From monotonous gray back to a colorful and varied week, thanks to some activities I tackled.
Sometimes things don’t go as planned and dissatisfaction sets in. I have learned that there is only one solution for such moments, which is to get active. To take things into my own hands and switch from a passive to an active mode. So I started the new week with this resolution in mind. To defy the negative mood that had dragged me down a bit last week, I filled my days with things that bring me joy.
Color therapy at the Guggenheim Museum
Let’s start with some art
Right on Monday, after a visit to the doctor, I went straight to the Guggenheim Museum to see the current exhibition “Harmony and Dissonance: Orphism in Paris, 1910-1930”. Art is always something that sparks positive energy in me and it was so good to look at the works in the exhibition. I was particularly taken with the paintings by Robert and Sonia Delaunay and their clear and beautiful color combinations. But the other masterpieces and the rhythmic color harmonies that are characteristic of Orphism were also very appealing and touched me positively. It must have been an exciting era back then in Paris. The walk home to the Upper West Side through a wintry Central Park rounded off the experience and the glistening winter sun further lifted my spirits.
The frozen Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir under a glistening winter sun
The Chaffinch
With so much positive energy, I set about realizing another bird for my Swiss Bird series, a chaffinch. I like chaffinches with their blue-grey head combined with the orange of their underside and their song, which is omnipresent on walks in the woods. Working on this motif has made me look forward to the first hikes in spring, although they will have to wait a little longer.
The Chaffinch from the Swiss Birds digital print series
Urban hiking
Instead of the forests of the Swiss Jura or the German Black Forest, it was the urban canyons of Manhattan that I roamed through this week. From my exhibition on 31 East 31st Street on Wednesday, I walked across Maddison Square Park and Union Square to 14th Street and then all the way over to the Meatpacking District and Little Island. I had seen pictures of the Hudson River frozen over somewhere online and wanted to see the ice floes floating on the river. But there was nothing to see. The photos were probably from previous years, although I have a feeling it’s been cold enough again in the last few days to freeze the river at least further upstate. Still, another welcome reprieve from the otherwise monotonous work days of the past few weeks.
From Nomad to Little Island
The best of both worlds
As this week was the last of my current stay in New York, there was always some melancholy that resonated in my heart. The other side of the wonderful life that allows me to be at home in two such exciting places. Somehow, goodbyes are always inevitable and they always hurt a little. On my last jog, I couldn’t decide whether to go for a run in Central Park or Riverside Park. After starting in Riverside Park, where it was very cold due to the wind, I jogged along 66th Street over to Central Park and then back home through the park. That way I got to experience both parks again.
Riverside to Central Park
Evening joy
Reading always grounds me. Shutting down the laptop, putting the phone away and immersing myself in a book. The world looks completely different. I’ve done this almost every evening this week and once again browsed through “The creative act: A way of being” by Rick Rubin, a book that always inspires me to become open to the universe and new inspirations that are waiting to be taken up. One exception was Friday evening, which I spent drinking and eating with friends in the Village. It was good to experience the city lights once again and the exciting people from all parts of the world. After all, the pulsating life around the clock is what drives me to New York in winter. It makes the long, dark nights much more pleasant.
An evening in the Village
Departure time
The weekend was all about winter again. Snow flurries and wind transformed Manhattan Valley and the rest of the city into a winter wonderland, creating mountains of snow on the streets. The last two days in New York were spent running last-minute errands and preparing for the trip to Basel on Sunday evening.
Snowy Manhattan Valley
