Category Archives: Escape Into Life

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

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And I’m not only talking about the state-subsidized ice cream parlor in Havana, where Cubans wait in line for hours for the flavor of the day–at times with empty plastic containers in tow.*

This is where they hide all they good stuff: the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes’ Coleccion de Arte Cubano. The museum proceeds chronologically from the pre-Colonial to contemporary post-Revolution Cuban art. Here they have a horde of works by the under-appreciated Fidelio Ponce de Leon and some of Wilfredo Lam‘s most famous paintings, including La Silla, as well as extensive drawings of his. After reading up on these painters a few months ago, it was a joy to see them.

Fidelio Ponce de Leon is an artist who is difficult to research, and there I was in the museum without even a pen to jot down the titles of his works! Unfortunately the museum is extensively staffed with gaurds who shout their Draconian policy of “No Foto,” even when you are photographing the caption next to the painting. It is a shame because there were many interesting artists who were new to me. To top it off, now that I have returned to the land of the internet, I find that the museum does not have a website. I guess I’ll have to wait a little longer on that one.

Another place that holds some good stuff, if you’ll allow me to toot my own horn, is Escape Into Life online arts journal, which posted an essay of mine last night. You might remember that I wrote a bit about Gauguin before on this blog, about the time I was writing about Ponce de Leon and Lam. If you want to continue the stroll down Memory Lane, check out Paul Gauguin and Savageness on Escape Into Life.


*You can buy roughly 50 scoops for the equivalent of 1 USD!, so it makes sense to fill up while you can.

Dimonds Among Spades

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The internet has everything in spades, not least of them t shirts and magazines. But these two enterprises came to my attention lately, and I quite like them.

Put your favorite book on your chest, with these literary inspired t-shirts. My friend Brian just started this operation, so kudos to him. The design at left is from Kafka’s Metamorphosis, thus the cockroach on his back saying “Oh Bother.” I love it, but I’m tore between this and the Alice and Wonderland t shirt.
(Hint hint, nudge nudge, Christmas is coming.)
This webzine is like culture megalomania at its best. Want poetry, fine art, and general thoughts on creativity and genius? It’s here. Not to mention, the site helps artists sell their work through an auction process (which, granted, I don’t fully understand.) The people writing for it are the Web 2.0 version of citizen journalists with an interest in the arts, and, full disclosure, I hope to submit something really spiffy to them in future.

So that makes for two great endeavors, completely despite my status as an interested party. Hopefully I’ll be able to give both my more thorough attention when I have a permanent residence again. I moved my stuff into storage yesterday morning, and took my few-too-many bags over to a friend’s house for the night. You know you’ve overpacked when you can’t carry everything by yourself. I need to edit my luggage down. But luckily I have some really nice friends who I’ll be staying with for the week while I tie up a few loose ends, i.e. my job and finding a place to live on St. Maarten.
8 days until I leave!