Cuba: The View from Sarasota

As promised, I made it to the Ringling Museum on Monday. The photos were amazing. The landscapes and the photography are lush. The clouds brood over the the black and white panoramas. One photo in particular hearkens back to the prototypical western backdrops with a lonely butte in front. Here, however, the iconic image is decidedly tropical. Before I wax too eloquent, there are only twelve large giclees. They will be on display until some time in January. This exhibit will overlap with one of modern Cuban artists, both on and off the island, as I understand it, coming on October 6. So unless you live in Sarasota, you may want to wait.

For those outside of the area, the museum itself is well worth the trip and the adult admission of $19.00. I hadn't been there since their Surrealist exhibit a few years ago. In the interim it became part of the Florida State University which has made remarkable improvements, particularly in restoring the grounds. The art museum itself is on a par with those to be found in the more cosmopolitan cities such as New York and Boston. Added in as a bonus is the circus museum and the first floor of Ringling's Ca D'Zan, modeled on the Doge's Palace in Venice. All of this is footsteps from the bay. Enough said.