“It is the craving for beauty that is such a vital function of the human soul…” – Dr. Claribel Cone It’s amazing how a little beauty injected into your day can lift your mood, calm your mind, and change your perspective. I saw the quote at the beginning of this post on a plaque a few weeks ago at the Baltimore Museum of Art in the space that showcases the Cone Collection. It’s clear from the collecting habits of the Cone sisters–they filled their Baltimore apartments with more than 3,000 pieces of art, including works by Picasso, Matisse, Cézanne, and van Gogh–that they gave into their craving for beauty on…
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Pursuing Poe in Baltimore
High on the list of things I love about Baltimore: the city’s connection to Edgar Allan Poe. I developed an affection for Poe’s writing as a teenager, when I competed in the poetry category on my high school’s speech and debate team with a collection of his poems: “Annabel Lee,” “A Dream Within a Dream,” and “The Raven.” I was drawn to the dark themes in his work, and I found the rhythm of his words spellbinding, particularly when read aloud. Poe lived in Baltimore for a time and is believed to have written several works here. Although he moved to Richmond in 1835, he later returned and died at…