Elemental Details: "It was the Spring of Hope..."

So...

Thursday afternoon was an adventure day for Mara and me. Art Museum!!! This, of course, is one of my favorite reasons to visit....

Since she had a little cabin fever, I decided to treat us to lunch at the Terrace Cafe.

We had sandwiches...

And...desserts....Cheesecake for Mara...

And Chocolate/Caramel Mousse for me....

The waitress was nice enough to bring two forks and two spoons - to share. Mara refuses to eat whipped cream so I always get her extras (how is this kid mine??). Our eyes were bigger than our bellies...

They opened the new Rosenthal Education Center this past week and I wanted to visit. (I made some art but somehow it made its way into Mara's bedroom and I haven't seen it since.) There are cool chandeliers...bubbly...

There are a lot of galleries being updated, including my favorite in the Cincinnati Wing. I didn't get to visit "my girls". I did take some photos of a couple of paintings I didn't realize are not supposed to be photographed. I am not sure why all of the sudden some of the paintings I always take photos of are now off limits. Hmm... Anyway, here is some of the art we visited...(holy crap...monkeys must have cropped some of these photos...or I was drunk)

Oh my...without fail, if I walk into the Cincinnati Art Museum - for any reason - I will somehow make my way to this sculpture. My absolute favorite piece of art in the building.

Giovanni da Bologna's bronze "Rape of a Sabine Woman". I want to touch this piece so badly...feel the cool bronze under my fingertips...the delicate fingers...the contours of each figure. One of these days...my picture will be hanging at the front desk and I'll be "politely" escorted from the premises every time I visit. No touching the artwork, silly girl.

Here is another bronze that fascinates me...Hercules and Antaeus.

In Greek mythology, Antaeus was a giant who lived in Libya and forced anyone who traveled through the country to wrestle with him. He was the son of Poseidon, god of the sea, and of Gaia, goddess of the earth. Because Gaia was his mother, Antaeus became stronger each time he touched the earth. As a result, he defeated and killed all who wrestled him.
One of the 12 labors of Hercules took him through Libya. Antaeus challenged Hercules to wrestle. At first, Hercules, despite his great strength, could not defeat Antaeus. Then realizing that Antaeus got his strength from the ground, Hercules lifted him off his feet so that he could not touch the earth. Slowly, Antaeus' strength drained away, and Hercules eventually squeezed him to death.

Mara was being very patient with me...she looks so contemplative here...absorbing the ambiance.

Another one of my proclivities is to take photos of the walls inside of elevators. There is always some kind of design which is one of those things overlooked...