A Small, but Vibrant Art Museum in a City Known For Its Art!
Artwork Above by Carolina Aranibar-Fernández
There are a number of cities known for their art museums and art events, but Scottsdale takes art to a whole new level! Not only does this city of 250,000 have fantastic and plentiful public art, dozens of wonderful art galleries to browse, downtown art walks every Thursday night, but it also boasts the unique and interesting Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.
When I visited in mid-February, there were three featured special exhibits. All were interesting and I learned quite a bit. My favorite exhibit was a digital exhibit by a Dutch artist named Roelof Knol. The exhibit was entitled “The Space in Between.” It consisted of shapes and colors projected onto the floor melding into each other. So often we are asked to look up in an art museum. It was a unique experience to view the exhibit from above. I have to admit I was rather transfixed by this exhibit and went back in the room several times to enjoy it. I also am a huge fan of spotting shapes, despite the fact geometry was not my favorite subject. I think if there had been someplace to sit in the exhibit I might have stayed all day! The exhibit will be showing until July 28, 2024. See some photos and videos below. And learn more at the link.
https://smoca.org/exhibition/roelof-knol-the-space-in-between/
Warning: The following video includes flickering lights and movement. Please do NOT play if you have epilepsy or are sensitive to this type of content.
The other exhibits were just as interesting and varied. There was a collection of works by a prolific female artist, Dorothy Fratt, who has been under-recognized. There was a guided tour of her works while I was there so I stopped for a few minutes to listen and learn. More information is provided at the link below.
Two more favorite exhibits I sort of discovered by accident. I was looking for a place to down and discovered a covered atrium area on one side of the museum with a beautiful work of art. While relaxing and viewing that I could hear some voices behind a curved wall down the so I went to investigate. I discovered a small circular, concrete room with a built in bench all the way around. There was a friendly guy who was enjoying the space with his adorable dog, who said he and his dog come there frequently. As we were talking, I noticed there was a circular hole in the cone-shaped ceiling, emphasizing the baby blue sky and the puffy white clouds. What a wonderful way to give you a different perspective on the beauty of the sky on an ordinary day!It’s a work of art that changes every minute of every day. I loved it! 😍
So if you’re ever in Scottsdale, be sure to stop by this small but powerhouse contemporary art museum. You never know what you will discover!