Cultural Saturday

Today we went to Madison for a museum tour of sorts. First we visited the Museum of Contemporary Art, which is not enormous but well worth the time. There was an interesting exhibit of self-portraits, as well as a video installation by the Iranian-born American Shrin Neshat. Projected onto two facing screens, it presented a haunting vision of the differences of women's lives and men's lives in her homeland. The other exhibit was of works by Shinique Smith. "Smith’s sculptures and installations," we are told, "are composed of found objects and second-hand clothing tied together in a variety of forms, including bales, totems, and reclining figures. Clothing and objects from friends and family also appear in her two-dimensional mixed-media works, imbuing them, like her sculptures, with personal meaning." I love the colors in this piece, The Favorite of the Gods.

Then we walked a few blocks to the State Historical Society Museum. We have been there before, but they were featuring a small exhibit of Native American bandolier bags. A bandolier bag was featured recently on Antiques Roadshow, so we decided to check these out.

Bandolier bags are large, heavily beaded pouches with a slit at the top. They have a beaded strap worn diagonally over the shoulder, thus resting the bag at hip level. The design is created using glass beads, a European trade good that replaced the traditional porcupine quills. The bags themselves are typically constructed from trade cloth, such as cotton, wool, velvet, or leather.

The Great Lakes Native American beaded bandolier bag was copied from those used by European soldiers to carry cartridges for their rifles. Early bags did not have a pocket, but were solely for decoration. Beaded bandolier bags were produced mainly from the latter half of the 19th century through the first half of the 20th century, but they continue to be made today.

It was not an extensive show, but it was interesting. I love museum shops, and the ones at each place were great.

After that we walked over to Maharani, our favorite (East) Indian restaurant for lunch. Then a trip to Half-Price Books, Pier 1, Gander Mountain and home.