Art Travel

My wife and I love to travel. As foodies, our travel experiences often involve indulging in local cuisine. As art lovers, we also like to commemorate our trip by purchasing art from local artists. We don't collect expensive art. We collect art that we like. Art that captures the experience for us. Art that allows us to experience the trip again when we are back to the daily grind. The water color painting pictured above was purchased from a local artist at Pisac Market in Peru. Pisac is located in the Sacred Valley. We stopped on our way to see Machu Picchu. The artist at an NC State baseball cap on. I couldn't help but call out "Wolfpack," sparking a conversation. I looked at his artwork and particularly liked this painting.

This is the largest painting in our collection. The art we collect is not confined to paintings. But this one captured my attention when we were visiting Vietnam earlier this year. I had already purchased a smaller painting, but this one captivated me. We purchased it from a painter in a small woodworking village/shipyard near Hoi An, Vietnam. The artists name was Hieu. As I often do, I took my photograph with the artist before leaving. He rolled the canvas up and protected it with a plastic PVC pipe, which I toted all over Vietnam. I almost forgot it at the airport in Hue. The long tube was a pain to keep up with...so it became part of the memories of our journey. We had it professionally framed when we returned home. The frame cost more than the painting.

This photo was purchased at Masada in Israel. It is a print, purchased at the gift shop in Masada. We purchased another painting in Jerusalem, but this one is my favorite, in spite of it being just a print. The artist is Bracha Lavee, a famous Israeli painter. The story of Masada was inspiring to me. As a guy with libertarian leanings, Masada stands as an example of Patrick Henry's declaration "give me liberty, or give me death!" In keeping with that theme, I had a placard made that reads "live free or die." I can't think of a better way to express the bravery of the besieged Jews at Masada. Nor a better way to relate it to my own beliefs.

During our 2014 trip to China, we picked several items that could be considered art. From painted fans to silk scarf designs. But this is my favorite as pure art. This painting is made with silk thread. It incorporates silk, which I associate with China with pandas, the purest symbol of China I can think of. The design was hand stitched by a local artist. We purchased this in a state-run silk shop. So the actual artist was not on hand to speak to us. We also visited artisans that work with marble and jade as well as a pearl shop on our trip. We picked up smaller gifts from those shops as well. More trinkets than art. But we had the opportunity to see incredible craftsmen at work in all of the shops we visited.

I already shared one piece of art from Peru. But I want to share this one as well. During our trip to Ollantaytambo, Peru, we hooked up with an NGO that works with local weavers. The NGO is called Awamaki, in case you ever take a trip to Peru and would like to support their work. We brought a laptop down for them as well. For a modest price, an Awamaki guide drove us to a small visiting area they set up at 16,000 feet elevation. Women from around the mountains gathered to meet us and show us their craft. We learned how they use natural llama fleece to spin their thread, which we were given an opportunity to try. Not what I would refer to as a "successful attempt." The women talked to us about the animals, the many colors they provide naturally, natural ingredients they use to create the bright colors many of them wear and general stories about their lives. We looked at their wares and purchased this table runner from an exceptionally gifted artisan. The thing that most amazed me was the "system" for creating these patterns. Remember, weaving is done by line. They decide "I'm going to put birds here" and simply start weaving them into the pattern as they go. They know, line by line, what pattern will create a bird. Some of the patterns were incredibly complex. Yet they sat with us, weaving the entire time, from memory. To say we were impressed just doesn't capture our amazement. The colors in this runner are all natural.

This is just a sample of our growing collection of art from around the world. It is nice to keep this art in places where we can see it. It is a daily reminder of the people we have met in our travels. The art provides us an opportunity to decompress after a stressful day at work. It is a connection to our travel experiences that make lend them some permanence. I hope you enjoy the art. And stories.