Crocus

Crocus in a forest on Medvednica, near Ponikve meadow

Spring is here.

I know that spring is here because I start noticing people noticing people more.
There is more daylight so some are starting with beach-body-friendly activities
- like running -
but they are not running in my time.

Tonight I ran through the neighbourhood and it is in bloom
- plums and apricots and daffodils
and primroses -
but most beautiful sight was green mist of a budding salix sepulchralis in front of a street light,
wetly emerald and vibrant with life.
Lately,
I'm preoccupied with sociopolitical moment in Croatia,
and how I'm not at all surprised by it*
but also how futile I regard participation in this daily whirl of redneck display of impotence.

It is like a huge bear made of ice,
imposing and fright-provoking at first sight,
but likely to melt not only if heated by action but also natural environment.

Rodin @ Art Pavilion in Zagreb

I do not see myself as stingy
but I’m definitely not a squanderer.
It may seem from my lavish lifestyle here on the blog that I easily part with money when tickets are in question
 - and also there’s that notion of spending on experience vs. spending on stuff -
but the narrative usually goes like this:
there is no amount too small not to ask myself: “Do you really need that?” over it.

So, there is Rodin exhibition in Art Pavilion in Zagreb.

Even though there is "NO photos" policy I sneaked one from the bag. Hence, blurred.

I enjoy seeing a nice art show
and I also enjoy sharing that experience with friends
so when I spoke about seeing the show
my friend immediately jumped on a wagon
and when she does very often this is a done deal so I always take good care NOT to lay out my plans prematurely.

But even so, when we arrived to Art pavilion last Saturday and were confronted with being able to see the entire showroom in one line of sight on one side,
and price of 50 kn (approx. 7.5$) on the other
my determination to see the show became week at the knees
and I asked myself: ”Do you really need this?”
and the answer was: "Yes, yes I do. I really do need to take this time to see this stuff in perspective and I am willing to give this dough to make it happen."

So I coughed up some minks for my ticked and we went in.

This was one extremely well thought out and presented show.
In the beginning there was this digest of information
in chronological order
but also in very layman-audience-friendly order
with not many academic references
and A LOT of real life references
putting his life and his work into perspective
thus making us empathize with the artist and see him as a fellow human being.

After reading this panel I went around and paid a short visit to all the works there
and there weren’t many
but they were chosen with care,
especially care to see the details from his biography on the wall made into metal and stone.

What I loved most:

Busts of his two lady friends
- Camille Claudel and Rose Beuret -
presented one next to the other.
It is not difficult to imagine one being attracted to same face at two different ages - all at once.

“I am beautiful” statue.
Strength, passion, attractiveness and juxtaposition of sexuality and emotion.

Balzac - nude study with protruding belly 
(Nude Study of Balzac (Type C))
This is such a wonderful piece I cannot begin to describe it.
Maybe it is best said that it was extremely hard for me not to grab this perfect, virile,
muscular yet also indulgent but cheek.
I think this nude embodies all that Rodin’s art was/still is;
a provocation at first glance but actually celebration of earthly beauty.
I can imagine the artist pondering over lunch
or some other seemingly insignificant time of daily existence
some elbow or but cheek or spine ridge
chiaroscuro
from his mind into reality.

Magic.

Exhibition is open until September 20th. Go see it.

Update 25Jan2017:
Until  some new Zagreb exhibition here is one lovely link with additional resources on Rodin's bio, works and up-to-date Rodin exhibition listings. Check it out!

MOCP day 19 - Supplies

Most of my supplies come from eBay.

The possibility to shop there has turned my creative existence upside down.

I love having this option of buying good stuff from people halfway around the globe and just waiting a bit for mailman to surprise me with wonderful gifts.

I have no bad experiences with online shopping. Even stuff that did not find its way to my mailbox was later received - after I contacted sellers thay were more than willing to help me and to re-send things if they did not come first time around.

Other things I buy in hobby and yarn shops in Zagreb, like this Pazinka yarn in the photo. Sadly Pazinka factory has gone under not managing to survive privatization turmoil during 1990s but some of their stuff still manages to come afloat somehwere to be snatched in an instant.

It's funny how politics determines even the smallest details of our lives. There is really no merit to ignoring the world around us since it definitely does not ignore us back.

Mistletoe

One of my friends is just going through nauseating breakup.


Dating while being over 30 is awkward business, having kid and dating is ordeal without real comparison - and that is only when things go well. If they're not going well...


She told me what is happening; not the whole deal - just bits and pieces, as us shy ones usually do - and my blood boiled from fury. I sat there, listening, just breathing, while sounds of blood gusts from my heart rang in my ears like traffic-jam noise, while she put out self-doubt after self-doubt, justification for him after justification for him.


