Art Museum

I went to the New South Wales Museum of Art this afternoon. It was quite good. You could see the evolution from the early artists who had a European style of painting to a more nationalistic type of Australian painting. It was evidenced in the dark colors that suited European Romantic landscapes to a dark tone to the sky. When the Impressionist styles began to come about, the tones and hues lightened in the Australian landscapes. Soon these paintings began to tell stories of the country to its own citizens and members of the British Empire. Strong features showed the pride and strength of the invidual man in the rugged territory. The aborigines were depicted as noble savages and as men and women with dignity. The more contemporary art shows that Australians are comfortable creating their own type of art. The aborigines continue to depict their ancient art forms in new media. I'll have to get back there some day soon.

I also stopped by the Cathedral of St. Mary's. It is a space that creates silence. It is cavernous with soft lighting. Its many side altars seem to fit easily into the main space of the church. Many people are able to pray with few distractions around them. I wish I could have taken som photographs. The rebel in me was tempted, but I decided to be obedient.

Ivan, Nano and I walked around Sydney Harbor. We are exhausted from all the walking. On the north side of the Harbor a great outdoor fair was going on with lots of outdoor restaurants and live music. We had many choices for dinner, but we decided to go to the Harbor first. Then when we looked for places to eat, we could find nothing suitable. All the Aussies were hanging out at these packed, high-end clubs and it would not have been comfortable to try to get a meal there on a Friday night. The parties seemed to be really rolling. I think the beginning of the weekend is an intense letting go of energy for many young people, especially for this elegant young woman who let go of her dinner in a main square in front of hundreds of people. She picked up well though and went back inside to see her friends.

I'm tired. We have one conference tomorrow morning, but I will just spend the time tonight reading a little further in "The Catcher in the Rye."