Image As The Story

Light And Belief:Sketches of Life From the Vietnam War, Dinh Q. Le, 2012
Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, 2014

In honor of the 40th anniversary of the US military exodus from Saigon, I'm sharing the work of Dinh Q. Le as I saw at the Carnegie International Exhibition in 2014.  Le's drawings, sketches, and watercolors serve to capture the everyday life of the Vietnamese during those years of hell and conflict.  Basically, the people still lived their lives.  They talked, ate, farmed, slept, and also fought to protect themselves, their families, and their country. 
Le's work is exceptionally powerful in bringing to the forefront the very real human factor of war and devastation.

Full Arsenal

Arsenal Cider House, Pittsburgh, 2015



If you find yourself in Pittsburgh, and who doesn't, venture over to the Lawrenceville neighborhood and sample the libations at the Arsenal Cider House.  I'm particularly found of both the dry Picket apple cider, and the Young's Plum plum cider.  Our growler full of the latter didn't last long.  We were there on a mild spring evening and sat outside (there's almost no room inside, so keep that in mind if you're planning to visit and want to stick around awhile) with some friends, watching the sun dip below the hills and the stars and moon reveal themselves in the gloaming.

Earth Day All The Days

Dutchman's Breeches, Dicentra cucullaria, Pittsburgh, 2015



Happy Earth Day!  Though considered toxic and should not be used medicinally, nonetheless this plant was at one time used as a treatment for syphilis. 

Deja Vu And Garlic Mustard

Garlic Mustard, Alliaria petiolata, Pittsburgh 2015



A few years ago a couple of friends introduced me to garlic mustard.  They served it parboiled in three changes of water and then sauteed in olive oil with salt and pepper to taste.  It was wonderful.  But what I quickly learned upon collecting this wild and invasive green myself was that  when you pick it during its life cycle dictates how you prepare and serve it.  Garlic mustard can be extremely bitter (hence the three changes of water) once it goes to flower or seed, but if you get it early enough, it's almost sweet, a very mild salad green.
There's a blog with some great recipes and ideas for garlic mustard here.  Just remember:  It's more nutritious than kale or spinach, and it's free!

Eleanora Duse

           Eleanora Duse, 1875, age 17



It was on this date, April 21, 1924, that Eleanor Duse died of pneumonia in Pittsburgh at the age of 65.   It's difficult to gauge or process in this digital age of endless imagery just how much impact the intimacy and immediacy of the stage had on society.  I've read the reviews of Duse's performances, and they glow and rave, but it's still a challenge to contextualize without the visual.  Fortunately, some of her evocative powers come through in the photographs taken of her across her career.
An anecdotal account of Duse's last performance and final illness can be found here.

History As A Wisp

The Artist Draws A Banana Man After Lunch, 2015, Ellwood City, PA


The allure of ephemera lies in its impermanent nature.  It can, but it's not meant to last, and the imagination catches fire in the wisps of those embers.   Nowhere is this more evident than in the recently closed (sorry, I only just learned of this) exhibition; "Margret:  Chronicle of an Affair - May 1969 to December 1970".   An affair can be fleeting as it is, and I think that's shown here by the documentation of detail and minutiae by the pair involved.  You know that it can't go on forever, yet you have this need to create something more out of it, something that you can hold on to, long after it has let go of you.
For something such as this to emerge from a forgotten briefcase, dragging a past illicit passion into the light of a one-time future present, is nothing short of astounding. 

Still And Life Reflected

 Still, Life Reflected, Pittsburgh, 2015