Although it didn't rain much, it looked like it was about to rain most of the time. Wile I spent most of the week outside anyway, enjoying a break from the sudden summer heat, walking, or watching sailing lessons, I also found some fun museums to visit on cooler afternoons.
One of my favorites was the
Odd Wisconsin exhibit at the
History Museum displaying a variety of artifacts and objects loaded with local and national history. Each object was accompanied by a unique story. Some favorites: paint-gallon size fall-out food from General Mills, an x-ray machine for custom-fit shoes,
Wisconsin Death Trip photos, shoe molds for a giant, skunk oil, an early perm machine- yikes, and all sorts of other oddities that seemed to make sense in some other time.
Outside this exhibit was also a two room set-up showing how we use objects to understand something about a culture and a specific time: a 1990's kitchen and living room! How funny to see a Nintendo, cassette tapes, teenage mutant ninja turtles, a wall-mounted corded telephone, a blue
corduroy reclining chair, even a computer like the one
Doogie Howser typed on at the end of each episode. It really was like looking into our own homes not too many years ago, and realizing how different everyday objects have become in such a short time.
Derek and I also visited the
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art to see
Return to Function, an interesting look at art objects exploring ideas of
transportation, shelter, clothing, and commodity.
We are sitting at the rooftop sculpture garden, and the view of the street below:
