Gregory Meander

May still felt like a failure to launch in terms of the weather. I will start with the weather because that means that we have started at the very bottom of a conversation : How is the weather today? It is not my favorite topic to discuss. If we have gotten to the weather in conversation, I might go mute. I seem to write about it a lot. (The joke is on me). But, I have found myself murmuring “Let’...

I’ve often felt tension between my love of humor, art history, and philosophy and the pressure to “be one thing.” But curiosity is a muscle. And I’m more interested in going deeper than narrowing. Curiosity is a muscle and it must be exercised. What happens if I go deeper there? It seems to be a risk most are not willing to take. I am learning a lot the more I “go up” on stage. Audiences often rem...

“Endurance is the undercurrent,” Malcolm Peacock said of his work in the Whitney Biennial. It was the only piece in the entire exhibition that drew me in. Threads of hair forming a great redwood stump. Quietness amid the loud media galleries. It was beautiful. It seemed Alive. It is, in many ways, how I have felt this winter. Cut down, yet surprising myself, still capable of new growth. Spring has...

What a cold and wintery January. I have walked through the old growth forest most days now in my new neighborhood at the tip of Manhattan. This past Sunday, New York City was encased in 11 inches of snow. The forest acts as some sort of portal that transports me back to when Manhattan was inhabited few humans. I wander through the forest along the icy Hudson and wonder at the bluffs. The forest is...

This past year was defined by working hard to hold onto New York. A tighter budget meant learning to hunt for rush tickets, lotteries, and discounts—and choosing to see fewer things, but better ones. But this year was different: I started performing. (Gaga gets it). In January, I took a class at Westside Comedy Club and got onstage for the first time in February. Since then, I’ve done seven sets,...

This year is barreling down towards the end so quickly. Why do some years move faster than others? The light is dimmer, the air is a bit heavier, and the theater is still vibrant in New York. This month were my sixth and seventh sets at West Side Comedy Club — Danielle, Eliza, Marlene, Debra, Katie, Claire, Susan, and Meredith in the audience, cheering me on this strange, exciting pursuit of mine....

October was a month of feeling the flow of fall, changing colors, crisper air, and a rush of new art. Autumn has never been quite my favorite, but I noticed it a different arrival this year, it arrived slowly, humid and hesitant, and yet everything seemed to move more smoothly. The theme running through the month: taking a risk as restorative. Nathan Lane’s line in conversation with Mike Birbiglia...

What Happened Live in September? This unseasonably warm September has me back running in Central Park as I train for a few up-coming half-marathons. Fall art season is back in full swing and I would have to say Man Ray at The Met is the stunner of the month and my only five star review is Biscayne Bay National Park. I am still painting everyday as a meditation. Some are silly paintings, but the ac...

I jumped off the Black and Gold ferry on Labor Day at 9:03 AM PST into the mouth of the San Francisco Bay. With the Pacific to my back while bobbing up and down in the crisp cold waters that I used to call home, I thought about the concept of August. Taylor Swift sang about not too long ago, poets have written about the late summer month frequently, and august means respected and impressive. I thi...

It is the height of summer and some of my favorite things in the city are not necessarily arts related. I have seen most of the summer blockbuster art exhibits, so I have dug down to find some other more off the beaten path. I have been drawn to my desire to be outdoors as much as possible, my runs and yoga have taken be through Central Park, up the Hudson, the beaches of Fire Island and the fores...

It was PRIDE month all month (they really do it big in New York), but I think it really comes down to that final weekend that commemorates when young people got fed up with the policing at Stonewall Inn and they finally fought back. Pride has and always will be a protest for freedom. And as our country tries our best in corners everywhere to have deeper conversations keeping democracy alive. I sta...

I am a few days late after May (June is now bustin’ out all over ), but it was a nice balanced month of the final operas of the season and rounding out Tony nominated shows. I was able to take in some of the summer blockbuster exhibitions for the first time and I am expecting a few repeat visits. I was pleasantly surprised with Superfine , the new fashion show at The Met. The curatorial thesis is...

Like many of us, I find myself wrestling with confusion, stress, and the weight of a destabilized world. Yet in the midst of it, I’ve discovered that discipline—especially in my meditation practice and daily watercolors—can be healing. Showing up for live performance, great art, and music feels like a radical act. It’s not just about entertainment, but about engaging more deeply with the creative...

March has been a whirlwind month of incredible performances, art, and laughs! Even with limited funds, I am able to optimize my museum memberships and I keep winning the lottery for Broadway and The Met Opera. Gotta play to win! AT THE OPERA Fidelio ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Beethoven’s only opera and man was it is a stunner. I painted the cellar door cellar in the prisoner’s jail cell that kept his wife and him a...

Rome is calling me. Hello Pope Francis! The Pope has thrown open the cathedral doors, welcoming in the Jubilee—a special holy year in Rome, Vatican City, and across Italy. This Catholic celebration, which began just weeks ago at Christmas, will culminate with the Epiphany in 2026. A Jubilee year is a time for spiritual renewal, drawing millions of pilgrims to Rome in search of deeper faith and con...

Here is a short reflection of my journey this past September to Walter de Maria’s “The Lightning Field (1977).” It is my favorite piece of American art. (The audio includes more text and voice-over than the captions). Some facts on The Lightning Field here. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gregorymeander.subst...

As 2024 winds down, I thought it might be appropriate to share a reflection that I have been working on for quite some time. As many writers do, they start and stop pieces all the time. This reflection started as part memoir, part Substack entry, and part personal reflection. I recently saw the piece of art again in my new home and decided to share a meditation with all of you. Three major reasons...

I’m writing from the Museum of Modern Art on a Sunday morning, where I discovered that ChatGPT is blocked on their Wi-Fi—which makes me giggle. MoMA has been lauding Refik Anadol’s “Unsupervised” in the lobby for the last three years. It is a multi-media piece that takes the MoMA’s collection and distorts the works of art into some nebulous digital throw up for the masses. And yet, ChatGPT is not...

Art galleries in the US have always posed a unique challenge for me. And I would say first and foremost, I still obsess on the art market. I think the art market is fascinating. And not all galleries are created equal. I often find them a sterile experience. There are opportunities to find contemporary artists and see other pieces of art that live in private collections. This is an exciting aspect...

I am wrestling. I am frustrated. I am in love. I want more. I am in awe. So much remains unresolved. How can one artist cause so many contradictory emotions at once within and outside the gallery? This year more than any other, I have been under Pablo Picasso’s influence. As I had mentioned earlier in a Dispatch, global institutions have been marking 2023 as the fiftieth anniversary of Picasso’s d...

Over the last few weeks, I have become much more attuned to color theory by experimenting with water color. I have started to learn my shades, my tints, and how colors work together. In a way, I have been thinking more about color the last month than I have for all of my obsession for art history. Making color for your own art is quite different than viewing it in a museum gallery or a catalogue f...

“The fear of life, the fear of burdens and of duties, of annoyances and of catastrophes! The fear of life, which makes us, through dread of its sufferings, refuse its joys. Ah! I tell you, this cowardliness enrages me; I cannot forgive it. We must live - live a complete life - live all our life.” Emile Zola How would you have your portrait painted? How would you stand? Would you be at a desk? What...

A few weekends ago, I found myself back in Los Angeles - the city of endless signs, roads, and sunshine. I had bought tickets to the Keith Haring exhibition, "Art is for Everybody” when the exhibition was announced a year ago. Keith’s life and work has always been a Northstar for me. He was from a small town in Pennsylvania. He was raised Christian. He … This is a free preview of a paid episode. T...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gregorymeander.substack.com This week, I visited the New Museum and had the opportunity to explore Judy Chicago's exhibition, "Herstory." While I had encountered most of the pieces in a retrospective at the de Young in San Francisco in 2021, there was a certain element in this installation that caught my attention. Judy Chicago’s impact...

It has been six months since I wrote my last entry on Philip Guston while in Washington, D.C. A friend recently had asked me how my writing was going and she had asked if she’d missed an entry. It was a thoughtful question and I had not stopped to think about why I had not written. I think I took a break. Unintentionally. Often, things happen that prevent writers from writing. We love to make excu...