Travel

Journey to Eclipse Part 1

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Mapimi Desert
April 5 - April 16, 2024

The Total Solar Eclipse of April 8 was, without exaggeration, the most intense event I have witnessed in my 30 years of life. It has taken me over a month to make a post about this experience and I wasn’t sure how to begin talking about this journey, but for part one, I’ll cover the basics.

For the 2024 Eclipse, we traveled to La Zona del Silencio (Zone of Silence) an area surrounded by mysterious occurrences. Getting to this region from Chicago took a bit of preplanning months prior. The zone is in the Mapimi Biosphere Reserve, a protected United Nations desert since 1977, and spans the Chihuahua, Coahuila, and Durango states of Mexico.

I heard about this region growing up through my mom whose hometown resides in the mountains of one of the states. So when I saw that the path of totality would cross this area I figured this would be the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience this cosmic event in this enigmatic place.

The zone became more widely known in 1969 when the Allende meteorite, mysteriously diverted its predicted course and landed in this area. A year later, in 1970, due to a loss in radio communication signals, a NASA ship carrying Cobalt 57 crashed in the same area. The United States was granted permission by the Mexican government to enter the region and clean the biohazardous crash.Which resulted in a vast amount of precious meteorite-rich soil shipped out of Mexico to the States via a temporary railway system. There is much local skepticism on this event and the US’ intentions and interest in excavating the land.

The crash sparked interest in the area and in the mid 70’s urban legends of odd occurrences and UFO sightings began to spread. Movies and books have since been produced revolving the stories of the region and comparisons over the years have been made to the Bermuda Triangle and the Devil’s Sea near Japan.

What we do know for certain is that the area does have an unusual magnetic field that shifts and results in a frequency of meteors falling, traditional compasses spinning aimlessly, and radio signals failing. The magnetic fields are also said to have a strange effect on the behaviors and characteristics of the flora and fauna of the region. These odd occurrences have drawn scientists and researchers to this desert from all over the globe. Within the zone, there is also an area that researchers have named “Cementerio de las Reses” because animals who have reached the end of their lifetime have inexplicably traveled to that area to reach their final resting point and die. Because it is miles away from light-polluted areas it also produces some of the best viewing opportunities for night sky watching, attracting many astronomy enthusiasts.

This is where we traveled to see the 2024 Total Solar Eclipse.

Back from Oahu

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Back from Oahu
December 19, 2023 - January 4, 2024

This year for the holidays we decided to leave the cold Chicago weather and spend majority of December and our first days of 2024 in the island of Oahu visiting Miguel’s long-time childhood friend Jon and his fiancé Kanako.

Hawaiians have a long history with the cosmos. The first Polynesian explorers of the Pacific, who ventured the ocean, used the stars as a form of way finding and the moon to predict the tides among other things. Way finding using the night sky is part of the Weriyeng system used by the master navigators of Micronesia that remains one of the valuable forms of knowledge that has been retained in an increasingly technologically dependent world. Which is something that gives me hope to know when I ask myself how much natural knowledge is at risk of becoming lost or has been lost?

The stars and planets were very visible in the night sky of Oahu. During our time there Jupiter usually made the first appearances in the sky as the sun began to set and since we were lucky to be visiting during the full moon season, we saw the moon opposite to the setting sun. I learned that Hawaiian moon tracking cycles account for all 30 stages of the moon, each with a name and understanding. The 8th-10th night after the full moon, like clockwork, the jellyfish float closer to shore increasing the chances for a swimmer to get stung. The night of Pō Kāne/Kāne, the 27th night of the moon, the tide is lower and a belief that the veil of the spiritual world thins during this time. Mōhalu, the 12th night, the night before the start of the 4 full moons, is a night of low tide, for planting flowers that will be round and root vegetables, it is said that on this night what is hidden is meant to remain that way. Which may be in reference to something in the spiritual realm or simply be a mnemonic teaching device for the knowledge that rooted vegetables that grow in the darkness of the ground are meant to stay in that space on this night.

