My son wants this Miro. It’s up for auction in about a month, and he mentioned to my lovely wife that he would like it. I checked out the auction site, and found the piece will probably fetch a low price. I’m not keen on Miro, but as the old cliche goes, “Art is in the eye of the beholder.” My lovely wife instructed for me to bid on it, as it will be HER present to him. There’s no sense in arguing with a strong willed woman such as my wife, so i’ll bid. I can’t understand his attraction for the Miro, as it’s against the grain of everything he grew up around….perhaps that is the attraction. Oh well, I’ll blow a couple of grand, get the picture, and my lovely wife will be able to give John a final gift. Reastically, this is a win, win, win situation. I’ll take that anyday. Speaking of how kids get jaded….our son grew up in a household of museum quality art. He knows the difference between good art and crap. We have several lesser quality drawings from Edgar Degas that I’ve offered him. He has passed on these, preferring to develop a collection more along modern lines. If he continues with his classical studies, the only art he’ll be able to afford is those pictures of Elvis on Satin…..no disrespect to Elvis.
My lovely wife is at stage 5(acceptance) on the Kubler-Ross model of grief. She entered this stage earlier this week, and I’m at a loss of words or thoughts. I’m just trying to present a sense of normalcy, and am going to take her out of the house tomorrow and let her sit on the beach for awhile. I’m going to do it under the guise that she needs to take some pictures of waves, surfing, and sunsets. I want her to do it tomorrow, as her strength is waning at an alarming rate.
Jeff
It’s a lovely piece, I am a big Miro fan though.
Comment by cherylfinfrock — February 26, 2008 @ 4:57 am
Cheryl,
thanks for stopping by and offering an independent opinion regarding Miro. If you browse through the back pages of my blog, I’ve included pictures of about 30% of our collection. Check it out, as you might find some oldie but goodie that you like. Although I’m not a fan of Miro, I fully support my son’s entree into starting a collection. By the time I die, he will get most of the drawings, pastels, and all of our Rembrandt etchings. We will be giving some of our other art to my alma mater’s collection and the Ringling Museum. Still, he will have a decent art collection, and I fully trust that he will be a good caretaker. That’s all that really matters in the long run.
Jeff
Comment by masteroftheuniverse — February 26, 2008 @ 5:24 am
Any one piece notwithstanding, I’m also a Miro fan. And Calder, and Picasso. And while we can maybe ‘explain’ why certain pieces get our attention, it’s tough to make others understand. But that’s perfectly ok, as that’s the beauty of art: it speaks to us individually. Or not.
Glad I found your blog, I appreciate your posts and perspectives.
Best wishes to you and your lovely wife,
Mike
Comment by aqua — February 26, 2008 @ 2:53 pm
Mike,
Thanks for stopping by.
Jeff
Comment by masteroftheuniverse — February 27, 2008 @ 12:52 am
At the risk of exposing myself as an uncultured, former floor trader (New York Futures Exchange and Chicago Board of Trade), that Miro looks suspiciously like the “art” my nieces send me.
I wish your family well in dealing with your wife’s illness.
Trader Kevin
Comment by We Are...Penn State email list — February 28, 2008 @ 9:29 pm
Kevin,
What pit did you trade in at the CBOT? When I first cut my teeth, I was at the old Mid AM. That place was a dump, but I learned a lot there.
Jeff
Comment by masteroftheuniverse — February 29, 2008 @ 3:30 am
Back-month Dow futures. I also spent some time arbing the Dow against the S&P. I had a clerk at the CME.
Yeah, I know what you mean abou the Mid-Am, it was a real rat-hole. BTW, TheMarlinLetter.com has some construction pictures as they prepare for the CME floor coming to the CBOT Building this Spring.
Trader Kevin
Comment by We Are...Penn State email list — February 29, 2008 @ 4:04 am
Kevin,
I was at the Mid Am when they were in the old Insurance Exchange building across from the CBOT. Despite it’s rat-holiness, the place had a piece of my heart. I loved that place….we used to smoke joints in the stairwells then go trade….that really ages me. I still love the MGEX, despite the fact that it will soon be all electronic in the next couple of years. I’ve held onto a couple of seats there, and might go back up next summer for a few weeks(depending on my lovely wife’s condition) to see if I still have the chops for trading in the pit.
I remember the old trading floor at the CME…boy was that place in need of overhaul. It’s funny that the exchanges all spent all that money for trading floors, when someday the floors will be in a bunch of servers.
Jeff
Comment by masteroftheuniverse — March 1, 2008 @ 1:07 am