Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion - in preparation of the 26th.

I couldn't make the upcoming LAUNCH trip to the Glass Pavilion so I packed up the car, grabbed the delightful MarJ and headed west towards Toledo.

We first went through the Museum of Art (due diligence states we had to see the main building since we were there anyway). I could go into all the pieces that I saw and enjoyed at that museum but really I was mostly just excited to cross the street and look at the Glass Pavilion.

My first thought was that it was a lot 'shorter' than it seemed in pictures which is fine. My second thought was 'Gee, that is quite a bit of curved glass, I wonder where it all came from'. I remember from an MMFX conference that large curved glass sheets are difficult to come by in the States. A little digging led us to the information that the glass was from China but curved in Germany before finding a home in Toledo. Quite the environmental footprint.

It was also uncovered that the plenum between the exterior glass skin and the interior rooms was heated in winter (while the main interior spaces were cooled) and that the 'wasted space' between the walls was to achieve the proper thermal barrier.

Regardless the building was quite nice. MarJ and I couldn't decide if it was the vistas or the way that the interior views were constantly layered and reflected that allowed such a 'raw' and 'cold' building to seem warm, welcoming and at times, intimate.

I spent quite a bit of time pointing out the fine detailing (much to MarJ's chagrin I am sure) and would like to congratulate the teams that constructed the building, the client for taking such an amazing leap of faith and of course SANAA for pushing forward with such a beautiful design.

I won't go on further as you should take the trip yourself.

We are all in this together...

Earlier this week the True Art Gallery in Collinwood, Ohio was broken into. 33 art pieces by various local independent artists were taken as well as some of the 'usual business fair' of a computer, stereo system and the gallery phones.

One has to wonder the intent of stealing from a local gallery that is showing typically 'unknown' work. Not only would it be extremely difficult to profit from taking these pieces (I have no idea where you sell them) some of them were rather large and cumbersome so it wasn't a matter of sheer convenience.

Whether this will truly be a blow to the burgeoning Collinwood Area which is currently undergoing a renaissance of sorts is yet to be seen. It may just be the event to catalyze the neighborhood to unify for greater security and safety by spurring inhabitants to keep a better watch on the street and to call in suspicious behavior to the local police.

My heart goes out to the owners of True Art Gallery and the artists and I hope that the pieces can be found and returned.

A $500 reward is being offered for information on the theft. Call 216.486.0859 or the Cleveland police at 216.623.5618.