Not a Cloud in the Sky

When a Saturday is picture-perfect and the sky is crystal clear… one must take advantage. As we like to remind each other, my husband and I like old things. So as soon as his co-worker told him about a vintage boat show on Lake Norman, we planned on attending. A dead battery en route made us miss the boat parade, but not to worry. The boats docked on display, aging from the 1930s to 1970s, were beautiful representations of another era. Timely styling, exquisite wood and laborious love were all hallmarks of the collection. One boat had been used and loved by five generations, even raised from the lakebed after it sunk beneath their boathouse. Another boat has been owned by one family since 1956, when they bought it directly from the manufacturer.

Most of the boats were made by Chris-Craft, America’s oldest powerboat builder, and were mahogany hulled. They represented the best in design from each decade and give definite nods toward the automotive styling of different eras (not surprising, as Chris-Craft’s original headquarters was located not far outside of Detroit).

To me, the boats are reminiscent of a simpler time and a time when craftsmanship itself was prized. To my husband with the active imagination, they are representative of a more mysterious time–he was certain that someone had been killed aboard a particularly stylish cabin cruiser. I prefer to think that members of the Brat Pack sailed it across Lake Tahoe at quite a clip. Oh, wait…

Bechtler Museum of Modern Art

We finally made it to the city for an outing, to the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. An outgrowth of the Bechtler family’s private collection, the museum is housed in a terra-cotta tiled minimalist building designed by Swiss architect Mario Botta.

The current exhibit, Niki de Saint Phalle:
Creation of a New Mythology, was a great surprise. It certainly illustrates the museum’s commitment to one artist’s vision, history and catalog of work. Installed both inside and outside the museum walls, the exhibition represents both the de Phalle’s prolific body of work and her personal aesthetic dialogue (it also includes pieces by her husband, artist Jean Tinguely, as a counterpoint to her work) very well.

A former fashion model, de Saint Phalle (1933-2002) first began painting in the 1950s, as a therapeutic response to her emotional state. She is considered self-taught, as she didn’t attend formal art schools, but instead was inspired and mentored by and comingled with famous artists.

She was strongly influenced by architect/artist Antoni Gaudí's work, which is exemplified in Barcelona’s unique architectural presence.His work opened possibilities to her, with its use of found objects, unusual materials and natural elements.

Lucky for us, as we get to enjoy the thoughtful, whimsical and often archetypal statement pieces de Saint Phalle created with this expanded vocabulary. Colorful paintings with moving parts and anthropomorphic sculptures appeal to both adults and children with their innate sense of humor and humanity. The essence and the power of both human and animal spirit are investigated in a joyous manner reminiscent of Day of the Dead symbols or tribal totem forms.

With her inspired use of materials, de Saint Phalle engages the viewer, especially with her diverse mosaic elements. They provide instant allure with their vibrant color and shine, deepen interest with layers of texture and finally, envelop the viewer in the reflection of what it is to be human, flawed and marvelous.

www.bechtler.org

www.botta.ch

www.nikidesaintphalle.org

Kannapolis: A Model City?

When I asked the trendy young women at the salon in Kannapolis to suggest a good breakfast spot, they looked at each other, shrugged, and tried to come up with options. Then they looked back at me and one said, “There isn’t any place to eat around here, believe me.” My husband and I assumed that they just hadn’t been able to come up with any unique suggestions; there had to be some place to pick up breakfast around here. The salon itself, Cora Bella, seemed proof enough to me that the town must have amenities; I had just received a wonderful massage in this attractively appointed salon spa.

