My City By The Bay

This is a followup to the Chihuly post.  I took this video outside during the opening of the Chihuly exhibition at the deYoung.  There were all types of performers however this young woman was attracting quite the crowd.  She was dancing to a band who played middle eastern music and was very good.   What a great way to get some aerobic exercises - wish I could do that.

The Dale Chihuly exhibition @ the deYoung Museum.

Originally an interior design and architectural major, Dale Chihuly has become one of the most prolific artists of our time.  I had seen a PBS program depicting the inner workings of Chihuly and his teams.  I was absolutely fascinated with his creations.  The artist will sketch his ideas then paint them onto canvases lying on the ground with a broom.  He then has teams of  glass blowers and stylists which take his paintings and create his artworks.

Shortly after I saw that program his works were exhibited at the deYoung Museum here in San Francisco.  The deYoung went all out on this exhibition and hosted a celebration weekend complete with music and entertainment, not to mention free admission the first day.  I waited in line for about 20 minutes as there must have been thousands of people waiting to see the show.  When I walked into that exhibition I was in awe of his artwork.  It was nothing short of spectacular.  Rooms filled with vibrant pieces that seemed to tell a story all their own.  I walked around mesmerized at the brilliance of light and life emanating from these art pieces.  I was also so thankful that the deYoung allowed photographs.  They are usually pretty cool about that and I want to publicly express my thanks to the deYoung.

I spent probably three hours there absorbing the sheer brilliance of this artist and his creations.  I came home truly inspired knowing that for just a short time I had been in the presence of greatness.

I created a slide-show of the photos I took during the exhibition including the ones in this post so you can check it out at http://www.slide.com/r/oIYfOURBqj_R1h4h8jTGXyG7_vUDnYeV?previous_view=lt_embedded_url

For more information on Dale Chihuly visit his website at: http://www.chihuly.com

The People In Plazas concert series celebrates the local musicians in San Francisco and around the Bay Area.  It is a musical  event series which takes place between March and October of each year.  It is sponsored by local corporations and businesses in order to benefit different art programs throughout the Bay Area.The musicians perform everyday at various venues to include Crocker Galleria, Union Square, The Embarcadero and many more. The genres range from jazz to pop, to latin, hip hop, dance music and much more.

I frequent these concerts as I have a friend who regularly performs.  The photo above was taken in September at Crocker Galleria by me and is a pic of my friend vocalist Sony Holland and the Benny Watson trio.The concerts are about an hour long depending on the venue and they are free.  The locations are situated in the downtown and financial district areas of San Francisco and geared towards the lunch crowd in those areas.Free music and a leisurely lunch - what more can you ask for? If you’d like more information please visit the website at http://www.peopleinplazas.org