We visited during the Ho’oilo, wet season, mid November- early May, a time when the sun sets closer to the south produces massive stories-high waves in the North Shore of the island attracting surfers and typically being the time for surf competitions in Oahu. However, the west and east facing shores would produce comparably smaller waves for swimming. I took every possible opportunity to swim in the ocean during this trip. The lovely part of being on an island is being able to drive to a variety of beach experiences and witness the many behaviors of the ocean.

Island life was good, a few other friends also came to Oahu during our time there. On Christmas Eve, Jon’s friend took a group of people out on a boat, Jon dj’d some house, eventually a bunch of us jumped into the deep sea ocean to swim and watch the sun as it set on the horizon. Christmas Day we decided to go on a hike to Kuli Ou Ou and after a hectic trek up some seemingly endless stairs we were met with a beautiful view. New Years Eve we swam at Papa Oni Oni beach and the waves would push us in and pull us out. On one lazy day we hung out on the upstairs porch until the stars came out. Poke was good at any given spot (except for Speedway, I’m told) and the Seven 11’s have some pretty good takeaways for the road.

Unfortunately, I’ve become increasingly worst at documenting memories since my phone camera malfunctions earlier last year so I’m experiencing a bit of regret looking at my photo album. I did take some video footage on my video cam of the surfers at Bonzai beach so I may share clips of that at a later date. <3

Images from the book Fishers' knowledge in Fisheries Science and Management
Haggan, Nigel , Neis, Barbara , Baird, Ian G.
published 2007 (pages 128-131)

Kohala Center breakdown of Hawaiian Moon Phases here

Prairie Moon Sculpture Garden by Herman Rusch

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Prairie Moon Sculpture Garden by Herman Rusch

We found ourselves on a roadtrip to Minneapolis this past week and we were able to cross this one off the list.

It’s not a place we would have drove 5 hours just to see, and I wouldn’t recommend anyone to drive an extensive drive exclusively with the purpose of visiting, but it was on our way so making the pit stop was easy.

Enjoy the photos, the Noweigan hunter fighting a bear sculpture was so detailed, down to the spiked hair on the bear’s nape and I personally loved the multi-arched sculpture titled “Arches”, felt like something you could make a game out of.

On the property there’s a bio of the artist, Herman Rusch. In brief he was was an immigrant of Prussia and farm hand at an early age. He lived a very Midwestern life, farming most of his life until retirement. Retired, he purchased the Prairie Moon Pavilion in 1958, which he planned to convert into a roadside museum with taxidermies, fossils, and random oddities he got his hands on. It was during this year, in his attempt to fill his museum grounds that he began making these sculptures with scraps and rocks around the area. By 1974 at the age of 89 he had created 40 large scale sculptures. He was known for playing the fiddle in his museum and taking people on tours around the property. In 1979 he sold his property so he could have more time to fish and fiddle. And 6 years later, in 1985, 11 days after his 100 birthday he passed away.

It’s an odd property to find, located close to the Minnesota-Wisconsin border, Apple Maps absolutely refused to give us the directions to it, but I found it on Google and so here it is,

52727 Prairie Moon Rd,
Fountain City, WI 54629

Few other notes:
The drive to get there was chill, scenic with the Mississippi River and we passed some cute towns along the way. There was a few missing sculptures on the property including one titled “Indian Scout on Pony”, unclear why they were missing. The pavilion looks like it could potentially be open for visitors, but it was closed when we arrived.

The perfect day to go would be on a clear fair weathered day, you can find some nice scenery with the hills behind and there are two picnic tables on the property making it a good rest stop location to stretch your legs on the way to your destination.

To see more sites on my list of artist sites I would like to visit in my lifetime click here.

Remedios Varo: Science Fictions at the Art Institute of Chicago

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I came across her work this Thursday at the Art Institute of Chicago. It was all a lovely happenstance, much like many things in my life. Since seeing the show, I’ve found myself on a small deep dive learning more about her.

She was a woman captivated by the alchemy practices of her Surrealist circle, with a fascinating life lived in Mexico. She was surrounded by mystics, scientists, musicians, and occult practitioners. She explored these occult practices, with paintings showing scenes of transmutation practices and theories around music and levitation. The show also contains excerpts from her journal, including a recipe for how to have exotic dreams.

