24 Hours - My Trip to Roanoke, VA Part 2

Welcome to part 2 of my 24 hours in Roanoke, VA. This post is solely dedicated to Taubman Museum of Art! I simply have too many photos and want to take the time to break down the area and the experience I had so that others will have a better idea of the area/interests. I've received some very awesome feedback on my first post - which you can read here. If you enjoy these posts please let me know and feel free to share! Again, thank you for taking the time out of your busy day to enter my wacky world.

Much love!

For those of you that do not know me personally - I feel like I'm at an AA meeting. Hello my name is Mika and I'm an art addict. Taubman Museum of Art is only one of many museums in Roanoke. I chose Taubman's while I was researching the area. They simply offered more of what I wanted to see!

As with most museums photography was not allowed in 90% of the areas. For those areas I will link directly to their website.

Welcome to Roanoke!

Taubman Museum of Art

 

This unusual Nylon floating sculpture greets every guest at the museum. Hand sewn by artist Anne Ferrer - "Hot Pink" is suspended 20 feet in the air, giving the rather masculine architectural design a more feminine and rather whimsical feel.

Art Venture was the first area I visited inside the museum. It was inspiring to watch the children reading/painting and opening their beautiful creative minds!

I took this photo for Tamara. :)

 

 

Matching Anne Ferrer sculpture from the lobby.

"Un-usual Folk" Exhibit 

Artist: Unknown

Left: "Quilting Memory Painting by Helen La France

Right: "Self Portrait" by Mose Tolliver

Artist: Unknown

This painting was my favorite of all the "Folk Art"
Artist: Theresa Disney

These were the most unusual pieces. "Buster in Cage 2004" by Marvin Francis who is incarcerated in North Point Training Facility, KY. The most amazing part - they were made with materials Mr. Francis had access to in the facility. Proving you can literally make something from nothing!

Also on exhibit when I visited:

Faberge collection - over 100 separate pieces collected from 1899-1917 ranging from cigarette holders to crystal stamp viewers. Most were originally owned by Tsar Nicholas II.

Judith Leiber Handbags - over 100 crystal handbags. Simply beautiful.

Edward Burtnysky- Collection called "Oil" Mr. Burtnysky shows us in full detail the impact we make on the Earth and on one another. An absolutely beautiful photography collection worth viewing!

American Art from the Permanent Collection - Of course this exhibit was my of my favorite if for no other reason than I was able to view amazing American Impressionists paintings. I love Impressionism and was thrilled to have the honor of gazing upon such strong pieces from a lost era.

State of the Art: Virginia Crossroads - A vast collection of artists from the area (and around Virginia) ranging from sculptures to photography and everything in between. I spent more time in this section than I realized, mainly due to the fact the guard talked me to death! lol

Harold Little - A wonderful painter and Printmaker

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That's it folks! If you enjoyed my little review please let me know!

Street art outside of the museum. Buy the print here.

There you have it. If you enjoyed my review please let me know! I can't wait to do another one!

24 Hours - My Trip to Roanoke, VA Part 1

A girl can accomplish a lot in 24 hours - especially a girl with a camera and time all on her own. I had 4 days off this week and knew I couldn't stand to stay alone so I reserved a solo slot for an overnight trip to Roanoke, VA. Everyone has asked me, "Why Roanoke?" Why not? It's less than 5 hours away and is quite an amazing place. When I say everyone has asked me..I do mean everyone; including (but not limited to) the Virginia police officer who pulled me over.

I would be doing the world a huge misfortune if I didn't share this story with you all. If you're not interested then by all means scroll on down...but you're gonna regret it. While I'm at it; disclaimer for foul language. ;)

Nearly 20 miles from my hotel exit an unmarked car flashed their lights and stopped me on I-81. Now in my head: I'm wearing my seat belt, not speeding, not on the phone/texting, both hands on the wheel and the music playing low...what the fuck does this guy want? He strolls up to my passenger window doing the big macho man knock on the side of the vehicle (I guess to see if it was hollow) he asked the usual, how are you, where are you heading etc...finally he says, "I pulled you over because I'm pretty sure your windows are too dark." Wait...what? I'm puzzled at this point. "I think they're probably too dark for Kentucky too. I'm just going to give you a warning. May I see your license and registration" of course I obey.

