South by South America Tour – Chile Part 4
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Santiago, Chile
La Musa de André Chénier (1907) by Denys Peuch at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
O Si No by Carlos Altamirana at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
Huasos Andinos by Ramon de Zubiaurre at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
Monumento Editado by Andrés Duran at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
This afternoon, I hit up three spots, the first being the huge Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, which, true to its name, is chock-full of beautiful art, ranging all the way from traditional paintings and sculptures to modern conceptual and installation art. In my humble opinion, the art of antiquity is almost always a pleasure to look at, but some of the modern stuff comes across as either lazy and / or tacky, although some of it is well done, too.
An unknown sculpture at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
Empty Boys from the series House Beautiful: Bringing the War Home, in Vietnam (1967-72) by Martha Rosler at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
Secuencia by Maximo Corvalan-Pencheira at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
Entre la Lavadora y la Pared by Benjamin Appel at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
“The Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes is one of the major centers for Chilean art and for broader South American art. Established in 1880, the organization is the oldest in South America, and is managed by the Unión Artística. The current building, El Palacio de Bellas Artes, dates to 1910 and commemorated the first centennial of the Independence of Chile. Situated in the Parque Forestal of Santiago, the building was designed by the Chilean architect Emile Jéquier in the neoclassical second empire and Baroque revival styles, strongly reinforced with art nouveau details and touches of metallic structural architecture. Behind it is located the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo of the University of Chile, in which is also located the Escuela de Bellas Artes.”—Wikipedia
It takes two to waltz at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile.
Some fancy buildings on Avenida Lastarria in Santiago, Chile.
La Conquista by Laura Galez at the Museo de Artes Visuales in Santiago, Chile.
Exploracion No. 6 by unknown at the Museo de Artes Visuales in Santiago, Chile.
Next, I walked a few blocks west over to the Museo de Arte Visuales, a small contemporary art museum set inside a new, minimalistic building containing four galleries. With its open air plan, the whole look and layout of the place was very sharp yet inviting. Most of the art on display was really quite nice looking. Ranging from some small, minimal Sol Lewitt-esque assemblages to fanciful hanging wire sculptures to expressive humorous paintings, and more, it’s easy to see it all in an hour or less.
Dialogos by Julia San Martin at the Museo de Artes Visuales in Santiago, Chile.
A castle-like tower at Cerro Santa Lucia in Santiago, Chile.
A view from the top of Cerro Santa Lucia in Santiago, Chile.
For my third and final stop, I walked a few more blocks west to Cerro Santa Lucia, a small, hilly park filled with grass, trees and shrubs, narrow pathways between boulders up steep cobblestone stairs, and semi-dilapidated castle-like towers that serve as scenic overlooks. The place is seriously fun to hike around, boasting plenty of climbs. In the afternoon, the crowds can get thick up on the top platform of the highest peak, as it offers the best sweeping panoramic views of Santiago from this park. What a pleasant ending to another fun day in this colorful, eccentric and fun city.
Words and photos ©2019 Arcane Candy.
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