I took the original picture on which this one was based many years ago. It was taken in a museum in Des Moines Iowa. I love how form and function can merge so comfortably when it is done by the right person.
The Most Memorable
Tag: museum
Mosaic of Life #136 – Architectural Art
Mosaic #136 is from the Iowa State Historical Museum, in Des Moines, Iowa. There were many unique pieces there, including a “Box of eggs” that is one of my favorites. But, one thing I was fascinated with was the staircase as shown above.
From a very young age, I was fascinated by architecture. I can still draw the floor plan for any of the 17 different places I have lived in my 78-year life. The first one we moved out of when I was 4-years-old. That should have given me a clue as to what I should have become in the business world, but since we lived mostly hand-to-mouth through my college school years, I never considered that a possibility.
A major part of my life since those years has been visiting historical sites. I haven’t taken many photos of people, but I have a pretty big collection of historical buildings, and buildings that house historical things. I wasn’t able to become an architect, but I have managed to make it a serious hobby that I see as needing documentation here at RJsMosaic. As a matter of fact, I think RJsMosaic as a whole needs to be able to be sorted into different collections. I think I will put in some serious time this coming winter to make that happen.
Mosaic of Life #121 – An Overdose of Containers
During my travels across America, I have become fascinated with containers found in old-time general stores. This was probably the most complete store shelf I ever ran across. It was in The Museum of Appalachia near Norris, Tennessee. That is one of the top 10 places I have visited.
I have probably spent hours looking at zoomed versions of this photo.
Mosaic of Life #62 – Peoria Riverfront Museum
Peoria is a city in central Illinois, and has a population of about 100,000. Its Riverfront Museum has some of the most unique art around. When I was there, the main floor was dedicated to Lego art, several are shown below.
With this post, I am going to clue you in on a secret I have learned after visiting at least a hundred museums around the country. It seems that every town or city with more than a population of 1,000 has it local museum. I would say that about half of those type that I have visited were worth the trip. The others were just various local pieces thrown together in one room.
Then there are the large cities, meaning those with a population of 200,000 or more, are primarily made up of Renaissance and similar art pieces they have managed to collect through trusts or inheritance of wealthy people. If they give enough, a room in the museum is named after them. These types of museum have become dull and boring to me. It’s the “same old, same old” every time. Due to my humble upbringing, I can’t help but wonder how all that money could have been used for clinic/housing/feeding of those at the other end of their spectrum.
Then there are those cities between about 70,000 to 200,000 who thrive on their creative juices. They, like this Riverfront Museum, find things that are visually pleasing, but don’t cost a fortune. Those are the museums I mostly sought out during my 50 years of traveling across America.
Mosaic of Life #24 – Milwaukee Museum
The Milwaukee Museum of Art is probably the most innovative structure around. We visited there in 2007, but from looking at their present website, most things are much the same. It looks like a graceful swan overlooking Lake Michigan.
