I had planned to visit Monterey because of its artistic connections, as rain was forecast for the whole weekend. My plans were confirmed on two levels - in a chat with a great jeweller in her
lapidary studio at Cannery Row, Tempest told me that Monterey had been a hippie hangout, then the wealthy at Carmel had spread out and there was now a mostly healthy synergy between them both - sounds a bit like Byron Bay to me...It seriously is a naturally beautiful place, so it makes sense that both the artistic and the rich want to enjoy it!
Anyway I decided to visit the
Monterey Museum of Art - initially in the downtown gallery, where I enjoyed seeing hundreds of
miniatures, in a variety of styles and media. The
urban life photography was impressive - black and white photos really emphasise facial expressions in a way that colour cannot.
But the biggest surprise for me was the exhibition of
Chuck Close's Works on Paper, that was displayed in the La Mirada house and gallery complex. This man has a learning disability including prosopognosia and he draws amazing portraits by superimposing a grid on a face and drawing within each segment -
up close, each work looks like a grid of interesting colour and design, but at a distance the portraits are totally amazing...He also uses a whole array of printing processes, which are equally impressive. Here is a very popular American artist that I did not know, and it was an impressive discovery regarding his art and his life as a whole... I am open to learning lots more about him...
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