The Red Studio is a fascinating exhibit. Seeing Matisse’s painting of his studio with the deep red background and then seeing many of the actual paintings and other works depicted there right in the MOMA gallery was somewhat mind-blowing. The explanations (they were more than just labels) provided the locale for each work and some details on what Matisse was looking at or doing in the art. It’s one of the best art exhibits I’ve been to in a long time. Sheer pleasure!
Cyclamen, 1911
Large Red Interior, 1948
The Blue Window, 1913
EASY READING
The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor–the Truth and the Turmoil by Tina Brown
If you want all the juicy details of the past twenty years of the British royal family, then Tina Brown’s latest work is for you. In The Palace Papers, no one, except perhaps the Queen herself, is left unscathed. Many readers will be very familiar with Princess Diana’s history, but this book provides much in the way of backstories on Camilla, Prince Andrew, Prince William, and Kate, and more about Prince Harry and Meghan than has appeared in the American press.
As a Brit and someone who has covered and spent time with some of these royals, Brown is overall fair and balanced in her account. It’s a long book, but I was quickly immersed in it for several days.
This three-part historical series is about another scandalous divorce, this one that of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll. Margaret Campbell was Duke Ian Campbell’s third wife. Their marriage was a tumultuous one to say the least. Margaret liked the company of men, lots of men, and may have had affairs with many of them. Ian was volatile, physically aggressive, short of cash, and probably also adulterous.
The real Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll (National Portrait Gallery)
Their divorce trial in 1963 was a scandal more for what it revealed, or at least presented as truth, about Margaret Campbell. Neither character is likable, but Claire Foy is excellent as the wife and a far cry from who she was as Queen Elizabeth in The Crown.
Note: Photos by JWFarrington. Header photo is Matisse’s Still Life with Geraniums.
This French series features an all-female legal firm practicing family law. Think marriage contracts, divorces, custody issues, and adoption. Two of the three lawyers are a mother, Astrid, and her daughter, Audrey, plus Sofia, the second partner. Both partners are single, while Audrey has two children and a somewhat hapless husband. The cases are serious, but also sometimes bizarre: a custody battle over a stubborn bulldog, for example.
Add in a large dollop of sex and you have moments that are fun and frivolous. Note the fashionable clothes and the always in vogue, stiletto heels. There are at least two seasons and I’m about a third of the way through Season 1.
READING
Both/And: A Life in Many Worlds by Huma Abedin
Author Abedin (slate.com)
Many people know Huma Abedin, longtime aide to Hillary Clinton, mainly because of her husband Anthony Weiner. But there is much more to this woman than her role as a suffering spouse. With an Indian father and a Pakistani mother, she was raised Muslim and grew up alternating between Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Her father’s scholarly work and academic career meant they traveled abroad extensively. Starting her post-college life as a White House intern, Huma quickly advanced to more responsible positions until she became one of Clinton’s closest staff members. I am about one-third into the book and have yet to meet her future spouse.
I’ve enjoyed learning about her childhood experiences and reading the details of what it’s like to be an advance person or a trip coordinator for a high-level politician. Thus far, her perspective on Clinton is positive and almost affectionate. She is fair and not at all mean spirited about others in her work orbit. I imagine Abedin’s charmed life will become less so as events unfold.
DINING REPRISE
Bonefish Grill in Bradenton
Bonefish Grill is a chain restaurant, founded and headquartered in Tampa, and a consistently very good one. We frequently dine at their Cortez Road location about a 5-minute drive from home and are seldom disappointed. The prices are reasonable, there are weekly specials, and the fish is fresh.
The Chief Penguin is a big fan of their ahi tuna sashimi and the Wagyu beef dumplings, while I like the grilled shrimp and scallop combo or salmon with mango salsa. The Caesar and house salads (the latter with hearts of palm and black olives) are also good. If you’re feeling decadent, forget calories with their famous Bang Bang Shrimp. For drinks, have a glass of Chardonnay or indulge in a smoked old fashioned. The wait staff changes frequently, but the food is always reliable!
Jimmy Perez is back! I missed the Scottish crime series Shetland, when it went into hiatus after five seasons. I was delighted to discover that Season 6 is now available on BritBox, not sure about on other online services. New episodes are released on Tuesdays. The Chief Penguin and I eagerly watched the first episode, and were not disappointed. Detective Jimmy Perez is at his mother’s funeral when his colleague Tosh notifies him of the death of a prominent member of the community. As in other seasons, the investigation begins, but is not completed in one episode. As I think of the many crime series I’ve watched over the past few years, this one ranks among the best!
Brethren members with Detective Matthew Venn (thescottishsun.co.uk)
While browsing new offerings on Amazon Prime, I came upon this other offering through BritBox. It’s another crime series set in England, and it’s based on work by Ann Cleeves. Ms. Cleeves is the very successful author of the Shetland series mysteries and ones featuring detective Vera (also a series, but not one I’ve watched). Here detective Matthew Venn, a gay man, is estranged from his family. He grew up in a closed, tightly ordered religious society and left about twenty years ago full of bitterness, anger, and sorrow. When a young girl in that community goes missing, he and his police colleagues are tasked with locating her. Like Shetland, this is a compelling drama of relationships as much as it is about crime. There are 4 episodes in this season.
