Sunday

It's Sunday so I'm thinking about things other than chess. Like for instance how old I'll be at 12.34 on the 5/6/78. Unfortunately I'll be turning 118 which means I won't be around or I'll be unaware that I am still around.

I seem to remember learning why the days have their particular names when I was in school, but that was a long time ago. However, Sunday is the easiest of all to remember as it's named after the Sun. So it's the ideal day of the week for us immigrants from cold northern Europe in Sunny Australia. I'm  not exactly a sun worshipper, though I appreciate a nice day as much as anyone else. I have previously suffered from heat stroke so I'm always careful especially in our summer 30+ temperatures. Saying that I have worn sun symbols as jewellery for over 15 years, so I guess I could be described as a sun worshipper.

Sun Pendant

The charm that I wore for over 10 years is in the picture above. I first saw this kind of symbol while visiting Siena Cathedral where it was sitting above the front door which I thought was pretty cool. Apparently the sun symbol represents Jesus and was added at the request of Saint Bernard, and when I first saw the charm above it was sold as a St Bernard's charm. This is all linking nicely, as I've just finished Dan Brown's latest novel which is set mostly in Florence with the main character, Robert Langdon, an expert at symbology. The action moves from Tuscany to Venice, which is somewhere I intend visiting next year. It was wonderful experiencing the history and culture of Tuscany when I was last there, but apparently, St Mark's in Venice puts all else in shade. I'll admit that I was completely blown away by Siena Cathedral, and can't wait to experience St Mark's.

Stunning interior of St Mark's, Venice (from touists360)

The sun has been a symbol of worship for a long time, and is a multi cultural symbol. Throughout history the sun has been deified in cultures as diverse as Egyptian, Chinese, Aztec, and in religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism as well as the representative symbol of Christianity. In northern Europe where I was born the sun was worshipped as long ago as the stone age (4,500-2,000 BC) evidenced by petroglyphs dated to that time. England was hugely influenced by both Nordic and Roman historical influences and, not surprisingly, the sun was worshipped in both cultures. The ancient prehistoric monument, Stonehenge, has a sunstone which apparently is an observation point for the rising sun on summer solstice. I was born only about 40 miles from Stonehenge, though I don't remember that much sun in the UK when I was there!

Last year Caroline and I travelled to USA on a roadtrip in the western states. On that trip I picked up another sun symbol, this time of native American origin.

Navajo sun symbol

I saw lots of native American jewellery during that trip, most of it being Navajo, Hopi or Zuni. The Navajo Sun God is called Tsohanoai who bears the sun across the sky each day, the sun being a creation of the Navajo Goddess, First Woman. You can read about the creation of the heavenly bodies according to Navajo culture here.

As such an important natural element in our lives, it is no wonder that so many peoples have worshipped the sun throughout the years. In fact, Caroline and I are planning another trip to the USA in a couple of years time though this time to the North and into Canada. The highlight of this trip being? Well, it will be another roadtrip and the main ports of call will be Banff in Canada, and Glacier National Park in Montana, USA. It must be an omen that I'm most attracted to driving the "Going to the Sun Road" through Glacier National Park.

Spectacular views on Going to the Sun Road (wikipedia)

Monet on a Sunday

It's back to work to me tomorrow after a week off during school break. I have a relatively easy lead in with only half a normal week coming up as some schools start their chess programs in week 2 of term. Anyway, today was my last day off and I was blessed to share the day off with my wife, Caroline, so we decided to head to the National Gallery of Victoria to check out the Monet's Garden exhibition. I have seen some work of the Impressionist in Paris and New York, but never this much in one place. To have an exhibition devoted to just Monet, his life and work, was amazing. There was familiar work, but some stuff which I didn't know about and that really impressed me.

Springtime Through the Branches (courtesy Claude Monet Gallery)

This painting of the Clichy region of Paris appealed to me in it's composition (and as a chess player who has played at the annual Clichy Open, it took me back to the time I was there). In fact, the philosophy of Monet seems to be for the artist to provide an experience for the audience, and his paintings are images of light and movement. Looking at the image above, the trees in the foreground aren't still, and Monet's beautiful brush work helps us to feel the breeze that he obviously felt while painting this scene.

Monet is best known for the paintings of his gardens at Giverny, the Japanese Bridge and the water lillies series. Seeing so many of these in the exhibition gave us a great feel for this amazing garden, and the final room had a fantastic wraparound film of the last day of the season of his garden. Seeing the house with its distinctive green shutters, the overhanging archway for his rose garden, the lake with lillies and bridge, gave the exhibition and Monet's paintings of his garden a context, and gave us, the audience, a chance to see his inspiration.

The vibrant reflections that make the lake and water lillies so wonderful, and the use of light and texture were major themes of the exhibition. Earlier in his life, Monet spent time in London which he loved because of the fog: ‘I love London much more than the English countryside; yes I adore London … but what I love more than anything is the fog’

Reflections on the Thames (courtesy of allposters.com)

The whole experience took no more than a couple of hours, and seeing so many of these masterpieces, and finding out about Monet's life was a very pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. I feel I have a better understanding of Impressionist art, and have even looked online at some of his contemporaries, friends, and influences. So not only did the exhibition provide pleasure and information but also, for me at least. inspiration to look more into art as a whole, a subject I've paid little attention to over the years.