Monthly Archives: December 2025

Please Sit

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The Cincinnati Art Museum is one of my favorite places to roam. There’s always something to discover and plenty of beauty for the grand total of zero dollars admission.

There’s one room with an enormous wooden bench where I sometimes sit to just appreciate the space. Truth is, that bench is my favorite thing in that room but I never really thought about it’s origins. In that room, my fella especially enjoys a painting called Alexander the Great and the Fates by the Italian Baroque artist Bernadino Mei. It’s a compelling work of art where two of the three Fates who control the tread of life spin and measure Alexander’s life thread. The third goddess grapples with Alexander, preparing to cut the thread and end his life. There’s much more to it than that and I always see something new. 

I usually go in and plop down on that big bench. It’s a great place to rest a moment and appreciate Alexander the Great before continuing on through the maze of galleries. On our last visit, I noticed there’s a card on the end of that bench. It reads “Palace Bench, Florence Italy, 15th Century, Walnut, Museum Purchase 1953.156, PLEASE SIT.”

Holy cow. How many times have I sat here without knowing that it’s more than just a pretty bench? 

How many people have sat on this bench to pray, to mourn or to celebrate? How many museum goers have, like me, wandered through without noticing that we were sitting on a piece of history?

Here’s my advice for today. Don’t be afraid to look around and to admire things in a museum. Stand in one spot and just take in your surroundings. Study the painting you don’t understand. If you think it’s interesting, Google it while you stand there so you can understand what’s happening. Pay attention to the things that no one else looks at. Read the card discreetly placed on the thing everyone sits on. 

There’s usually a story! 

Giddy Up!

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Remember the magic of these coin operated mechanical kiddie rides? They were typically horses, rockets or cars that entertained the kids with a gentle rocking motion. Often situated outside department stores, supermarkets and other places parents take their children, these rides were still common when I was a kid and offered for just a few cents. Of course, that was practically a hundred years ago and you just don’t see them as much these days. 

That’s too bad because kids loved them and they brought a lot of smiles for a small investment compared to what it costs to entertain some kids today. 

I have seen them still operating in movie theater lobbies and you see them as decor in retro restaurants where they’re treated like museum pieces. But at the Moose Creek Lodge and Suites in downtown Cody, Wyoming, this little pony works and is available for rides at the bargain basement price of fifty cents. I’m a little big for a ride but it still made me smile to see it here and accessible to anyone with two quarters in their pocket. 

Who wouldn’t want a pony ride for that price? 

Pop Goes The West

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One of the things that surprised me most about the Buffalo Bill Center of the West is the vast array of items they have on display. They have so many interesting things that it’s difficult to know where to start but the thing that surprised me most was their collection of pop art. 

To be clear, pop art isn’t what I would call my thing but there’s a lot to be said for the talent and creativity that goes into this style and I want to show you some of my favorite pieces from.an exhibit called Pop Goes The West. 

First there’s this oil painting called Fall Scene which Robert Seabeck created in 1979. It shows a red Ford truck pulling a blue and white travel trailer in a scene that is absolutely striking. The artist called it a contemporary representation of the covered wagons that early pioneers used to access the American West. It is as fresh and relevant today as it must have been almost fifty years ago.

I also liked this one called Fool’s Gold by Rachel Mosely. The man, in traditional western garb, looks like he could step off the canvas and launch into a story about the stick horse that he’s holding. I don’t know if it was intentional but this 2020 piece reminds me of James Dean’s character Jett Rink in the movie Giant. 

Then there was this piece from Jane Deschner’s Silhouette Series that’s a collage of vintage photos. She uses snapshots of strangers to tell stories that  explore our shared human experience. I found this one especially interesting because these snapshots remind me of the ones I collect. Old black and white photos are easily found in junk shops and antique stores, long abandoned by descendents of their subjects. She has hand stitched these photos together, a symbolic reminder of how we are all connected by the human experience. 

Here’s a closer look.

I perhaps liked this one best of all. 

So, the next time you’re about to go marching by something because it’s not your thing, I urge you to stop for a quick look and maybe you’ll see something that makes you want to linger. 

Learn more about this museum here.