As you read this, I’ll be strolling the Minnesota State Fair grounds, trying to sweat as little as possible. While I was growing up, the state fair was always a bittersweet treat for me; something fun and exciting to be sure, but also a reminder that summer is… yep, almost over.
And while the swelter of the past few days is not likely to make me yearn for much more summer, there is still a winter hiding around the corner, and a reluctance in my step. So, while there’s still time, let’s linger at the fair: let’s wander all of the grounds, jostle all of the people, and eat all of the food.
Laurence Stephen Lowry, Fun Fair at Daisy Nook, 1953. Oil on canvas. Private collection.
Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration, November 1938. Children at the state fair in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. Photograph. Via Shorpy.
Lyonel Feininger, Carnival in Arcueil, 1911. Oil on canvas. Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL.
Is spring here? Judging by the number of people out-of-doors this weekend, the answer appears to be a resounding yes. Time to pack away those winter coats, I guess, and pull out the trusty (and possibly rusty) bicycle. Or, at the very least, stretch out on that brown grass, pull out a pen, and write about a bicycle (f)or two.
Forgotten what they look like? Here, let me help you with that.
Ramón Casas, Ramón Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem, 1897. Oil on canvas. National Art Museum of Catalonia, Barcelona.
Bill Brandt, Coal Searcher Going Home to Jarrow, 1937. Photograph.
Lyonel Feininger, Velocipedists, 1910. Oil on canvas. Private collection.
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