Journal Question #12

I went to an exhibit by the French artist Celeste Boursier-Mougenot called "from here to ear."  In a large room in the Peabody-Essex Museum in Salem, MA, the artist has installed 70 Zebra Finches - a small bird from Australia - and placed amplified guitars and basses around the room.  The birds land on the guitars and produce a kind of music, random and disorganized, but strangely melodic nonetheless.  The birds also chirp, contributing to the overall sound in the room.  20 people at a time are allowed into the room to experience "from here to ear."  It's visually and aurally fascinating, unlike anything I've seen and heard before.  Does this sort of exhibit interest you?  Do you think it is art in the same way that a painting by Van Gogh or a composition of Beethoven's is art?  What is your definition of art?

Journal Question 11

President's Day honors two of America's greatest presidents, both born in February: George Washington and Abraham Lincoln (pictured).  Lincoln was president during the American Civil War (1860-1865), which was fought in large part over the issue of slavery.  His Emancipation Proclamation, made during the war, freed all slaves.  Lincoln's determination to keep the United States one nation came at the cost of his own life, as he was assassinated after the Civil War ended.  What, in your opinion, makes a great leader?  Is there a leader - either from your country or another one - that you especially admire?  Why?