We drove around looking for either a quaint downtown café or a greasy diner on the side of the road. Instead, we found streets of trim and tidy homes. When we stumbled upon the authentic art deco Gem Theater, I was thrilled. In addition to sporting a gorgeous façade of its own, it was surrounded by red brick buildings with cream trim and mullioned windows. The entire downtown area looked like a neo-colonial 1940s movie set of a small town’s bustling business district. Only, it wasn’t bustling. As we drove up, down and around, we did see some business signs. Most seemed to be for professional offices, and we couldn’t quite tell if they were still in operation. We drove around the impressive campus of new buildings signed North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC), with their traditional architecture, red brick and stately columns. People must work here, we thought. Ok, so where do these people have lunch? (We were a bit single-minded at this point!)

Just as we were about to give up and head elsewhere for food, we came upon a café that was just opening for lunch. As we ate, we kept talking about this beautiful little town that we just couldn’t figure out—Stan called it “a living ghost town”.

All we knew was that Kannapolis had housed a textile mill no longer in business. The houses we had seen looked occupied, well kept and attractive. Churches seemed to be active. So, we wondered, where do the residents eat out? Go to the hardware store? Buy groceries? Where do they all work? At the Research Campus?

After we ate, we took one last lap to try to find out more about this mysterious (to us), endearing town. We like old stuff, so an open antique store both surprised and beckoned us. After we browsed around, I asked the man at the front desk for some background about Kannapolis. He was nice enough to oblige us with his thorough knowledge, and the history that unfolded fascinated us. My much-abbreviated, over-simplified version follows, colored by my own opinions…

Turns out, Kannapolis is the ultimate company town, originally founded and owned by the Cannon family, the founders of Cannon Mills. To encourage surrounding farmers to work at the mill, Cannon Mills built modest “mill houses”that they offered up to workers for virtually little to no cost. At its height, Cannon employed 25,000 workers throughout the area at various mills, and the town swelled to a population of 36,000. Cannon owned the entire town, with the exception of the churches. The town existed purely to people the mill’s employment needs,but was organized so well that it was considered a model city. Cannon built the schools, police and fire departments, hospital, water and sewage treatment system and the largest YMCA in the country at the time (1908).

Similar to other booming family-owned industries, Cannon Mills underwent many incarnations through the years. Through industry and economic changes, the company ultimately changed hands several times in later years. Finally, in 2003, the mill closed permanently, and all the remaining 7,650 employees were laid off in one day (the largest permanent layoff in the history of the state).

Stan wonders about those who may have carried that knowledge in the days preceding the shutdown. Was there a foreman sleepless in the nights prior, knowing that he, his friends and neighbors were soon to be out-of-work and out of options? When everyone in a town works for one employer, and that employer owns every resulting business and civic entity, what happens when that industry fails? Everything we had seen was starting to fall into place for us. We couldn’t stop thinking about those who had dedicated their working lives to the mill, and those who live there now.

The future of Kannapolis has certainly been made brighter by the promise of the North Carolina Research Campus, built on the site of the demolished mill. This valiant effort is the vision of David H. Murdoch, the owner of Dole Foods, who is making every effort to restore a viable economic future to Kannapolis, including using over one billion dollars of his private funds to create the campus. The 350-acre campus is home to the research operations of seven UNC System universities and Rowan-Cabarrus Community College.

Kannapolis is looking forward to its future as a biotechnology hub and prides itself on having more to offer than a blighted, storied past. It’s the hometown of the Earnhardt racing family, boasts a minor league baseball team and plans to build on the reputation of the NCRC.

I can’t help but think of other “company” or one-industry towns, whether mill, mining, or sheetrock (like Empire, Arizona, which recently met a similar fate) and what the future may hold for them.

Cora Bella's Salon and Spa

Gem Theatre

City of Kannapolis

North Carolina Research Center

Cannon Mills

Davidson

The first time we drove down Main Street into Davidson and approached the downtown area, I announced, “This is where we are going to live.” My husband, accustomed to this kind of enthusiasm/dreaming on my part, just gave me his humoring-her nod and grin, said, “Sure we are,” and kept driving. That first time, the first weekend in October when we moved my husband to the Charlotte area, it was almost dark¬—but even in the twilight, I could see the possibilities. I could just make out wide-slung porches with rockers, painted shutters, mature trees and gardens and what I considered to be welcoming, twinkling lights throughout.

