A day visit to the Museum can easily include a stroll through 100 Acres no matter what you are wearing.  The pretty sundress and sandals I wore the night of the event fit in perfectly with the atmosphere of the party, but didn’t facilitate fully exploring the park. Something occurred to me as mucked up my sandals and watched a few women struggling around the park in high heels (ouch)…

A visit to 100 Acres is not your ordinary museum visit.

A photo I snapped while looking up at Type A’s Team Building (Align)

I’m already planning my next trip to 100 Acres and this time I’ll be prepared to explore the nature as well as the art.  Clothing choice is weather dependant, of course, but all terrain footwear is a must!  (An aside- If you dropped me on a deserted island and gave me a choice between a sweat-wicking, quick-drying, technical fabric outfit or an attractive, Soccer Pro companion… I’d pick the clothes every time.  Well… maybe.)

Here’s a quick rundown of the essentials I plan stuff in my backpack:

Sunglasses, sun screen, bug spray, camera, a picnic lunch, binoculars (for checking out birds), a bottle of water, a plastic bag for any trash I might produce (LNT!), a notepad and pencil, something to trade with Jessica and Michael out on Andrea Zittel’s Indianapolis Island, and maybe a book to enjoy.
My list reminds me more of gear requirements for summer camp than a museum trip.  But hey, I want to have everything I’ll need to spend a day going over, under, around and through the Park on an artful adventure.

The good news is that the list of IMA bloggers will be expanding in the next couple of weeks. That means you won’t have to rely on my posts for your exciting look into the world of an art museum. Soon you’ll hear from a variety of perspectives, including conservation, curatorial, education and horticulture. I’ll still talk about technology, new media, art content and soccer, but I’m afraid you may have to wait a little longer. My apologies in advance.

Speaking of new bloggers, we are also working on the concept of Guest Bloggers. Yes, we are talking about people like Jay Z, Banksy, Jessica Alba, Jared the Subway Guy and other big names. I doubt we’ll get any of these celebs, but we are thinking creatively about who could be a guest blogger.

The fact is, it could be you, it could be an artist, actor, musician, race car driver, skydiver, chef and so on. Everyone is connected to art in some way, and blogging with the IMA would allow others to communicate that.

So really think about this concept. Would you blog for the IMA? If so, let us know. Who should blog for the IMA? We would love to hear your suggestions.

I’ve thought a lot about this. Someone like Jay Z would be an incredible addition to the list of IMA bloggers – but I’m not sure how likely that is. I mulled and mulled and random people started popping into my head. I’ve listed a few of them below, and in each case I tried to pick people with good web resources, so you could also learn about them. Drum roll please…

Volzy: He’s German, plays professional soccer in London, rides around on a fold up bike, LOVES David Hasselhoff and provides a listing of German phrases everyone should know, such as – Wo kann ich mir meine VokuHila Frisur blondieren lassen? (Where can I get my mullet highlighted?), as well as important facts, such as – in no other country will more X-rays be done than in Germany. I would love to hear who is his favorite artist is.

Douglas Coupland: Artist, author, blogger, Canadian, producer and more. Microserfs remains one of my all-time favorite books, and it’s been fascinating to watch Coupland evolve as an artist since his 90’s release of Generation X. His analysis of pop culture is astounding, so who wouldn’t want to hear his opinions on art, art museums, and artists? I would. He also loves Lego. And so do I.

Patrick Smith: pilot, author and contributor to salon.com. I love planes, airports and flying. His book, Ask the Pilot is packed with interesting facts, humor and opinions on airline liveries and logos. He’s traveled all over the world – he must have visited some museums, right? Although, he recently visited 15 countries in 21 days, traveling 45,000 miles without stepping foot outside. Well, he might be able to tell us how to get that ‘free’ first class upgrade. Who’s going to argue with that?

Jillian Lewis: Alright, I’m busted. I watch Project Runway and I’m rooting for Jillian. She’s talented, stylish, articulate, to-the-point and not afraid to express her opinion. Sounds like a blogger to me, but can she take Bryant Park? My thoughts might also be influenced by an upcoming fashion exhibition, Breaking the Mode, and the site that just launched. And hey, it wouldn’t be an IMA blog post without a Facebook reference – so join the Jillian Fan Club here.

I could keep going here, but as I have in the past, I’m going to the leave door wide open for you to comment…