 'in person'...

...it felt as easy as if we'd known each other for years!

Next time: photos of Maastricht, proper...

...and two more artists!

Kröller-Müller Museum- Part 2 of 2

Yum! A 'fishsicle'!



The lush natural surroundings rival the art collection in beauty!



Sculptures of many different sizes and materials...

...abound in this lovely setting.

 

 Christo and Jeanne-Claude have a small piece in the collection.



I experienced a 'tingle' of deja vu when I encountered the Giacometti figure (below).

A nearly identical piece is in a quite similar setting at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark.

(You can see for yourself, here.)

  

Due to the rain, I didn't get to see as many outdoor sculptures as I'd have liked.

Next time, I'll plan to spend much of the day outdoors! :)

 

The colors in these paintings truly were burn your retina bright!!

 

I end our 'museum tour' with this textile-related piece...

... a classical female figure with her...erm...enormous mound of laundry?!?

 

Next time: my visit with a dear felting friend in Maastricht!

Kröller-Müller Museum- Part 1 of 2

I love this self portrait...

...and the artist's intense (and, to me, slightly troubled) gaze...

 

...and this off-center still life!

 

Here are colourways that compliment...

 

...and a powerful image of a woman...

...attending to a quotidian task.

 

I liked that many of the Van Gogh's on display...

 

...weren't the ones which you regularly see reproduced.



Notice the little fish or 'Alvin the chipmunk'? :) face in the leftmost image?

The Keith Haring graffiti reminds me of the 'Judgement of Solomon'.

 

Of course, I couldn't resist sharing this detail of a woman with her sheep! :)

 

The Kröller-Müller Museum is truly an amazing place...

...located, as it is, within a national park!

To get there, you pay admission at the park gate...

...then grab a free white 'commuter' bicycle...

...and pedal two kilometers to the museum entrance.

Because the day of my visit was a chilly, rainy one...

...and because I hadn't ridden a bicycle in over 25 years...

...(yes, my Dutch girlfriends found this to be incredible!)...

...I didn't linger among the outdoor sculpture gardens...

...but just made a beeline for the museum door! :)

Next time: more beautiful pieces from their collection...

...this time, mostly sculpture.

The Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Friends, Felt and "The Future" in The Netherlands

My friend Nienke and I become part of an exhibition here...



...where even coats worn by visitors become an art installation!

Claes Oldenburg's giant screw sculpture graces the lawn of this museum.

Learn more about his original concept here.

 

 I spent a wonderful day with a dear friend...

...the exquisite and spectacularly talented feltmaker, Elis Vermeulen...

...and several of her equally genetically blessed family members! 

I made friends with one kind of 'baby' while I was there...

...and ate muisjes to help celebrate the birth of my host's new 'human' granddaughter, too! :)

Here's a photograph of the darling wee one (only one day old!) in the felted baby 'cocoon' that we made for her.

 

We stopped for a Belgian Tripel in this cheerful Rotterdam bar...

...and discovered that it doesn't take too many of those to feel rather...erm...cheerful, yourself!



A view of the future(?)...

...my "Beam me up, Scotty" shower at the Citizen M airport hotel in Schiphol.

 

Next time: lots of photographs from another Dutch museum...

...including a number of masterpieces by Van Gogh.
 

Outdoor Art in Rotterdam...Plus an Unexpected Surprise in the Suburbs!

Sculpture and other forms of outdoor art...

 

...virtually fill the city of Rotterdam.

 

Someone has even adorned a nondescript office building in the city center...

...with a large neon image of the new king and queen!

 

But it's not all new, new new, either.

Antique 'house markers' still remain in boroughs like Delfshaven.

(I'm told that these were used as identifiers prior to the routine use of house numbers.).

 

 I found the variety and scope of the outdoor works of art utterly delightful...

...ranging, as they do, from the sublime to the ridiculous!

 

Here, my lovely Dutch friends 'pall around' with Monsieur Jacques!



The most unexpected thing that I saw in Rotterdam wasn't art, however...

...but this enormous pig taking a constitutional along the water's edge in suburban Schiedam.

Overfeeding, the owner told us...

...had caused his pet pig to grow from 'toy sized'...to 'tank sized'!! :)

Scenes Of Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Cube houses near the Blaak subway station...

...have dizzying views from inside.

 

My friend, Nienke and I...

...shown here for 'scale'. :)

 

An enormous new marketplace is being built in the city center...

 

...and there's a bustling and exciting urban landscape...

...everywhere you look!

 

Some details from the past have been preserved...

 

...in mosaics and stained glass shop windows...



...but there's a palpable 'young' energy to Rotterdam...

 

...that makes it a thrilling place to be!

 

Thanks for your patience during my blog break, dear readers!

I have just returned from my various travels...

...and in the next few weeks, I hope to take you along on a virtual trip with me...

...as I sort out photos, memorabilia, felt projects and stories from the last two months.

I promise that it won't be all 'what I did on my summer vacation' travel shots...

...there'll be photos of feltmakers, other artists and lots of fiber art amid the scenery, too! :)