note to self: hours of incredible art may feed the soul but not the stomach

yesterday i went to the Guggenheim. i was standing in the atrium, in awe- of the curves (the only un-curved surface is the floor), the mix of light as it bounced off of the metal and glass, the way it all sort of comes together as a flower at the top. the architecture, the design of the building is astounding. it could have been empty, void of all art in the galleries and i would have been happy still. Frank Ghery is a genius. i understand that many here in Bilbao were less than thrilled with his creation, but now those feelings seem to have dissipated. people are proud. as they should be. i read that when Ghery does his first sketch he just freely draws and does not take his pen from the paper. amazing. as i was walking on the metal staircase, watching the people below and noticing how the building flowed right into the bridge over the Bilbao river, i had this moment "this is real. i am in the Guggenheim and in Bilbao!"

i walked through Richard Serra´s work entitled The Matter of Time, basically mazes of metal. i watched a documentary once on the building of the Guggenheim and the introduction of Serra´s work. it is nutty to walk through something you saw on tv. it was immense and brilliant and somewhat overwhelming as it can get sort of claustrophobic lost among the metal that seems to envelope you.

Serra said about his work: "it is a diversity of durations of time...the meaning occurs only through continuous movement, through anticipation, observation and recollection."

i feel this same description could be used about the Camino.
i have more time to reflect these days, the Camino is constantly on my mind.

speaking of the Camino, i had an interaction last night, it went something like this:
(3 of us getting to know each other-where are you from, what are you doing here, what do you do, etc? so of course i say i just finished the Camino and the male dorm-mate is really interested as he is doing a 1 act play that is based on the Camino)
male dorm-mate, "so how do you feel now?"
me, "hmm good and i suppose a bit confused"
female dorm-mate, "oh well, come out with us tonight and we will get you back into reality."
me, "thank you maybe i will. but it´s all good, i think this is how i am supposed to feel."
male dorm-mate, "are you supposed to feel all cleansed? anyway, come with us and we will fix you up."

they were lovely and interesting young people. theatre kids, here as part of an international festival. many of the people in the hostel this week were in the festival. these two were from Germany, another in the room from Spain and still 2 more from France. funny, energetic and highly enthusiastic about their work. and i didn´t end up going out with them that night. i just couldn´t. whatever sort of "reality" they were inviting me to, it wasn´t what i was looking for...and maybe still isn´t. but for that moment anyway, for last night, it definitely wasn´t.

back the the Guggenheim for a moment. there was a huge David Hockney exhibit. i haven´t really had an opinion of his work, sort of the take it or leave it kind of opinion i guess. now i am a fan. not necessarily of his work so much as of him. there are some pieces i do really really like. there are others...meh. it is his continued desire to try new things and use new mediums. for the last few years he has been using the IPAD in creation of his works. there were demonstrations of how he creates these pieces, i recommend you look for videos on youtube because it is good stuff. what will he come up with next?

final thought of the day: a hot baguette and fresh fruit taste divine, sitting next to the Guggenheim.