Manhattan Moments: Seeing, Reading, Viewing

MATISSE EXPLAINED The Red Studio (Museum of Modern Art (MOMA)) 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 …

Snippets for Late November

WATCHING Family Business (Acorn) 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 …

Crime, Music & Great Books

VIEWING: CRIME IN THE UK Shetland (BritBox) 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 …

Manhattan Moments: Addiction & Art

MASTER WORK 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 …