Longing for the Long Weekend

Last week of July.  High season for vacation.  My favourite summer escapes rarely include the tropics - save that trip for my snow-filled February.  I adore summers in the city. I thrive on a city's buzz.  (Of course, I prefer when it's the room service I just ordered.)  When traveling I always try to check out a local art museum.  

Unfortunately I'm not traveling far from home any time too soon, but you - you are free to roam.  And if you find yourself in one of these fair cities, do check out these current exhibitions.

In Montreal you must hit Musee des Beaux-Arts or the Museum of Fine Arts.  Guy Laliberte, founder of the Cirque du Soleil has hooked up with Boucheron, one of the most distinguished firms in the Place Vendôme, Paris, to create a "jewelry fantasy" of 20 masterpiece necklaces set with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires and other gemstones. (Pourquoi? Because he can.)  Each piece is obviously inspired by the acrobatic grace and elegance of Cirque's performers.  You'll watch Alegria with new eyes. (Through August 29)

This evening cape from 1910 - 1915 would
fit into my wardrobe perfectly today.

Off to the Big Apple?  There's little time left to catch New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute finishes up American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity.  This exhibit explores through dress the evolution of the American woman from 1890 to 1940 and how they affected the way women are seen today.   Through examples of the American female archtype including "Gibson Girls," "Bohemians," and "Screen Sirens," among others, you'll get a sense of how her style revolutions mirrored her social, political, and sexual emancipation throughout the last 100+ years.  And that familiar voice on the audio guide?  None other than Sarah Jessica Parker. (Through August 15)

Heading west? Be sure to hit LA's Musuem of Contemporary Art.  MOCA pays tribute to the late Dennis Hopper with Dennis Hopper Double Standard, including over 200 of his works. Hopper explored nearly every style and medium over his 60-year career. Julian Schnabel curated the exhibit where film and art collide in paintings, photographs, sculpture, graffiti-inspired billboards and film installations.  Isabella Rossellini once named Hopper, in an interview, as the one person she would call if she were ever in trouble.  It's no wonder she felt that way.  In response to Hopper's recent death, Rossellini is quoted as saying "he had gone to hell and came back from it with great wisdom."  And apparently, great art.  (Through September 26)