Art in the Soumaya

So this post is probably a little more Art History-y then most, but I wanted to show some of the masterpieces from the museum because they are incredible! Walking up the ramp (similar to the Guggenheim in NY), the very first two painting you see- Botticelli's! I've only seen Botticelli's in Florence and Rome, never did I expect to see 1, let alone 2.

Not behind glass, no rope in front of them, I could walk right up to the canvas and see the fine brush strokes of the veil, the gold painted halo's, and see the fine details that I never had access to see. Walking to the right- is that a Da Vinci!!? Leonardo DaVinci- right before my eyes- again, not behind glass, no security guards, and no people!!! !!! AH!! :-)

No one even on this floor of the museum- just me, one security guard down the hall, and a DaVinci. It was incredible. I was able to walk right up to the painting, seeing the landscape detail, the single strands of hair twirling down the side of the Madonna's cheeks, the single brush stroke that Leonardo himself painted…

One of the only female painters to get recognition in the European canon- Artemisia Gentileschi is one of my favorite's and they had this large of work of hers on this floor as well. The third and fourth floors were modern masters- Van Gough, Camille Carot, Degas, Monet, just work after work! Fifth floor was interesting- it was entirely devoted to Sophia Loren. Her outfits, her magazine covers, an entire wall of her awards including her Emmy's. Then winding up to the top floor- you see this:

Can we officially say this is the most incredible museum?? I was smitten :-) Rodin sculpture everywhere- some I had never seen from his "gates of hell" work that was never completed, Salvador Dali sculptures of every genre that were so interesting- I never knew Dali did sculptures! Amazing...

Museo Soumaya, MX

It has been a great week, and finally I have made it to the weekend! My first stop was to get over and see the show stopping museum called Museo Soumaya- the museum of the most wealthy man in Mexico- Carlos Slim. I love the museum's mission- build a collection of European masters that rival any museum in Europe, in Mexico City, for those who can not go to Europe and experience these works themselves. A true museum for the people- free- stunningly gorgeous and a collection that took my breath away. The building itself- AMAZING! I had read about it in magazines as they were building it, and saw pictures when it was finished, but NEVER in my life did I ever believe I would be standing in front of it!

The Lobby was grand- vast- pure white and massive. If you're following me on Instagram you've already seen this (curator89), there were only 2 works in the entire first floor- both bronze, both iconic- the Pieta and The Thinker. As I was one of the first people in the museum this morning, I was able to get the space all to myself. The volume of the space- the simplistic architecture gave way to me having the perfect moment- what they call in the art world the Sancta Santori- the moment when you connect with art and space in a universal moment. It was beautiful.

It's hard to explain the moment- and I'm sorry if I'm being super sappy, but it was wonderful. I had one of these moment's at the VanGough Museum in Amsterdam, when the mass crowds parted, and I was standing alone directly in front of Irises, just me, and the masterpiece. That was 3 years ago, and it was time.

Mexico City! MX

So I've been in MC-MX since Tuesday this week- a long trip of 11 days, 10 nights! Training our new team this week, merchandising our first store the next. Flight down was quick- 1 hr to Chicago- 4 hrs to Mexico City. The city is much different than I ever imagined. I’m staying in the Polanco district, which is a thriving area of nice residents, outdoor cafes’, boutiques, and great restaurants. The entire neighborhood was built for walking- large tree lined sidewalks, and winding streets- a dog lovers paradise.

As soon as I could- I started walking. Lincoln Park was my first area- gorgeous park with lots of art, fountains, reflecting ponds, and nice seating. The boutiques are nice, very small, and not much in them. The main street just a few blocks from my hotel is called Presidente Maskyerke- where all the big brands are- Louis, Tiffany, Hermes, Hugo Boss, etc. So I’ve stayed away- no need to see those as they are the same in every city. Our first night we went out to a true Mexican restaurant called Dulce Patria- a formal, sit down place with an extensive menu. Shockingly- with 6 drinks, 3 appetizers,3 entrees and 1 dessert the bill was $110! And that has been a common theme- everything is really inexpensive compared to most other large cities I’ve been in. Since cabs have a bad wrap, we’ve been taking “Uber’s” everywhere- the personal car service. To get most places in cities- it’s around $20-$30 one way. Here- 100pesos anywhere in the city! That’s only $6.70! Lunches have been at sit down restaurants, and for 3 people, again, super reasonable- $60 has been the highest lunch. We finished work early on Friday, and I headed to the Business district where the other team members were staying. I was so surprised at how European and modern it was. Large circular round about with sculptures and monuments in the middle. Lots of skyscrapers with the names of the big banks, and café are lining the boulevards. Not as nice as Polanco, but still very resident friendly with many people out at the café’s mid day. When I cam back to Polanco, it was around 5pm- gorgeous weather, so I decided to go out to- MB for a coffee and catch up on the blog. Friday afternoon + Warm weather+lots of people= beggars. The past 4 days there have been a casual 1 or 2 throughout the day, but this afternoon- oye- every corner has someone with a hat out, and as I’ve sat here there have been little kids coming up trying to sell me sandwiches, a man dressed up in Inca headdress dancing around me and then asking for money, and sadly- an guy probably my age playing an accordion with his young boy who looked so ragged and dirty asking me for money. It happens in every big city- happened in Istanbul, and so I took it as “it is what it is”, Especially as this is one of the happening/wealthier places in the city. So my Spanish- I was working on my rosetta stone the past month, but between Christmas, travel, working on the house, and more travel, it’s been underutilized. Wow- if I only had known ☺ 1/10 speak English, and that might be a high estimate. On the positive I’ve been working some Spanish into my day- I just ordered another American in full Spanish- and they understood me! Yay!

Tonight is the last night for the Panama team who has been with me during training, so we’re going out to try the “local” bar game- a fun custom everyone in your party being electrocuted by car battery! Lol. Can’t wait to find out more of this.