The show is the first solo show of Varo’s work in the United States in over 20 years. It’s located on the second floor of the Modern Wing next to the cafe. And I very much recommend you view it, it’s a great show to indulge yourself with as we enter the Autumn season. Up until November 27.

Exhibition Links:
1. Exhibition Details
2. Summoning Remedios Varo

Video of Conversations:
3. Remedios Varo AIC
4. A Taxonomy of Techniques

A list of artist sites I want to see in my lifetime

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Earlier this year I visited Intuit art center in Chicago, small museum of outsider art. I came to know of them a few years ago because they have a section on the artist Henry Darger, and if you haven’t looked into his story, it’s interesting, look him up.

On this visit they had an exhibition titled “At home with the Artists” by Ted Degner and is based on his 50 years of roadtripping around the U.S. visiting these off-the-map artists’ sites (show is up until Sep 4, 2023)

A few years ago I began the start of many more years ahead roadtripping through the world. Inspired by some of the homes listed in the exhibition, along with my own curiosity, I decided to compile an on-going list (with links) of some notable artist homes/ sites that I want to see in my life. Feel free to take from this list or send me recs if you think I’m missing any. Enjoy 🙂

Also to note, I visited Kohler, Wisconsin last weekend and came to realize that the Kohler Foundation has a Preservation section dedicated to preserving some of these art sites in the U.S. more on that here.

Kenrick Mcfarlane's Solo Show :Meta at M+B Gallery

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Full Frontal Pussy on a Saturday Morning?

I visited Kenrick’s Meta solo show in LA this weekend. I’ve mentioned Kenrick on this blog before, he is a dear friend who I consider to be very wise. His presence and his words have many times brought me peace, I think he has that gift. Kenrick and I have kept up throughout the years, from our days commuting from the burbs to the city and back, bumping into eachother on the bus and the train to spend the time talking about life. I am very proud of him and his journey.

I didn’t really know what to expect going into the gallery. Kenrick is a very good painter. Just on a technical level, I love the way he paints. The openness and freedom, done in such a way that showcases skill, understanding of the medium and confidence. When all comes together, it’s something you have to see in person to really experience.

Walking into the gallery, the first image I was presented with, a woman with her legs up in the air, a pussy and black face. My first thought was that’s WILD, my second being “who the hell is buying that painting?” I walked around the gallery surrounded by the graphic images the paintings presented. In a general sense, I have grown to feel partially desensitized from graphic images and the number of audacious things one can expect to see in a globalized modern world. But these paintings, I couldn’t help but be with them for a while, attempting to put my finger on what it was about them that felt that way.

The images in this show explore some of the shadow spaces of the mind. Darker elements, that like nightmares, have their space and deserve their presence and meditation.

I am glad Kenrick has this space to explore, that there is this freedom of expression he has cultivated in order to give us images that explore these elements of humanity. It really is a show to see in person, if you are in the LA area or just have some cash to blow on a trip out there, highly recommend. He also has a show coming up in September in Paris this year, which like all his other shows I’m sure will be one worth seeing.

Kenrick Mcfarlane “Meta”
M+B Gallery in Los Angeles
July 7 - August 12, 2023

More images including THAT one on the gallery website here:
www.mbart.com

Images of Kenrick’s show from M+B gallery website
Copyright the artist

Some downtime in Guatemala

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In anticipation for this Guatemala trip I prepared some watercolor supplies to take with me.

I let this be a time to explore and paint whatever my little heart desired. We had many lazy days spent lounging around our rented home on Lake Atitlan, eating fruit, drinking, listening to music, painting and reading from the select books at our spot. Occasionally, a visitor would come in the form of a neighborhood cat or dog and spend a few hours lounging with us. Towards the end of the trip, I became inspired after visiting La Galleria in Panajachel and seeing Nan Cuz's work. It led me to create messier backgrounds resulting in the making of “Orchedia del Volcan”, my favorite of the bunch.

There were other fellow artists who’s works I came across on this trip, some notable ones below:

Lastly, Antigua was a great city, I recommend stopping at Cafe No Se if you get to spend a night there.

Below is a list of supplies with clickable links to help facilitate traveling with paints, highly recommend them as they take up very minimal space in luggage :