Downtown Dallas Delights - DMA, Cathedral, and More

 It's time to get out of the house.  Yep - Mister has realized that his days off are coming to an end and wants at least one day of adventure to show for it.  We have tickets to a new exhibit at the DMA so are making that our first stop.

Before we enter the exhibit, Mister points out a painting that he says would make a great quilt.  He's not wrong.  It is entitled Tridim T and is by Victor Vasarely of Hungary.  This work was done in 1968.

The main exhibit we are here to see is Movement - The Legacy of Kineticism.  We enter a room and there is an image projected onto the wall in front of us.  As we watch, the shapes change and then it all disappears, leaving you with a lingering image that is different than what was on the screen.  Very cool  The exhibit is called "The Outside of Inside."  It is by Olafur Eliasson of Copenhagen, Denmark.  The write-up says, "Blurring the boundaries between art and science, Eliasson investigates questions of perception and the visitor's role in constructing the work of art.  In his projection works, the artist presents a sequence of shifting shapes in various colors to produce afterimages, through which the viewer becomes a co-producer of the work as the brain completes the colors suggested by the projection.  By reducing the building blocks of art making- perspective, depth, and optical effects - to their most essential forms, Eliasson calls attention to the very act of seeing, or 'seeing yourself seeing,' both in the gallery and in the wider world."  I REALLY loved this.

Another cool exhibit is up next.  The ceiling area is covered in lights that have chain pulls and is called Vagalume (Firefly) by Valeska Soares of Brazil.  The artist re-creates the luminescence of the fireflies with her interactive installation.  Visitors are encouraged to wade through the curtain created by pull chains of the lightbulbs overhead and turn the lights on and off.  The artist was inspired by the magical feeling of performing this simple action as a child."  It IS playful and fun.  

Another still view.

Those were the two highlights of the exhibit for me.  We then moved onto the Matthew Wong exhibit.  Called the Realm of Appearances, honestly, only one piece of work drew my attention.  It is River at Dusk.  I really like this and could easily put it in my own home.

Wanting some fresh air, we are off to Klyde Warren Park where a very large Christmas tree makes its presence known.

Once section of the park has been re-done and the Nancy Best Fountain is now in place.  There are beautiful, lighted shows twice a day, but we've missed it for now.  We'll make a trip down in the next week or so, I hope.

It's a beautiful day out and wandering the park is just so nice.

Lunch from a food truck fills the bellies and looks pretty dang good as well.

With such a nice day, we decide to just walk around downtown a bit.  We have never checked out the churches in this area.  First up, I spot the First United Methodist Church of Dallas.  

I find it interesting that over the doors you can see First M-E Church South.

To the left of the doors is a plaque that explains more.  Hmmmn.  There is a big history sign in the front that doesn't mention the Episcopal role in any way.  The doors direct us around to the other entrance, so off we go.

On the side there is what appears to be the original entrance to the chapel.  It looks like some renovation is taking place inside.

Beautiful windows on the side.  I can't wait to see them from the inside.

We get around to the entrance and it is locked.  There is a bell, which we ring.  It is answered and we ask to enter and are told no.  That's right - you cannot enter this church at ANY time except approximately 15 minutes before the Sunday Service until 15 minutes after it starts.  At all other times, the building is locked.  Crazy and VERY non-welcoming.

Just down the road is the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe.  Fingers crossed that this one is open.

It is!!!  As we enter, I notice right away that the entrance on the side is into a newer building, but, what is cool is that they kept the entire integrity of the original building during the addition.  Check it out.

Come along a see how absolutely lovely the inside is through pictures.  They are never as good as the real thing - but it's something.

Check out the pipe organ.

I loved this visit.  As we depart down the street - one more look back.

With more day available, we decide on a trolley ride and just enjoy the hour loop.  No hurry, no place to be.  Just riding around town and when finished, that's it.  Off to home.  See y'all around.