Our room doesn't have a coffeemaker in it but you can go to the office at 7 a.m. and use their Keurig. I woke a little before 7 and got two cups. Gayle smelled the coffee as soon as I returned to the room. I was hoping to watch the sunrise out our window while I drank coffee. I can't see the horizon in any direction from where I live. However, I forgot we had driven 6 1/2 hours west to the very edge of Central time zone. The sunrises quite a bit later here. So I got ready for the day and sat looking out the window while I put on my makeup.
At 9:10 a.m. we arrived at Aster Bakery in search of a fresh croissant. They open at 9 a.m. and they were already sold out of croissants. They sell out almost as fast as my son's bakery. :) We opted for other choices and sat down to eat pastries and drink hot tea. I had gotten what I thought was a packet of honey for my tea. Gayle couldn't stop giggling when I emptied a packet of mustard into my tea. I think it was the highlight of her day. I quickly scooped out blobs of mustard. Gayle found me the correct packet of honey and explained to me that the word honey and the word mustard were clearly written on each packet. I drank all my tea and hardly noticed a hint of mustard in it.
I loved Aster Bakery. On the wall was my favorite poster. I looked it up when I got back to the room and found it was a review on Trip Advisor.
After we finished our pastries we headed out to explore Marfa a bit. We drove past the Marfa Yacht Club.
I love the graffiti in this liberal wacko town.
I had made reservations at the Chinati Foundation to see the minimalist art of Donald Judd. His art is displayed in two large Army barracks and on the land around the barracks. We walked down to the first barrack and realized that without a place to sit and rest awhile, Gayle would be miserable. So they brought us a wheelchair and we slowly passed by 52 aluminum works. They all had the same footprint but each rectangle was a bit different, causing different reflections and illusions. They weren't small. Each rectangular work was around 5' by 4' and around 3' tall. Gayle and I quickly learned that we aren't fans of minimalist art. We decided that we would not go to the second barracks and see 48 more aluminum rectangles.
The man at the front office had offered to take us out on an ATV to see the cement works. We decided we really didn't have any desire to see large cement rectangles, each a bit different than the one before it.
So we got on the road out of Marfa heading west. There are a couple roadside art installations we wanted to see. As I mentioned previously the film Giant was filmed in Marfa. In 2018, an artist named John Cerney erected a roadside installation of plywood. We thought it would be fun to see but we didn't think it would be very impressive. It was huge.
A solar array at one end of the display powers the two speakers made to look like rocks. They play the song "Tumbling Tumbleweed". It was fun.
Further on down the road is the Prada Marfa roadside installation. The artists described the work as a "pop architectural land art project."
The plan was that there would be no upkeep to the building. They would just let it gradually degrade. But the night it opened, someone broke into it and stole the contents and spray-painted the words "Dumb" and "Dum Dum" on it. The building was immediately repaired and a security system installed. Then in 2014, someone painted the building blue, hung Toms Shoes logos on the awnings and posted a political manifesto on the door. Joe Magnano, a Texas artist, was arrested and pled guilty to criminal mischief. He had to pay $10,700 to restore the building. This roadside art installation has a steady stream of visitors. All along the back and sides of the building the fence is covered with locks from previous visitors. When we arrived a woman was having her boyfriend take her Instagram photos. We waited our turn.
As we were leaving three women arrived with signs that said "Mothers for Democracy" and "Mothers Against Greg Abbott." I talked with the woman who started this activist organization to oust the Governor of Texas. She said, "He is a bad human being and we need to get him out or make him change." I looked them up on Instagram. I love this statement on their Insta: "They say nothing changes in Texas politics till it does. Till you piss off the Texas women, then everything changes." They had brought their signs and were going to make their statement at the Prada Marfa building.
We headed back to Marfa to go to the Wrong store. It was high on our list of things to do in Marfa. They had really cool stuff that I will never be able to afford. I bought a couple cards and a book but left the cool popsicle made out of items found while walking around Marfa. I couldn't justify the $125 price tag on my fixed income.
By then Gayle was starting to fade. We came back to the Riata Inn so she could nap. I took her car and headed out to explore. I just drove around admiring how quirky and arty this town is. I loved the sign on the boutique hotel.
The mural advertising "Big Auto Parts".
Suddenly everything felt like an art installation, whether it was or not.
By then it was lunch time and I had heard from my daughter-in-law about Marfa Burrito.
