Valentine’s Day: Fanning or Finding Love at an Art Museum

by Jamie Rhein on

Art museums make me feel amorous. It’s true. A walk through rooms filled with paintings, particularly if they’re from the Impressionism art movement, soften me right up. The sounds of shoes on marble or wood floors, the polite guards making sure people don’t get too close to the artwork, the creativity and genius of human beings in an outpouring of color and images. Yum!

Evidently, I’m not alone in my mushiness. According to a survey done by the 24 Hour Museum in the United Kingdom, 65% of the respondents said they would take a person to an art museum to make a favorable impression. (Hmm. impression. Impressionism. Is there a connection here?) Some (20%) said they had fallen in love in a museum. Was it in front of a Renoir, I wonder?

In this one research article I came across by Courtney Spousta, she points out that in the movie Play It Again Sam, Woody Allen’s character goes to the Modern Art Museum in NYC looking for love. Throughout the article, she cites examples of how certain nights at art museums are geared to help people mix and mingle. At the Milwaukee Art Museum there are even speed dating events. The last one was on February 2, it seems.

This month there are some art museums I came across that are capitalizing on the romance and love theme.

If you do head to a museum with that special someone or you’re out looking for that special someone at an art museum, it wouldn’t hurt to read “Cupid on the prowl” by Mary Louise Schumacher. She gives some tips on what to say to impress particular types of people and what not to say.

Oh, and the most romantic art museum in London according the the 24 Hour Museum survey? It’s the Victoria and Albert.

Couple Hugs…for 5000 Years

by Willy Volk on

Archaeologists in Italy recently discovered a couple buried between 5000 and 6000 years ago. Nothing special with that announcement, of course. However, this couple appears to have been buried hugging each other. According to Elena Menotti, who led the team on the dig, “I’ve never been so moved, because this is the discovery of something special.”

Although I’m betting that you can’t visit the actual dig site, you can visit Montova — the city near the site — which no doubt inspired the eternal embrace. Located in northern Italy, Montova is surrounded on three sides by the Mincio River. Picturesque and filled with culture, Montova also hosts the world-renowned Festivaletteratura, which offers five days of readings, meetings with writers, shows, and concerts. If you head to Montova, let us know if it inspires you to hug!

24 Hour Museum website: a resource to tour for hours

by Jamie Rhein on

If you are in the United Kingdom or if you are heading there anytime soon, the website “24 Hour Museum,” is a handy reference guide. This is where you can find out about the listings and features of 3,000 museums and heritage sites around the United Kingdom from the large to the small venues. Instead of just listings with brief descriptions, there are downloads of art, other websites and articles about what is going on pretty much everywhere.

One thing I like about the site is that you can find places you may not have thought about. Sure the British Museum in London may be on your list of places to go, but how about The Chinese Arts Centre in Manchester? There’s an exhibit going on with the theme Collective Identity that features the work of 10 Chinese artists.

The 24 Hour Museum also has a feature called Trails. Each trail has a theme that shows travelers what museums and cultural spots have a particular connection to each other. For example, the trail “A History of Enlightenment, Buddhism in London” leads travelers to various museum exhibits, temples and gardens that show a Buddhist influence. There are detailed descriptions of each place so you can brush up on each site’s importance beforehand.

I wish I had known about this site when I was in London for just a day. It would have been great to know what exhibits to look for when we popped in and out of museums in a mad dash to see as much as possible.

Surf Movie

by Erik Olsen on

When a major storm hits the coast and kicks up monster waves, most of us run for the hills. But for big wave surfers the allure of riding 40 foot monsters is just too hard to pass up. This was the case on January 28, 1998, when a freak weather system slammed into Oahu’s north shore. It was a situation the Coast Guard called a Condition Black, meaning, simply: get out of the water.

But surfers hear that as an invitation, and so what resulted was a program that aired on PBS called “Condition Black” back last year on May 22. An excellent piece that is said to be re-airing sometime soon. Stay tuned.

Friday Funny: McSweeney’s

by Erik Olsen on

Once again, dutiful gadling readers, I must turn to one of my favorite sites for our Friday Funny: McSweeney’s. And once again, the site does not fail to disappoint.

This one, I think, is best left unexplained by me, since it has been my experience that trying to explain humor, usually dissipates the humor therein, and so I offer you merely the link here to a funny, albeit brief, faux travelogue entitled: TRAVELING EUROPE IN STYLE WITH AUCKLAND DINGIROO, DARK-AGE TOURIST AND CRITIC OF FOOD AND DRINK: WHERE NOT TO GO.

I leave to to you to determine for yourself it is funny, but the title alone is certainly worthy of a Friday giggle.