art museum

New Summer Dresses for the Girls

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This is funny! I thought one of the things on my Summer 2015 To Do List was to make new summer dresses for the girls.  I just checked that list and my 35 Things to do Before I turn 35 list, and it’s not on either!  Oh well!

So…. Guess what!  I made new summer dresses for the girls for no reason other than the fact that I love doing it, and they are adorable.

AndThenThey Sundresses1

And it was a reason to buy this fabric I have been coveting for months and years and decades.  I absolutely love Sarah Jane Studios and we have a couple of her prints in the girls’ rooms.  I also used some of her fabric in Alma’s quilt.

This is a ‘pattern’ that I made up last summer for Alma’s lion dress.  It’s a really fun, simple dress to make.  I’ve even helped a couple friends make them for their daughters this summer.  I’m toying with a few ideas about how I could get this pattern out to a broader audience.  Maybe a workshop for local sewists, or trying to figure out how to get a pdf pattern put together for download.

AndThenThey Sundresses2Anyhow, I used two different lines of fabric for the dresses.  I made Harriet’s using fabric in the same design of a print in her bedroom.  The kids on parade are so sweet, and Harriet loves, loves, loves balloons.

AndThenThey Sundresses5We spent the afternoon at the University of Oregon art museum, and I took advantage of the backdrops and lighting to get some photos of the girls in their dresses.

AndThenThey Sundresses4 This was post-naptime, so Harriet’s dress is a little wrinkled.  But that’s life when you’re always on a parade, right?AndThenThey Sundresses3 AndThenThey Sundresses6The museum has an amazing program where the kids can pick up backpacks full of activities for the kids.  They are mostly above our kids’ heads, but it’s fun to go through them and see what we can talk about.

AndThenThey Sundresses9aEach backpack has colored pencils and paper, so aspiring artists can copy the art, or draw what they see.  It’s sweet to see what other museum goers have drawn in the past.  They also each have magnifying glasses which are always a hit.

AndThenThey Sundresses9The backpacks have themes to them.  Alma picked one up and the Asian art they have at the museum.  She found some little figurines and coins in a bottle.

AndThenThey Sundresses8We love going to the museum anyway, but the backpacks make our visits even more fun.  I hope they keep these backpacks so we can watch how our kids grow and change during our museum visits!

AndThenThey Sundresses7

 

 

The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art

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Here’s some great news for those of you who are art lovers, and live in Oregon – because of a wonderful tax loop-hole, we get to experience amazing masterpieces.  As a New York Times article from a few weeks ago explains, when art buyers at the big auction houses in New York buy a new work of art there are huge taxes included; but if these buyers agree to loan their new purchases to museums in tax-friendly states, the buyers can avoid the taxes.

I see this as a win-win, at least for those of us who are able to enjoy these purchases.  Another great thing is that these are pieces that are usually in private collections, so they are rarely seen in public.  Pretty cool.

My dad told me about this, and about how the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art has both a Van Gogh and a Chagall right now.  These are two of my favorite artists.  I usually have to travel quite a distance to see their art in person.

My mom also told me about an exhibit that she really loved.  So we decided to head down after naps.

I have lots of memories of the U of O Art Museum (as it used to be more simply known) from when I was a kid.  I loved the courtyard, with its pool, arches, brick.  Back when I was a girl there was a statue in the water, and koi swam around in the pool.  My dad says that when he was a student, he would read in the courtyard – and when I took some summer classes, I kept up that tradition.  A couple years ago some of our best friends were married in the courtyard.

So, we always start in the courtyard.

After the courtyard, we went upstairs to see the exhibit my mom wanted to show us.  It was very impressive.  Then we went to look for the Van Gogh.  On the way, Alma was intrigued by an installation mixed media piece called “Medusa Smack” by Vanessa Renwick.  I wasn’t sure how Alma would feel about it – it is in a dark room, under a huge umbrella, with strange music playing.

Alma was amazed.  My mom and I spent most of the time watching Alma’s expression change as the images projected onto the umbrella changed.  It was one of those moments when I am so incredibly grateful to get to be her mom.  I can’t really explain it.  It was art, watching my daughter interact with a piece of art.

We decided that we needed to go back a couple days later, with Jesse and my step-dad.

Another amazing program that the JSMA has right now is a children’s program.  They have some backpacks full of exploratory art activities.  Alma didn’t really care about what was in the backpack, but she absolutely loved carrying the backpack around the museum.

And one more stop in the courtyard.