Saturday, July 7, 2012

The Carnegie

It's the spaces that I love, far more than any of the displays--which are interesting enough.
The same dinosaurs that were here when I was a child, in the 1970s...except that the displays are more interactive now.  Also, the dark, maritime murals that used to haunt my dreams are all gone.  Oh, and the "brontosaurus" is now an "apatosaurus." Paleontologists are now saying that there were no brontos, and so the poor lizard has become extinct twice...
These murals haven't changed since the 1930s, when they accurately depicted the world just outside the museum walls.
I did feel bad for these stately fellows, though the rodents chant, "Sic Semper Tyrannis!"  
There's nothing like a grand staircase to give you as sense that the world is still big and full of possibilities.  Actually, I prefer a forest, but marble pillars will do the trick in a pinch.
The courtyard outside is quiet and peaceful, with its sculptures and fountain.  
What could be better than a beat-up leather couch at the foot of a grand staircase?  Sometimes I think there's too little man-made beauty in contemporary life.  Our spirits are impoverished by windowless cubicles and fluorescent lights.

1 comment:

  1. "Sometimes I think there's too little man-made beauty in contemporary life. Our spirits are impoverished by windowless cubicles and fluorescent lights." Beautifully written and absolutely true. At one time even the most mundane of daily articles would be made artfully. Today not only does form follow function, but its seems function has killed form outright and buried him in a shallow grave somewhere.

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