In the lovingly told documentary, Martin Scorsese brings to life the history of an 1826 opera concert in Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York. Scorsese provides background on the historical figures, Mozart’s librettist, for one, who were central to the concert, and details the concert’s role in forming the city’s cultural life. The re-creation of this event in 2018 for a modern audience is the motivation for the film.
Scorsese grew up near the cathedral and has fond recollections of the neighborhood and the role of this church in his life. As concert plans and preparations are underway, there are interviews and clips with the maestro and soloists of Teatro Lirico Cagliari of Italy who will perform. Overall, it’s a fascinating piece of history. And, if you are so inclined, you can separately watch the 2018 performance also on PBS.
AWARD BOOKS: A GREAT READING ASSIGNMENT
I receive Washington Post book reviewer Ron Charles’ e-mail newsletter, Book Club, each week. His take on new literature is always informative, often quirky, and piques my interest in what I might read next. In this week’s issue, he detailed an assignment his high school teacher spouse gives her students. I think it’s a great assignment and so, I’m sharing it and at the end the books the students will be evaluating. You can read another issue of his newsletter here.
My wife, Dawn, has started one of her favorite projects with her 11th graders. She brings in copies of the five finalists for the National Book Award in Nonfiction and breaks the class into five groups. Each group reads the first chapter of one of the finalists. Then the students devise criteria for a winning book and explain to the class how well their finalist meets those standards.
Next Wednesday, just hours before the National Book Awards ceremony, her students will vote on which title they think should win. It’s a fun way to introduce these kids to the country’s best new nonfiction books.
You can follow along, too. The NBA ceremony will stream on Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. ET. (free, but donations appreciated). I’ll be there (virtually) to introduce Nancy Pearl, winner of this year’s Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community.
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe
For anyone who’s read Radden Keefe’s book about the Irish Troubles, Say Nothing, you know him as a nonfiction writer who draws you in with meticulous detail and creates a novel-like reading experience. His latest work, Empire of Pain, is equally meticulous and an absolutely fascinating study of the self-absorbed, greedy, and corrupt Sacklers. How many museums or universities here and abroad have Sackler Wings? The family was eager to put its name on and in buildings as a condition of its philanthropy. But they were secretive to an extreme about not having the Sackler name appear anywhere in relation to their business ventures.
The first hundred pages of this hefty work are the history and legacy of Arthur Sackler, older brother to Mortimer and Raymond, and the individual responsible for crafting the questionable marketing practices later adopted by Purdue Pharma. Purdue Pharma, as is well known today, is the maker of Oxycontin and was controlled and micromanaged by the Sackler brothers and their children. Their total denial of any connection between their product and addiction and their singular lack of any remorse for the opioid epidemic are appalling, as is the almost complete lack of any penalty for their actions.
It’s a case study of a family living in their own bubble aided and abetted by a cadre of loyal staff and easily manipulated government officials. Highly recommended! (~JWFarrington)
WORKS OF ART
Museum of Modern Art
Fruit Dish, 1908-09, Pablo Picasso
This was our first visit to MoMA since they added on to their building in 2019. We were pleased with the larger space and the chance to see more of the permanent collection on display. We went during the members’ hour on Monday and had many of the galleries to ourselves. We spent our time on the 5th floor and delighted in seeing familiar works (Monet’s huge water lilies in their own room) along with ones new to us. I especially liked a Picasso still life in greens against brown, a bold flower-dominated canvas by Stettheimer, and a colorful lady in the park by August Macke. The latter one really captivated me.
Family Portrait, II, 1933 by Florine StettheimerLady in a Park, 1914 by August Macke
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Little Fourteen-Year-Old Dancer by Edgar Degas
There is so much to see at the Met that we went back for a second visit. This time, we were interested in viewing the Impressionist collection and other works of that period. I was struck by this striking bronze sculpture of a young dancer wearing a tutu made of cotton.
I also very much liked two ladies in pink by Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt.
The Pink Dress, c.a. 1870 by Berthe MorisotThe Cup of Tea, c.a. 1880-81 by Mary Cassatt
Central to these galleries are the marvelous paintings from the Annenberg Collection. The Philadelphia Museum of Art had hoped to be the hometown beneficiary of Walter and Lenore Annenberg’s collecting, but alas for them, it was not to be. Once loaned to the Met for six months each year, their collection then was given to the museum in a bequest.
Bouquet of Sunflowers, 1881 by Claude Monet
Here is gallery after gallery of Renoirs, Cezannes, Manets, Monets, Pissarros, and Van Goghs. They are a treat to behold! And since we went first thing in the morning, the galleries were empty for for awhile.
FOOD FARE
As I have mentioned before, our most frequent go-to place for dinner is the small French restaurant, Sel et Poivre. It’s comfortable, quiet, with relaxed service, a nicely priced prix fixe menu, daily specials, and other tempting dishes. Recently, we’ve made more selections from the main menu. Here are two of them: a white asparagus special and tomato and mozzarella salad. Both appealing on the plate and both very good!
Note: All photos by JWFarrington. Header photo is a flower box near Rockefeller Center.
