The Albuquerque Museum of Art & History

Not all museums are created equal and, although small, the Albuquerque Museum of Art & History was a very nice place to visit.

The museum is right next to the historic old downtown.  Parking is free ~ you just need to give your parking spot number at the admissions desk.  We were also able to gain free admission to the museum since we arrived on a Sunday morning and there is free admission from 9 a.m. til 1 p.m.  Free, free and free.  We were really liking that everything was free and later went on a 1 hour free guided tour of the old downtown that was given by a volunteer.

I was allowed to take pictures inside the Museum with my iPhone as long as I did not use the flash.  So ~ I took pictures of some of the artwork that I felt drawn to.  I find that art is very much personal preference and sometimes I’m not sure why I’m drawn to certain pieces.

From afar, this first piece of art doesn’t look like much outside of some brilliant colors …

But up close there is a lot of detail work that was done.  I wish I had been able to ask how long it took the artist to do this because it’s quite amazing.  I have trouble working on my quilts on a small scale.  This artist had to visualize a larger picture which is something that my brain has not mastered.

This was woven together and is really quite masterfully done.

I had to take my glasses off and stand very close to see all the detail.  Wow! and Wow! again.

For all the time I spent looking at this piece, I totally forgot to look to see who the artist was.  I’m disappointed in myself.  Sigh.

The next piece of artwork that intrigued me is by Jorge Lizarazo from Columbia.  It was a tribute/interpretation of the work by Venezuelan geometric artist Carlos Cruz-Diez.  It simply stood out boldly from the other pieces of art around it.

This next piece of art was made using PET bottles by artist Alvaro Catalan De Ocon who “recruited the indigenous Guambiano and Esperara-Siapidara communities in Colombia to recreate lamps by applying traditional weaving techniques to vertical strips of plastic PET bottles.”

The Cactus Light below was made from pine cutoffs, bottle bulbs, RGBW LED strip lights, brass fittings and fabric cable.  I’m not sure why it caught my attention except that it looked very weird.  (laughing)

The art displays in the first room were from Latin America and had mostly items that were “repurposed.”

This next piece of artwork is really cool.  You have to pay close attention to the details.

It’s a guitar ~

But look what it’s made of ~

Cool, right?  The artist, Pedro Reyes, collaborates with the police department in Mexico City and refashions confiscated guns and makes them into musical instruments.

This next piece of art by artist Elmer Schooley looks abstract from afar …

But look at this Hot Country close up ~ “the artist exaggerates the heat of the dry earth and contrasts the bright salmon warmth of the soil with the cool green and sage colors of the mounded shrubs.”  I couldn’t have said that better.

This next piece of art evokes emotion ~ anger? frustration?  It’s called Woe Man I by Judy Chicago who lives in Belen, New Mexico. Woe Man I is a cast paper sculpture that “combines the angst of modern life with outrage at the denigration of fundamental principles of equality, creativity and emotional sensitivity.”  I have to say, I didn’t get all of that from this sculpture.  I saw pain and a sense of anticipation of when it will cease.

The next two pictures I mainly photographed because I liked the colors and am considering them for quilts.  I didn’t jot down the artists’ names ~

Really ~ they are nice colors for quilts, aren’t they?

I really enjoyed this museum even though our visit was cut short because an announcement over the speakers stated that they were giving a one hour free guided tour of old downtown Albuquerque so we hurried out for that.

So much history here.