Bodices and Bugs

Saturday began with rain. The sky hung heavy with ominous clouds and the air was thick with moisture. Not a day to be spending outdoors so I decide to get an early start at The Museum of Shenandoah Valley where there were a couple of new exhibitions.

There were few cars in the parking lots, good to see, so I walked to the main building and climbed the stairs to The Bodice Project, an exhibit of torso sculptures of women who've battled breast cancer. These photos are taken with my iPhone since they don't allow DSLR photos to be taken in the exhibitions. The sculptures reflect their emotions and views of their battles, all of them displaying intense inner strength, and I was humbled to walk among them. I entered the room, amazed that I was the only one there. A security guard came in a few minutes later, pointing out those that were her favorites. I listened, following her around, interested to view these works of art through her eyes, and then she left me alone so I could absorb them for myself.

 It amazed me how individual and unique they all were, a reflection of the characters and personalities that they displayed. Reading every single description hammered home the depth of sorrow and fear this disease had inflicted on these women and their families. I pondered whether I could display the same strength and power these brave ladies had during their fights. I haven't gone into the details of the sculptures here, they are all shown with accompanying information on the link below. But it was a powerful experience to walk among these works of art, knowing they represented real people,  feeling the strength of emotion pouring from each one, and the loss from those who hadn't survived.  

There a full list of all the bodices and their descriptions here.

I left the building to make my way to the gardens. Stepping out through the glass doors I was momentarily blinded by the sun's glare and its intense heat was horrific. I marched straight to my car to grab my camera and briefly considered getting in to feel the cool AC on my skin, but before I could succumb I slammed the door shut and made my way over to the garden gates. People were starting to show up and I'd been hoping to see this next exhibit without too many crowds.

David Rogers is an artist who uses all natural materials, fallen or dead tree limbs, logs and twigs, and chooses the woods for their colors. His love for wood began as a teenager and at 25 he started building sculptures and garden furniture. There are actually 40 sculptures in The Big Bugs exhibit, with 14 different subjects. Here at the museum there are 10 on display, placed throughout the gardens and interacting with the habitats. There was a map showing where all the bugs were but I ignored this, preferring to walk around the gorgeous gardens and be surprised and delighted when I came across one.

The first, Bee on Flower, was a work of art. For some reason I'd been assuming the bugs would be in a rougher, more natural, condition, yet these were so smooth and highly polished that I was initially taken aback, and had to ponder as to whether I actually liked them. But as I stood and inspected the piece more closely, I had to admire the beautiful tones, grains and lines of the black walnut, black locust and red cedar wood that the polish highlighted and accentuated. Even the metal joints were so small and well hidden that they played little part in the sculpture, the focus was all on the wood and the insect it portrayed. The Grasshopper was huge, 4 feet, 6 inches long and weighed 200 pounds. Sitting rather realistically in a bed of vegetables, its black locust wood gleamed. I then spotted the red cedar and willow Damselfly hovered over a small pond with steel wings held upright.

The Spider in the Web caught me by surprise. I rounded a corner, shielded by a tall hedge of conifers, and there it was, a 12 feet high willow and steel circular web with a 4 feet wide black walnut spider in the middle. I did find this a little intimidating and didn't stop for too long, feeling happy when I came across the Bee and Skep, a beautiful construction. The skep made of willow and steel and the bee carved from black walnut and black locust. They caught the sunlight perfectly, I loved the shadow and light play on the coiled willow. Apparently the real size of a skep is about 14 inches in diameter and 10 inches high, the approximate size of a hat box. And then I spotted the Ladybugs, (pun intended). I initially thought that they were stinkbugs until I  got close. Made of red cedar with black walnut spots, they were each about 2 feet 6 inches wide, displaying wonderfully variegated wood grain.

I walked into the  enclosed garden and was greeted by a huge 17 feet high Daddy Longlegs, made from red cedar and willow, and weighing in at 600 pounds! He towered over the plants, looking like a Martian. Out on the open grass was a monster Praying Mantis, 18 feet long and weighing over 1200 pounds, he gleamed in the bright sunshine. A lot of kids were running around him so I didn't linger but instead made my way to the Asian garden, where I found a Dragonfly flying across the water. Red cedar and willow with steel wings, I loved the mood of this photo, this bug looking the most realistic of all of them to me. I'd had to hurry the shot as there was only one small path down to the pond and a family were waiting for me to walk back before they could come down. Everyone in the gardens was being very polite and considerate with the social distancing rules.

I walked down towards the stone wall with Chinese dragons sitting on top and where a pair of red circular gates are always closed. I had always wondered on previous visits what was behind them and today I would find out, because they were open! I tentatively walked towards them and peered into the darkness beyond. There was a bamboo forest back here, tall green stalks about 3 inches thick towered above me, their canopy of leaves casting dark cool shadows. The temperature had dropped by at least 10 degrees, it felt deliciously cool. Mulch covered paths led through the shadows, small openings with benches and Asian ornaments added interest, and a small pond area was being created. I walked back out, feeling very satisfied that I had finally seen behind those red gates, and walked towards the cottage garden area.

I met the security guard that I'd chatted to inside the museum, she was now patrolling out here, and we resumed our conversation as we walked, discussing the bodices and the bugs. The last big bug was this gorgeous Hummingbird hovering over flowers. Made of rainbow poplar and black walnut the hummingbird flutters over red cedar and black locust flowers and is about 11ft tall, weighing a total of 140lbs.

I left the gardens with the sun high in the sky, sending down burning rays. ducks and geese were napping under the shade of trees by the creek, and i felt inclined to join them. I gratefully plopped into my car, turning on the AC full blast, and left the summer heat to the kids romping on the grass outside.