Lilies in Monet’s Garden

Lilies in Refection Pool

Lilies in Monet’s Garden © 2012 Bo Mackison

It’s on the strength of observation and reflection that one finds a way. So we must dig and delve unceasingly. ~ Claude Monet

The current exhibit at the New York Botanical Gardens is Monet’s Garden, located in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory on the grounds, truly a spectacular site for this themed exhibit.

NYBG’s website describes the exhibit as such — “Claude Monet was an avid gardener who once reflected that perhaps flowers were the reason he became a painter. This exhibition explores the legacy of his idyllic garden in Giverny, France, transforming the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory into a floral masterpiece of diverse plants, bold colors, and dramatic design . . . Monet’s most famous subjects, water lilies, many of them the varieties he grew, are featured in the Conservatory Courtyard Pools.”

The Enid A. Haupt Conservatory opened in 1902. This Victorian-style glasshouse is home to A World of Plant which is its permanent exhibit – a series of gardens that takes you on a tour of plants found around the world. After walking through the crowded Monet’s Garden exhibit – yes, our only chance to visit was on a Sunday afternoon! — we also walked through the permanent gardens.

I could have wandered through the many displays for days and days, but I only had a few hours, hours I was grateful for. Such an opportunity to fill the well of my senses –  fragrances, textures, colors. Ahhh.

I could not resist the challenge of taking photographs of a few of the lilies that are now in bloom in the courtyard pools. The reflection of the conservatory in the pools added an element of grandeur and a vintage look to the photographs of the water lilies.

The New York Botanical Gardens, including its many historical structures, is a National Historic Landmark.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She spent a glorious afternoon visiting and photographing the New York Botanical Gardens, and highly recommends a garden visit if you are in the New York area.

Looking through the Window Glass

Parq Central View

Parq Central View © 2012 Bo Mackison

Your task is not to seek love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it. ~ Rumi

A handsome, hand-crafted door. Century old leaded glass with beveled edges. The view of the park across the street is framed so perfectly in the arched panes. I think the abstract view through the slightly imperfect glass panes is lovely – wavering colors melding from one hue to another, the cool palette of colors – blues, greens, purples.

But no matter how lovely the door’s wood nor the hand-crafted window panes’ specks of flaws, nor the meticulous workmanship to combine raw materials into a work of practical art, I still want to open the door and explore the outdoors. I want to cross the street and walk in the park, be a part of the park – bare-footed in the grass, looking up at the sky through the over-arching leafy branches. Feel the grass tickling the soles of my feet, the wind brushing against my face, let my hands touch the bark patterns – rough, smooth, bumpy.

The view through the glass is lovely. But sometimes even barriers are deceivingly beautiful or unhelpful. Knowing when to remove the barrier and explore further is the true test.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.

A Tombstone Tour

Main Street Tombstone

Main Street Tombstone © 2102 Bo Mackison

Tombstone, Arizona was a rough silver-mining town made famous by the O.K. Corral gunfight involving the famed cowboy family, The Earps.  Today, you can still hear gunfire in the streets, but it is only from re-enactments staged at a variety of locations. Tombstone is proud of its Old West history, and has worked hard to maintain the National Historic Landmark District designation it received in 1961.

Boardwalk, Main Street

Boardwalk, Main Street © 2012 Bo Mackison

At one time, Tombstone had a bowling alley, four churches, an ice house, a school, two banks, three newspapers, and an ice cream parlor. Of course, this was the Wild West and Tombstone also claimed 110 saloons and 14 gambling halls. Must have been a wild place in the strongest sense of the word.

Big Nose Kate's Saloon

Big Nose Kate's Saloon © 2012 Bo Mackison

You’ve got to love any saloon named for a big nosed proprietor. In this case, Big Nose Kate takes the honors. Today the saloons serve more food than drink, but it was busy with tourists on the Sunday afternoon I walked through town.

Golden Eagle Brewery 1879

Golden Eagle Brewery 1879 © 2012 Bo Mackison

Originally known as the Golden Eagle Brewing Company, this was one of Tombstone’s first saloons, occupying a small lot. The brewery was in another structure at the rear of this restored building. There was a devastating fire at the brewery in 1883  and the building was quickly rebuilt and re-named  the Crystal Palace Saloon.

Tombstone Consolidated Mines Company

Tombstone Consolidated Mines Company © 2012 Bo Mackison

Tombstone was one of the last wide open frontier boom towns in the United States, the epitome of the American wild west legend. Silver was discovered in 1877, and over the next 13 years, 85 million dollars of silver was mined in the area. It was the largest silver production operation in Arizona.

Historic Cochise County Courthouse

Historic Cochise County Courthouse © 2012 Bo Mackison

History is preserved, time stands still in the true old West at Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park. The courthouse was built in 1882 at a cost of nearly $50,000. It was a modern and stylish building as well as the symbol of law and order in these turbulent times. It housed the offices of the sheriff, recorder, treasurer, and the board of supervisors. The jail was at the rear, under the courtroom.

