Well once again we hit the road. Along the way, our first stop was in Salisbury (no they did not invent that oh so popular middle American suburban staple), Maryland. We found the "Ward Museum of Wildlife Art". Not quite odd but definitely not found on every corner either.
This is a beautiful museum mostly devoted to the art of bird and decoy carving. The collection is vast and delineates clearly the difference between a decoy and art. The Ward brothers started as decoy carvers but the detail and quality of their work soon led to a new category called "decorative" carving. This includes categories for life-size, miniature, pairs and interpretive. Incredible realism and design. The carving is equaled by the painting. The museum houses many winners from an annual international competition. Also in the museum is a an art exhibition featuring wildlife artists working in a wide variety of media.
Next, it was on to Ocean City to spend time with long time friend, Elaine Bean; our shared afternoon in Baltimore was not enough. Besides she lives in a part of the world that neither of us had visited.
Ocean City looms across the bay in a very Vegas or Cancun-like style with miles of hotels and condos and boardwalk. Elaine's front yard is water. Lots of waterfowl (hmm? kind of a theme for most of the day) and boats. After the tour and some chit-chat gossip blah blah, we went with her cousin and next-door neighbor, Greg, for a boat ride around the bay and out in the ocean. We were thrilled to have the Atlantic splashing upon us as we rode up and down some 3-4 foot waves. The taste of saltwater on our lips was a treat.
Early evening, we put on our full on tourist regalia - oops! Look at all of us arty types with our black shirts. How un-dayglo can you get? We headed off to the boardwalk. In addition to the silliness of ridiculous curios and beach related crap, there were hoards of barely clad youths celebrating the end of the school year. Focus Rodney focus...... Keep the old man ogling to a minimum - note: Susan and Elaine were just as aware of the skin show. Besides, there was an outsider art site to be found.....
Eventually we found (as if it were hidden) "Ocean Gallery" by Joseph Kroart. This explosion of stuff on a the wall is quite the contrast to the mostly new glitz of the rest of the boardwalk. The structure is covered with various found objects and painted signs. There were two art cars and a silly photo op. There is little information about Mr. Kroart; at the building or on the internet. I did find one interesting story on one related website:
"One summer during his college years, KroArt ventured to Ocean City, Maryland to sell his own paintings. Because he didn't have much money, a fly-infested basement was all that he could afford. During especially tough weeks, KroArt was known to actually eat the flys, concocting a variety of different recipes for fly cuisine."
The building houses an absurd collection of posters. It is unbelievable how many are crammed into this rather large space. Original paintings by various artists but nothing more by Leonard. All quite amusing. See photos below.
Love and quackers (not Quakers - that may be next week),
Rodney and Susan
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