RETURN TO MOWA

I had let lapse my membership in West Bend's Museum of Wisconsin Art.  But a friend's mention of his recent visit there inspired me to pay another visit and to renew my annual dues.  (Only members can tour the museum's collection, but membership is a phenomenally inexpensive $12 a year.)

The collection on display had not changed a great deal from my last visit, but it was nice to see some old "friends."  Following are a few of those.

Probably the best know work in this modest-sized museum is a massive painting that portrays a scene of religious flagellants passing though a European city.  The painting is, I would estimate, at least 12 feet high by 20 feet wide and features a number of portraits that are high in emotional content.  Here are a couple of those.

There is also a relatively large lithograph work (at least it looks like a lithograph).  Again, here is a "portrait" within that piece.

The museum building is distinctive in that it is wedge-shaped, with one of the corners making a very acute angle.  The two sides of that angle are faced in windows.  Here is a shot looking up a stairway toward the "point."  I thought the lines made for an interesting semi-abstract.

One of the art pieces in that niche is a large art glass triptych that I liked for the texture of the colors.

Following is a portion of a bizarre but interesting painting that I had not recalled from my prior visits.

I also noticed a metal sculpture that somehow seemed a little confused but did incorporate some interesting aspects, including this face that I shot in profile.

I know it can be maddening when I shoot only a portion of a work of art.  It's certainly not what the artist intended.  (If it were, then the artwork would have only included what I shoot.)  But I find myself photographing only portions of art because I want to emphasize a detail that might be lost in a photo of the entire work.  The following sculpture is, I think, a case in point.  It is a whimsical piece that has a lot going on.  Here first is a shot of the entire piece, which stands more than six feet high.

And here are shots of "components" of the overall work.

I do feel these individual shots provide interesting facets of the overall piece that simple are not available in the shot of the work as a whole.

John