chiaroscuro

remember the view.

i had been waiting for this moment all day: the moment when i could relax a little. the exams are over for today. i will go to sleep tonight and be able to start anew come morning.

i ventured over to the amon carter museum to kick off the museum crawl this afternoon. i didn't realize that they had such an extensively wonderful photography collection in their permanent holdings. i had only been once previously and that was to see the ansel adams exhibit last year. i could already tell that this was a spectacularly wonderful idea to immerse myself in the joys and inspiration of art this afternoon instead of cleaning my apartment or taking a nap -- both of which i need desperately at this point.

note to self: come back to the amon carter to peruse the photos. i didn't even get past the first room before it was time to head over to the kimbell.
unfortunately (for... all the other people in the crawl), our tour of the kimbell did not include the Caravaggio exhibit on display until january 8th. sooooo.... i bought my own ticket and explored by myself.

i had one of those oh-s0-rare moments when i'm standing in awe of something so moving and so beautiful that it drew tears to my eyes. it reminded me of my first visit to the galleria borghese in roma and how i felt when i first saw il ratto di proserpina di Bernini. i was speechless. and so it was this afternoon.
time stood still and my love for caravaggio's works was renewed. there is something so powerful in his paintings that resonates deep within my soul. i feel a connection to his characters, to his emotions, to his portrayal of reality. the colors are perfect to me, the use of shadows and light is what has always been striking to me from the moment my eyes alight upon his brush strokes... i really don't know how to capture my feelings and emotions and reactions with words.
the good thing about going to see the exhibit was that i got to see some of his paintings that i had never seen before. the sad thing was that i did not see any of my favorites. galleria borghese must not be sharing their collection with fort worth, texas right now.

i love that i can appreciate this and be filled with wonder, happiness, and awe. it was a wonderful afternoon. i think i'll go again soon. i need to get a book of his works while this exhibit is around...