And then I started replying - at first slowly and trying my best to use Socratic method and not to yell, but it did not really go well as I was ingulfed in desire to go out and break his knee-caps. She was startled but at the same time freed of constant societal pressure to act as a lowly female and it felt as my anger and my assuredness was healing some desperate wound in her, filling up a void of uncertainty and doubt. Later on we met some people, we laughed loud and were jovial and relaxed and I felt our hearts reach out and hug. Like they would if we were war veterans - roles that would be more easily socially accepted having post-traumatic stress syndrome then our current ones - being single parents dating. And I went home and kept quiet.


Later on, I started talking about this, verbalising stuff I've just let sit a day or two, and monstruos words came out. Words celebrating disconnectedness and fear. I was appalled by myself and just sat there with tears rolling down my cheeks.


So I went out yesterday morning, to walk and to socialize without speaking, went to Samobor and as we went by Vugrinščak pools there were those high trees from the photo above covered in mistletoe shrubs.


Mistletoe: "to be kissed under it" plant.


And it is holliday season.


Against better judgement we will all succumb to hope.

Filigrain Mushrooms

Rijeka Harbor At Sunset

We were already driving uphill towards highway to Zagreb when I remembered that I didn't snap any photos today and went to rectify that. It was a very busy day and I was pleased to see so meny things done. All the way back to Zagreb I thought about Porcupine Tree Heartattack in a Layby. It is such a beautiful song, and there is so much said in so few words. Surely it is a great blessing not knowing everything the future will bring. Life seems more personalized that way.

Bark Dlue

I traveled to Rijeka and back today through snow-covered Delnice. I was a bit shocked by the amount of snow there but also dazzled by its beauty. I had to get up really early and when I woke up I remembered I had a great dream just before I woke up, but I couldn't remember what it was about. After a while, when we arrived to Rijeka, it all came back; in this dream my friend and I came to Rijeka and met with some people which we did not know. We introduced ourselves and chatted a bit and then the people we met told us they would accompany us to where we were supposed to go. We started walking through some derelict buildings and passageways and eventually we got to a kind of half-open space with couple of iron gates in various directions. In a few moments it became obvious that it is some kind of zoo, with animals behind every gate. I stayed close to my "guide" but some of the other people were entering the habitats and petting the animals. As all of the animals were big and fierce - lions and tigers and other kinds of wild animals - I was very surprised and confused why is everyone so brave and eager to go into pens and touch the animals. My guide, who was a handsome guy I was sure I never met before, was trying to encourage me to go in and play with the animals so I got into one pen and after a quick moment one dark blue velvet lion with beautiful dark blue sparkly mane came running to cuddle with me. He was warm and soft and dark blue and cuddly and very beautiful and I hugged him and ran fingers through his mane still wondering how come everyone is so brave to be playing with wild animals and then I realised all of the animals had shoes on. They were all just dressed up people. I woke up wondering how true could this be - are we really so consumed in our interpretations and expectations so not to see something so revealing as pretense? I liked the dream very much and I can still remember the softness and sparkling beauty of my lion's dark blue mane.

Perfect Postcard

We had beautiful last day on Kaprije, a bit fresher after the rain with clear air and high visibility. We climbed to the Kaprije summit and enjoyed the sight of Zirje and Kornati and smaller isles nearby.

Kaprije

It is my first visit to Kaprije, island in Sibenik sea territory. It is about an hour long trip by fast boat from Sibenik and the island itself is quite quaint and lovely. What I love the most is that I have great conversation partner, vigil and interested in keeping coversations fact-packed and focused and in the same time ladden with impressions and emotion circumstance interpretations.

Afternoon in Sibenik

So, we're off to our vacation, my offspringess and I, and today we're exploring Sibenik. We started off way too early and have arrived hours before our ferry so we decided to spend our afternoon wandering trough Sibenik Sunday streets. Crickets are chirping in the high sun and air is saturated with smell of the sea and pine resin. I wonder how I ever lived so strung out and flooded with emotions of every experience so I could not form memories. Being calmer surely offers great value for how I spend my time.

Serenity Squeal

There was no divorcing on Monday. Oh, well... had I not been prepared for another episode of 'Believe It or Not' I would have been propperly pissed. But I had been prepared, sadly. Everything is postponed for October so nobody could say Croatian Justice Department dilly-dallies. In the meantime my offspringess and I went for a walk after yesterday's rain and we shot some great photos of our neighbourhood.

Insect Beauty

This stunningly beautiful guy attracted my attention during Friday trip to Rijeka. He was about 2 inches long and grooming about 3,5 inch antennae on gas station near Karlovac. He patiently allowed me to take bunch of his photos and to be bewildered with clever and functional design of his body. I searched for extra information when I got home and it seems to me that he could be Neocerambyx Raddei of the longhorn beetles.

Last impressions

It is our last day on Murter. We made our rounds to all nooks and crannies found. We waved our goodbyes to sea urchins and fig trees and in the morning we leave for Zagreb.

Rastoke

Slunjcica waterfalls in Rastoke.