The next time we visited, in early November, we caught the Saturday morning Farmers’ Market, with the requisite cute dogs and cuter kids. At first, I thought the market looked rather small, but it didn’t take long to find it had all the local goods one would expect to find. Then, my heart took a little jump, as I overheard a trendy young mom speaking fluent French to the handsome French bakery owner. Why did my heart skip a beat? Because, in my own very shallow way, I was finding not only picturesque scenes in this small town, but Culture! French speakers could only mean Culture… if I had overheard German speakers, I probably would have thought, Gemütlichkeit! Or Italian? Old World Cuisine! Rounding out the perfect little market? A weekly dose of homespun tunes played by a rotating band of talented local musicians. What more could a girl ask for?



So, why the French? Again in my shallowness, I immediately credit the institute of higher learning, Davidson College, which lives right across the street. Now it all begins to fall into place and make sense to me: the combo of small-town charm and urban-trendy cool (original brick storefronts housing upscale bistros and gift shops) is due to the presence of the college. A small, nationally recognized and highly selective liberal arts college established in 1837, Davidson has the look that high school seniors envision when they picture themselves in September of the following year—complete with the tree-lined commons area and classical architecture.

Spring on the Davidson College Campus, a photo by melystu on Flickr.
We keep driving. A classical public radio station? A community theater? I think someone must have customized this town just for me. Spring and summer Concerts on the Green? Really nice, but not entirely unexpected. A Public Art Commission? Very cool and… less expected. But a Healthy Living/Wellness Supervisor? In a town of less than 10,000? Now that is totally unexpected.

Add these amenities to quaint and old (it’s been around since the mid 1800s) and I am so there!

Fast forward to this June Saturday: we have another lovely visit to the market, but upon our departure, realize we have a flat tire. Not a huge crisis—we are on a side street, have cell phones and AAA coverage. As if I didn’t like the area enough to begin with: in less than ten minutes, at least seven people have stopped to offer us assistance, even though we are obviously unharmed and on our phone calling for help. And one was a darling college guy in dreads, who said, “Are you kids doing ok?” Us, kids? Davidson, I think I love you!

City of Davidson

Davidson College

WDAV Public Radio

Davidson Community Players

Special thanks to Melinda Stuart for permission to use her beautiful photo montage of Davidson College

Our First Outing | Lansford Canal State Park

Today we ignored our remaining unpacked boxes and took our first road trip, to Lansford Canal State Park in South Carolina. My husband Stan had gotten a tip from a co-worker about this beautiful site. The drive there, a little over an hour south of Charlotte, was beautiful in itself, with tree- and flower-lined highways. Yes, we are in South Carolina:




The Catawba River running through the park boasts a history of revolutionary war crossings and an early canal system, but we were there for the show of rare spider lilies that cover the rocky shoals in white blossoms. The trail leading to the viewing deck is easy to walk, welcoming walkers of all ages. As we made our way through the woods along the shallow river with its beautiful rock formations, it was also fun to see and greet the families and their dogs also making their way on the 45-minute round trip walk.





The true aficionados canoe and kayak right up the the banks of lilies, but we were content to view them from the shore.



From the state park website: "Out in the river is one of the largest know stands of rocky shoals spider lilies, tough plants that hang tight in the swift water and bloom spectacularly in a huge blanket of white in late May and early June." My camera is in one of those unpacked boxes, so the images of these beautiful, endangered lilies are taken by others.
Note to self: Unpack the camera!

Lansford Canal State Park

Hush Hush

Can't help it... it just kind of rolls off the tongue. As a very recent transplant to the Charlotte area, I am really looking forward to exploring the city and places in the vicinity. My ignorance is pretty complete, so as I discover, I hope to share my impressions with you.