Everyone writes on the sign outside and on the walls of the restaurant. A photo of Anthony Bourdain and the owner of the restaurant graces the wall. They only serve burritos and they are a cash only establishment. I ordered a breakfast burrito. It was as long as my arm. It was delicious but I couldn't possibly finish.
Then I headed to the other Chinati site to see the sculptures of car parts by the artist John Chamberlain. I was greeted and told that I could not take photos or touch the works of art. In the opening room was a large installation of foam covered in canvas. It was called "Barge." Again, I should say that minimalist art is not my favorite. I wandered past his 23 car part sculptures with names like "Folded Nude" and "Gondola Ezra Pound." I read the laminated sheet they gave me written by Chamberlain in which he shared about his work. The number of times he mentioned sexuality in relationship to his work was overwhelming. As I left the gallery I noticed the small TV playing the one film that John Chamberlain wrote and produced. I said to the gallery host, "How many times have you watched this film?" He smiled and said, "If you have read the sheet about John Chamberlain I am guessing you know what the film is about. I find it uncomfortable to watch it with others."
I walked down the three blocks on one of the main roads of Marfa. I bought a couple things but mostly things were beautiful but way too expensive for me. In amongst the shops are a couple galleries. I poked my head into the one that said it hosted Andy Warhol's Last Supper. It was the only piece in the gallery. I said to the gallery host, "I am surprised that Andy Warhol chose this subject." He said, "He is known for painting cultural icons. Who is more of a cultural icon than Jesus?" I wasn't allowed to take photos.
Another gallery I visited had artwork by Maria Zerres. She was commissioned to do a set of pieces on 911. She did them from a child's perspective. Again, no photos allowed.
I wondered into the Hotel Paisano. It is quite lovely.
They are very proud of being the headquarters of the movie Giant.
I stopped at the Cowboy Church but it was Saturday and the gates were locked.
I returned to our motel and got Gayle. We have a timed reservation to Ballroom Marfa, another art gallery in Marfa.
Their current exhibition is called Perhaps the Truth suggesting that truth is not a fixed concept but something that is shaped by experiences and shifting perspectives. It had everything from sculptures
to ceramics
to paintings.
But the big deal was the Gaudalupe Maravilla: Mariposa Relampago, which if my translation is correct means Wonderful Guadalupe: Lightning Butterfly.
We were there for the opening of this exhibit. The artist was there. His name is Guadalupe Maravilla, formerly known as Irvin Morazan. He is from El Salvador and at the age of 8 was part of the first wave of unaccompanied, undocumented children to arrive at the US border in the 1980s due to the Salvadoran Civil War. Eventually he climbed up on top of the bus and began the healing sound ceremony. Guadalupe played the gong in a mesmerizing way.
Then a woman joined him by playing the gong on the back of the bus.
Then he joined a second woman and they played the instruments on the side of the bus.
After several hours at Ballroom Marfa we went to dinner at Margaret's Restaurant. We sat at the counter and ate appetizers and dessert. The best kind of meal.
From there we drove out from Marfa in search of a place where we can catch the Taurid meteor shower. As we were looking we found this museum "Model Shipwright: Specializing in Holocaust and Rare Ships." I find that such an interesting combination.
We finally found a place at the end of a road where the golf course and city dump/recycling center sit side by side. We got out lawn chairs, blankets and red flashlight. We watched the most amazing sunset.
When we stopped enjoying the sunset and taking just one more photo, we figured out the correct direction for viewing the Taurids and pointed our chairs that way. It was a partly cloudy night, so unlike last night. We saw stars but the night sky did not come close to what we had witnessed the night before. As we sat in the cold and I worried about rattlesnakes and javelinas, we heard a pack of coyotes in the distance. I admit that it freaked me out. I am such a city girl. At least a half dozen cars came barreling down the road with their brights on. We threw our blankets over our heads so the light didn't make us start over adjusting to the dark. So basically, each car saw two old women in lawn chairs with blankets over their heads. Every car did a U-turn and drove away. We figured it was a good location for making out and drinking beer and none of them wanted to do either with us. By 9 p.m. we were cold and the clouds were preventing us from seeing the Taurid meteor shower. While slightly disappointed it had been a lovely evening of staring at the stars and being with my sister.
Marfa lived up to my expectations. I love this liberal wacko town.
No comments:
Post a Comment