Guggenheim Museum Bilbao

Rising Mist

Guggenheim's Bilbao Museum is an exquisite display of contemporary Architecture. Formally designed to showcase art, the building morphs seamlessly into a sculptural case of Architecture-as-Art. Frank Gehry's masterpiece transcends style labels like deconstructivism while standing on its own sublime aesthetics. The building owes its design to maritime references characteristic of port cities like Bilbao. Ship-like, it floats on a moat as rising mist envelops it in a fantastic hourly show of engineering prowess.

Ode to Fish

Fundamentally, the building is an ode to fish, Bilbao's historical sustenance from the bay of Biscay. The Guggenheim's titanium panels evoking scales glimmer in the shifting light and shine like shimmering glimpses of gigantic fish in the surrounding water.

Tall Tree & The Eye

It's shape-shifting, mercurial nature makes this museum a good player when teamed up with installation art as, for example, the way Anish Kapoor's sculpture Tall Tree & The Eye is embraced by the building, each complementing the other.

Tulips

Another case of art partnering well with it's host building is the interplay between Koon's reflective and colorful Tulips with the atrium's glass and the surrounding metal panels.

Half-heart Silhouette

Walking around such a rich and intricate building take the opportunity to discover and enjoy infinite possible abstractions. Half-heart shaped negative spaces formed by limestone nooks appear overhead.

Abstract Odyssey

Space-like metal and glass abstract compositions reminiscent of science fiction movies like 2001 A Space Odyssey can be seen when the lighting is right. There's eye candy everywhere.

Massing

Architecturally, the massing is impressive. No wimpy building, this. Each cluster is massive, accentuated by light glass and shiny metal.

Entry Sequence

The entry sequence is clear and though large, respectful of the human scale. Walking toward the entrance is almost processional with a welcoming finale.

Atrium Tower

The interior circulation is organized around a central atrium tower, as anticipated: the large glass expanse previously visible from the exterior now opens up to views outward, making a relatively small and crowded central core appear spacious.

Undulating Atrium

Galleries radiating out and elevators climbing up and down add orderly dynamism and excitement to the undulating atrium that's been likened to a flower.

A Matter of Time

Adjacent the atrium is the largest gallery space currently housing the magnificent installation "The Matter of Time" by Richard Serra, the cast-iron labyrinth channels on-lookers into an interactive stroll: it's a "matter of time" getting through it, depending on personal viewing styles.

Gallery Cube

Other spaces reveal that representational, two-dimensional art is almost inconsequential to the Architecture. The best art pieces offer new ways of contemplating reality and are nurtured by the museum's modernity. Galleries flow in and out of circulation. One singular form of caramel-colored sandstone celebrates the unique piece crowning each exhibit; a masonry gallery cube, visible from the vestibule, high up the atrium, is tantalizing and intriguing to explore.  Discovering the treasure within is the reward, larger than the prize of the artwork itself and it is this process of exploration that Frank Gehry proves himself as the master of anticipation.

Approaching the Guggenheim, Bibao

Petroglyphs - A Photographic Essay

Warriors

On the outskirts of Vernal, Utah enormous cliffs jut out of the valley. A pleasant, moderate hike on a well groomed trail winds along giant red boulders for about one mile.  Exposed bedrock bearing the largest, best preserved collection of petroglyphs in the world line the cliff walls on this trek. This prehistoric Art gallery is embedded in rock with delicate and precise etching.  Keeping line weights consistently wide and deep the Artists - or possibly one of the earliest artist's collective - Native Americans memorialized their creations for eternity.  A first glance may falsely register simplistic drawings, but careful observation reveals sophisticated abstraction akin to modernist composition.

Petroglyphs

Although the art collection is of necessity on a linear progression along a path at the bottom of a cliff with rock face sheer and shooting straight out of the ground, no linear story telling is taking place.  Rather, a series of vignettes illustrate discreet themes like paintings at the museum.

Hoop Man Carving

Glyph themes typically depict iconic symbolism, or more frequently people.  Figurative scenes show various stages of human development; children, adolescent love.....

Young ones

adulthood; family or clan groupings, Paleolithic families (stone age man and wife with welcoming gestures),

Paleolithic Nuclear Family

 chiefs and warriors.  But strangely absent is death: all figures are vertical, none horizontal.

Family Clan

At times, a powerful chieftain figure stands alone, headdress prominent.  Other times a group of impressive figures with variously complex head pieces gather looking outward.

Chieftain

Whatever their purpose, head ornaments are intricate and wonderful.   Each hat is strangely alien; some evoking electric equipment or images of electronic receivers like headphones or giant ears; possibly signifying a connection with the other world; intricate headdress, more likely accouterments of rank.

Tribal Headdress Clan

Occasionally there are images of hunting, like a man fighting a fierce bear... presumably victorious.

Bear Hunt

Some petroglyphs are reminiscent of stone age crop circles leading to the inevitable conjecture that perhaps crop and geological manifestations have been occurring for quite some time.

Stone Age Crop Circle

One glyph is remarkably like the solar system, suggesting a connection to the cosmos.  None appear to be hieroglyphs: absent pattern repetition.

Solar System

In any case, who were these people? And, what inspired them?

The natural landscape is reason enough to prompt reverie.  With massive cliffs and giant rock formations sticking out of the ground, it is easy to see the magic of this place.  When monolithic stones start looking like giant heads, deities come to mind and similarities to the great Moai statues of Easter Island emerge.

American Moai