art – Page 24 – Lorin Duckman Today

Looking Up

Is is a bird, an anthropod or a fern leaf?

Three Trees at Green Cay

Just missed the light. Nothing too dramatic. Photos should have a wow factor. Sometimes they just feel good.

That Man From Rio Is Still Good

Belmondo, just an ordinary good looking guy, and a babe, chase stolen art. Spielberg used this movie to make Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Belmondo still lives, despite being debilitated by a stroke. He did several of the stunts. The babe is dead. Karen Allen character based on her. There is also a Short Round character.

Lovers of French Cinema, Hitch and Tintin will love this movie.

Movies are an antidote to Trumpitis.

Gene Joyner’s Unbelievable Acres Botanical Gardens

Gene Joyner build a rain forest in West Palm Beach that few have visited. Called Unbelievable Acres Botanic Gardens, it is open to the public by appointment or on select tour dates. Featuring rare tropical fruits, foliage plants, flowers, trees and a host of other botanical creatures, many of which you have not seen. Running around are a host of reptiles that love the heat and humidity, in addition to a bountiful supply of bugs. Its a treasure.

This leaf has a name. I cannot remember all Gene taught me. Years ago, he was the botanist for the State of Florida. This garden/rain forest was built from scratch, by him. You have never seen anything like it.

Baby Driver

BABY DRIVER – great summer escape movie, especially if you like Heist movies. I mean great, even for a 70 year old grouch. Good guys, Spacey, Hamm and Foxx, playing bad guys. Terrific car chases: streets, parking garages, highways. Lots of corrupt people die. Romance. Tarantino like diner scenes. Music, music, sounds and fury. AND, for the DEFENSE ATTORNEYS, a heartwarming, though somewhat unbelievable, courtroom/justice scene.

Stay focused until the end.

Lizard at Morikami

We encountered this lizard who will remain nameless at Morikami in Del Ray Beach. He left Mar A Lago because there were no free lunches and no health care. He’s looking forward to being a member of the hoo poilloi.

Shelly Isaacs, Cafe Cinématique

Not much good to say about where I live. Lots of ill-mannered New Yorker/New Jerseans who rush everywhere, drive madly and think they know it all. Arts and crafts. Cards. Golf. Restaurants, especially early bird specials. Lots of lines, people who talk about grandkids and coupons.

Not a lot of culture, even though we have several museums, nature walks and a plethora of movie theaters. People who watch MSNBC and CNN talk like they have a seat at the table, never mind the ones who watch Fox who control foreign policy. One day in the gym, three televisions had Fox news on, entertaining people on treadmills and stationary bikes.

But, we do have Shelly and his movies. He introduces movies you might not go to see and leads discussions at their conclusion. Always upbeat and tolerant of dumb comments, he increases awareness of cinematic art.

Now, remember, I am a photographic artist, a cult that people know little about, despite the democratization of cameras and photo making. I constantly strive to see better. Shelly’s incisive comments help me to watch movies more critically, though he’s more reviewer than critic. Going to his movies makes life a little more bearable down here.

Day#4 Athens

So, you are asking, why travel. One reason is to see the antiquities. Go back to where organized governments started, albeit ones that didn’t treat all people, especially women equally. They had slaves, too, some of whom had talent and built this place. Seeing it in art and history books just ain’t the same, despite the crowds, the climb and the weather. I felt the togas.