G. FUNKY

So from Saturday to Tuesday I visited two great friends in North Dakota.  The Anderson sisters! The morning before the trip I was watching the news and I was about to travel to the coldest part of the country! But it was not a matter- it was about seeing people that I love and missed so much! I think the average temperature when I was there was zero and the highest it ever reached on afternoon was 4. whoooo hoo! One day I was ill but I was so happy it lasted only a day, I think because of the tremendous nursing back to health.  I really enjoyed being there.  I like the stillness of it, and once you get used to the cold it is all really beautiful.

This is not what it actually looked like, but this is from North Dakota! The main highway was closed when I arrived and if anyone were to traverse on it they would be fined and put into jail for up to 90 days- good thing I flew!

One thing I really enjoyed was going to the North Dakota art museum- the best in the state! We kind of went just to pass time and experience ND but it ended up being really awesome.  There was only one exhibit on display but it took up multiple rooms and floors.  It was cool because you could just see the one artist working and each room had a different feel, or a different stage in her life.

The artist was from Portland and most of the exhibit was about loss.  I felt a sense of freedom and lightness, but also depth and sadness as we walked through the exhibit.  One part had 6,000 bird feathers connected to linen squares draped from a meditation tent.  All the colors were shades of white and grey with some blue.  It was so simple yet so profound! The artist wanted to address ways of thinking about accumulation of knowledge and wisdom.  She believes knowledge sometimes fails us but represents the accumulation of her experiences in the exhibit.  While taking 6 years to create the extended works she lost her father, father- in law, and step mother to sickness while losing her mother to suicide and herself having a brain tumor.  All the while she was raising two children. Lena McGrath Welker has really shared her experiences with me through her artwork.

I loved going to North Dakota and hope I may someday return...

Next stop-- Seattle!