Courthouse

Cochise Courthouse Historic Park © 2012 Bo Mackison

Tombstone was the county seat from 1882 until 1929, when Bisbee had enough votes to move the county seat further southeast, and the county seat was moved there. The building was vacant until 1955 when the Tombstone Restoration Commission purchased the land and courthouse. The Courthouse was restored and developed development as a historical museum. No longer under the State Park auspices, it is operated jointly by the City of Tombstone and the Tombstone Chamber of Commerce.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC, living and photographing in southern Arizona. She visited Tombstone a few days ago, town of Western lore, cowboys, and gunfights, and this is what she photographed.

 

Mission San Xavier del Bac

"White Dove of the Desert"

"White Dove of the Desert" © 2011 Bo Mackison

Mission San Xavier del Bac is located only a few minutes south of Tucson, Arizona, on the Tohono O’Odham Indian Reservation. The mission was founded by Father Eusebio Kino, a Franciscan missionary, in 1692. Father Kino also founded the mission at Tumacacori, located 20 miles south of San Xavier, and several other missions in southern Arizona and in Sonora, Mexico.

The church, which is a National Historic Landmark, was built in 1783-1797. It is the oldest European structure in the state of Arizona.

Sacristy,  Mission San Xavier del Bac

Sacristy, Mission San Xavier del Bac © 2011 Bo Mackison

San Xavier’s interior is filled with many pieces of original statues and mural paintings, all dating from the 18th Century. The Baroque architecture has many dramatic features including painted faux doors, wood sculptures painted to resemble marble, and many niches that hold statues in curtained surroundings. It is all quite intricate and full of ingenious detailing.

Mission San Xavier del Bac, Interior

Interior, Mission San Xavier del Bac © 2011 Bo Mackison

Once inside the church, one barely knows where to look first. There are more than 300 angels an over one hundred saints represented in paintings, sculptures or bas reliefs. Many of them are highlighted in gold leaf.

It is hard not to look in amazement at the decorative features that cover nearly every inch of this masterpiece. The church has undergone several restoration projects, and some of the nations’ most talented art conservators gave new life to much of the art a decade ago. It’s an amazing collection of church art, considering it was conceived and constructed over 200 years ago.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is living in Tucson for two months, exhibiting her photography in art shows, taking photographs, and blogging about photography, art fairs, and living life “solo.”  There are many gifts to find, here in the desert.

Painted Desert Inn – National Architectural Treasure

Painted Desert Inn in Petrified Forest National Park

Driving through the Petrified Forest National Park, one expects to see old rocks and scrub deserts and a lot of open space. But there is another treat of a different sort, right in the middle of the park – the recently restored Painted Desert Inn. The Inn has earned the designation of a National Historical Landmark.  This designation was given to the Inn as a significant historic place with exceptional quality, which illustrates the heritage of the United States.

The inn was constructed between 1937 and 1940 in the Spanish-Pueblo Revival style and the interior spaces have an unusually high quality of design. There is a sitting room, dining room, kitchen and tap room in the main part of the building. Rooms were attached to the building, but each had a separate outside entrance. A generator provided electricity, and water was hauled from the closest town, Adanama, which was located 10 miles away.

When I spoke to the park ranger, he said the inn was located in the “absolute middle of nowhere” when it was in operation in the early 1940s, and only attracted a few truckers from nearby Route 66. The rooms – there were only 4 rooms and 2 of them were used by park rangers – were rather primitive, having bunk beds, a dresser, and outdoor facilities. The attached main building, however, was quite elegant.

Murals by Hopi artist, Fred Kabobie

Murals in Dining Room by Fred Kabobie ©2008 Bo Mackison

The murals throughout the inn are by the late Hopi artist, Fred Kabotie. During the restoration, art conservationists restored the murals using a technique where tiny dots of paint were applied to the design only where the paint had deteriorated. Much of the mural maintains its original integrity.

The inn was restored to its 1940s condition during the last several years, and it is just the type of place where I would love to spend a few nights, maybe even a few weeks. Maybe even a few months. I love this region! Out in the middle of the desert, no lights, a sky full of stars at night, and great vistas during the day.

 

Unfortunately for me, it no longer operates as an inn, but the building can be toured as part of a visit to the Petrified Forest National Park.

Id Like a Desert View, Please!

“I’d Like a Desert View, Please!” ©2008 Bo Mackison

If you drive on I-70 across Arizona, you drive right through the center of the park, though I’d recommend taking a break from the interstate because you cannot see the inn (and the really cool parts of the park) unless you drive on the main park road. Spending at least a few hours checking it out “up close and personal” is really a treat.

This building beautifully demonstrates architecture designed to fit into its setting. The simplicity of the lines and the desert color palette used to paint the inn are complementary to the Painted Desert setting. Truly a lovely building to explore if you are planning a trip to the park.

No way is this a “drive-by.”