Alhambra in the Bronx, 7/28/11

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Gardens of Alhambra at the New York Botanical Garden

http://www.thirteen.org/sundayarts/blog/museums/alhambra-in-the-bronx/1522/

"Spanish Paradise: Gardens of the Alhambra" at the New York Botanical Garden. Photo by Talisman Brolin.

Spanish Paradise: Gardens of the Alhambra exhibition at the New York Botanical Garden, through August 21, should top your list of day trips during your staycation. The Alhambra is a 13th-14th century Moorish palace complex in Grenada built by Spain’s last Islamic rulers. The Bronx’s majestic old trees and lush verdancy are big draws, and the multi-part installation about the historic Spanish gardens add a dash of foreign intrigue, despite the NYBG being just a few stops from Grand Central Station.

The main feature of the Alhambra exhibition is in the Enid Haupt Conservatory—plantings based on the original landscaping, many emitting evocative fragrances that are proof you’re not in Manhattan. There are a number of architectural and decorative elements designed after the 14th century Spanish style, including a fountain, porticos, and tilework after the geometric, glazed original concept.

Summer Art—Inside Out, 7/8/08

-->Henry Moore at Botanical Garden; Louise Bourgeois at Guggenheim
http://www.thirteen.org/sundayarts/blog/city/summer-art-inside-out/589/

Summer has a kind of Jekyll/Hyde duality. As appealing as outdoor events might sound – concerts and plays in the park, hot dog eating contests on the boardwalk – I find myself seeking cool indoor places more often than not. Two major art shows currently on view – Henry Moore outside at the New York Botanical Garden , and Louise Bourgeois inside at the Guggenheim – reflect this kind of external/internal tension, and not simply because of the obvious settings.

Moore (1898 – 1986) is one of England’s most respected and widely seen modern artists. In “Moore in America,” the show at the New York Botanical Garden his large sculptures of bronze and fiberglass span a familiar array of reclining figures, mother and child, echoes of hillsides. There is no artist whose work looks more comfortable and – in a way that demonstrates his ubiquity and legacy to public art – predictable in a verdant setting. For a viewer, the work offers numerous pleasures, and many of them stem from these qualities. Yet Moore was also a master of mass, negative space, and form.

Bourgeois (born 1911) has produced a body of work, on the other hand, that’s anything but predictable. A stroll up the ramp at the (did I say cool?) Guggenheim, unspools the artist’s progression through forms and media. It also shows her voracious and fearless – even compulsive – exploration of the psyche, and it’s this total package that makes the air conditioned environment even more rewarding.