2004-08-13 - 3:41 p.m. OK, it's taken me a week to describe my long weekend, but after that, we can move on to fresher topics. So, one of the other cool things about Chicago is that Barack Obama is not just a pleasant abstraction but an actual person you can vote for. (That is, if you don't elect his carpet-baggin' rival, but you wouldn't want to do that). And, finally, had a nice time at the Art Institute of Chicago gawkin' at the Seurat exhibit, which centered competely around the conception of his most famous painting. I'd always interpreted this painting as being about the two most prominent people in the frame (the couple), and the rest of the folks were thought-images projected out from their subconscious minds. But apparently, I was wrong. And I never realized that the lady in the picture has...a pet monkey! And this exhibit features an entire section of studies of just the monkey! My heart raced. But the real treat at the Institute was discovering the work of the photographer Irene (Iris?) Spiegel (unGooglable), who uses Photoshop and inkjet tomfoolery to create amazingly dense, morphing photocollages in vibrant colors...not abstract exactly, just surreal. Some of them are huge and some are CD booklet-sized (Chicago bands looking for cool cover art, alert!) Reading Augusten Burroughs' Dry, which is so perfect...such a funny and moving book that I don't want it to end, I want it to keep me company through every train ride, every lonely evening. thoughts? (8 comments so far) previous - next blog archive contact