Gravestones are not typically viewed for their design innovation and appeal. They may evoke a sense of solemn reverence, inspire an interest in the life and times of the person being remembered or provoke a fascination in the passing of time and our mortality. They may even be a Wonder of the World, as the Egyptian Great Pyramid of Giza is. But in my favorite American cemetery you will find three examples of stunningly contemporary, unique personal headstones.

The gravestone above is for Walter Paepcke and is to be found marking his grave in Aspen, Colorado. Paepcke, a wealthy Chicago industrialist, is regarded by many as the founder of contemporary Aspen, including the Aspen Institute, Aspen Ski School and Aspen Music Festival and School. Among his most notable friends was acclaimed Bauhaus creative, Herbert Bayer. One of Bayer’s most visible contributions to Aspen was the design of the Aspen Institute and the Aspen Meadows Resort. As well as the building’s architecture, which evinces Bauhaus design principles, the grounds feature earthworks that add to the Bauhaus environment.

More memorable for me, however, are the grave marker designs that Bayer conceived for Walter Paepcke’s monolith, Bayer’s daughter, Julia’s geometric squares and the offset wedding cake style for his mother in law, Mina Loy. Loy herself was a fascinating woman having lived a life of astonishing Bohemian experiences, and deserved such an original, captivating headstone.

No Content in this Gallery

So, what design gravestone should I have? Will you submit some suggestions? I look forward with intrigued interest …

I will leave you with a few lines from a favorite poem by Rupert Brooke, to set the scene:

“If I should die, think only this of me:
That there’s some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England.”

Pysanky

In thinking about Easter coming up this Sunday, I can’t help but think back to how fun it was and how much I looked forward to decorating Easter eggs when I was younger. But decorating eggs doesn’t have to be just for kids. In fact, there is a traditional Ukrainian art of decorating eggs that requires a slightly higher skill level. (more…)

At a recent Sotheby’s art auction in London, L’Homme qui marche I (Walking Man I), an iconic Alberto Giacometti sculpture, sold for more than $104 million. At more than six foot, this imposing bronze certainly commands visual as well as substantial fiscal attention. It is not, however, the auction value that I’d like to comment on, although that record breaking bid is worthy of reflection. Rather, I’d like to mention my personal attraction to this artist’s bronze sculptures.

There is something disconcerting yet viscerally compelling about Giacometti’s pieces. They provoke such an immediate sense of the present; dynamically entering our here and now consciousness, but also presenting a cold, distant personality through shape and bronze material. That is an emotional reaction. What I really want, though, is to get my hands on every ridge, dimple, curve and protuberance. My overwhelming desire is to indulge in a physically palpable sensory experience, exploring every element of the artist’s molded expression.

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You don’t want to know about my romantic past. Indeed, it would be unseemly to discuss the time that my wife and I courted each other. But it is relevant to observe that it may have been during that time particular and long honeymoon period that I fell in love with Bauhaus. During our time living in Aspen we were surrounded by tangible environmental references to Herbert Bayer’s Bauhaus sensibilities. This included not only Bayer’s Aspen Meadows facility, but even the headstone of his Aspen benefactor, Walter Paepcke.

So I am thrilled to see that New York’s MoMa is presenting this significant Bauhaus exhibition from November 11 through January 25. Bauhaus represents a comprehensive conversation between artists, architects and designers, as well as cultural, social and philosophical thinkers. Its attention to the integration of art and form within life continues to be potent and relevant. An interesting feature appeared recently in the New York Times Style Magazine adding some context to the history of Bauhaus and the first MoMa exhibition in 1938.

We have had some creative enjoyment around our office either designing work for clients that has a Bauhaus flair, or otherwise, well, just sitting in Bauhaus derived furniture. Now all I have to do is organize my flights to NYC …

I am enamored of the experimental way some museums are re-examining the visitor experience, especially the launch yesterday* of a Vincent van Gogh iPhone application at the Van Gogh Museum Amsterdam. Viewing art is often a passive, spectator activity, which I why I am always captivated by creative explorations of art and artistic spaces. Museums often suffer, or perpetuate, the public’s perceptions of them as aloof and haughty. A modern audience is entitled to expect a greater degree of engagement using methods fit for the 21st century, in tandem with the traditional reflective personal perusal of the artwork. The advent of new technologies and creative collaboration between institutions, artists and the public has allowed a unique and refreshing rediscovery of museum attendance.

A few years ago, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the world’s largest museum of decorative arts and design, curated a sensory exploration of that venerable institution called “Shhh…” The museum commissioned 10 different musicians and artists to create sound-pieces in response to different rooms and spaces. The contributors were incredibly varied, from big art names like Gillian Wearing and Jeremy Deller, to musicians like Roots Manuva, David Byrne, Leila and Elizabeth Fraser. Infrared sensors triggered the applicable tracks on the your MP3 player as you toured the building. The whole experience was stunning.

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