After running me (which I'm sure he was disappointed in wasting his time doing all this shit) he brings back my ID and uses a little meter device to see how dark my windows are. While the meter is testing he says, "Virginia state law is anything below 15." We both look at the meter and at each other. My reading? 14! "So I'm under the law?" I questioned as I smiled. "Yes, it says you are." Knowing you're in the right, especially when it comes to a prick of a officer is the best feeling in the world. He then questions why I'm going to Roanoke for one day...I did not have to explain a damn thing to him but I have nothing to hide. I told him I was a photographer (and pointed to the camera bag in the floor) and wanted to get away. I live just a few hours away and didn't think it was a crime to spend the night one state away from home. Of course his reply was, "I work with the crime and drug task force and that's why I was asking" "Oh, so you think I'm smuggling drugs from Kentucky? Really?" "Ma'am, have you ever been in trouble?" "Didn't your little scan on me already tell you this? No. In fact I now have paper work to fill out when I return to work for talking to you...you gave me more work over nothing." "But I didn't give you a ticket or warning..." After I informed him in much more detail what I meant, he changed his tune quick. Needless to say, I was "Free to go" and he hoped I "enjoy your stay"...I was so pissed I didn't think to get his name. I know cops get a bad rap because of douche bags like him, but he really was just an asshole who tried to push the wrong girl.

Luckily things got better after that :)

I stayed at Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Salem, VA. Crazy that a double room was cheaper than a single, but a room is a room to me!

I want the bathroom lights!

I made reservations for one at the fancy steakhouse in downtown Roanoke. Call me Lily Davenport from now on. :) The dress code was "Business casual" so I played.

 

Me or should I say "Lily" :)

The place was called Frankie Rowland's Steakhouse and it was much more laid back and comfortable than I ever expected. My reservation was for 7:45 and I couldn't have picked a better time in terms of crowd. There were groups everywhere. I didn't allow myself to feel out of place for being alone. It's something I'm getting used to and if I'm to travel (like I dream) I have a feeling I will be doing it a lot. 

I asked the hostess for permission to photograph a few things in the restaurant to write about, this was obviously an odd request as she asked her manager. Needless to say I was allowed! My server was Stephani and I could not have asked for a better one! I told her off the bat about my plans and she went to great lengths to assist me. 

I had originally requested Split Chicken Breast with Rosemary Beurre Blanc but Stephani came back in a tizzy...for they had ran out of chicken due to a large party in the back. This turned out to be in my favor because I spoiled myself with an appetizer.

Artisan Cheese Plate (three cheese) I ate nearly everything on the platter!

My salad: Sliced Beefstake Tomatoes, Fresh Mozzarella and Balsamic Reduction

Every thing was fresh and flavorful. Tamara had mentioned the salad when I linked her the menu so after the chicken fiasco I knew it was meant to be!

My water never ran low, my table cloth was cleaned after each plate and I was thanked by every employee as I left. To have randomly picked a place to dine I really lucked up.

Be on the lookout for Part 2 this weekend!

PS: This is my 200th blog post!

Photography; It's Work

"Whew" That's all I can say about the past few weeks! I'm tickled pink to sit down long enough and type out more than a sentence. I have been terribly busy, but I can't remember half of what I've done. lol.

My photography class was going surprisingly well, despite the entire downtown area flooding the day before the first class. Becky at The Wilder Side of Art made an announcement today...she is closing her store at the end of the month. I'm truly upset; and not for the obvious reason. I have waited years for an art store to open up in town; and now it's over. I will still have classes elsewhere; but it won't be the same.

I have quite a few new followers on my blog and my fan page, so welcome to my crazy world. ;)

I hope things continue to look up.

I braved my sanity and lack of energy last month and took my 5 year old cousin Alyssa to the park for the day. I was pleased with the photos, but had to take a nap as soon as I came home. lol.

Enjoy; and as always I welcome feedback. :)

Several of the photo effects came from The CoffeeShop Blog I had been searching for a good Polaroid action and found much more on the blog!

Until next time,

<3

Mika.

Wilderness Road

This is last Sunday's blog post. There are over 20 photos to share, thus I will (try to) keep my words short. Thomas and I spent a good chunk of the day at the Wilderness Road State Park in Virginia. You can check out the official site here. We visited the park many times while we were dating (years and years ago) and I was in awe of how much they had progressed with the park since. It really sheds light on the history of our area. If you live close, check it out...well worth the $3 for parking.

Without further adieu, enjoy the photos!