I am Iron Man and you are Pepper Potts!
My parents bought Noo his first superhero costume. The Superman suit they brought home one day, with its moulded chest for muscles, was a little too big and uncomfortable at first. As Noo grew, and the suit came to fit, a new love was born. Dressing up as superheroes came way before the shows or the books or the action figures.
Last winter we weren't able to leave the house unless Noo was dressed in one suit or the other. My Instagram feed was packed with Noo dressed as Batman, Superman, Spider-Man or Iron Man. I had to play the girlfriend that corresponded with each character. I was Vicky Vale to Noo's Bruce Wayne, Mary-Jane to Noo's Peter Parker, and my favourite, Pepper Potts to Noo's Tony Stark.
The collection of action figures followed, and my bank account was diminished, as I forked out for the ever growing pile of plastic super men and women in tights!
The best bit about this passion of Noo's, in my view, is the films that accompany each character. Or should I say the hot actors that play them. Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Jeremy Renner as The Archer, Chris Evans as Captain America. So easy on the eye!
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| My little superhero! |
Art
The most surprising love that Noo has maintained is for contemporary art. Coming from an art loving family I guess it isn't surprising that he likes looking at pretty pictures but the fact that he will often choose visiting a gallery over going to a playground is pretty impressive. He also has a very mature understanding that art does not have to come from paint, textas or clay (or any other traditional medium) and you don't have to be able to understand what the object/image is. He has definitely acquired a love for the abstract.
One of Noo's favourite places to visit is Sydney's Museum of Contemporary Art. Ask him who his favourite artist is and he will tell you Anish Kapoor. When we visit the MCA Noo likes to visit all floors, even if he has already seen what is currently on display. He stops and asks the guides for an explanation of a piece if one really catches his eye. We often stop to talk about what we see and how a piece might make us feel.
We recently saw the 13 Rooms exhibition down at Walsh Bay. Noo was really excited about going when I explained to him that we were seeing performance art which is very different to the installation pieces he had grown to love in the Kapoor exhibition (which he saw twice!).
After exiting the first room, which contained a pair of twins, Noo complained "I want to see art!". He couldn't quite see the art in Damien Hirst's offer at the exhibition. As we moved from room to room I enjoyed watching Noo's reaction to each piece as much as the performances themselves.
When we reached Joan Jonas' piece titled Mirror Check Noo's enormous restraint and respect made me one proud mumma. In this piece a naked woman is standing in one spot, holding a small round mirror, scanning her entire body at a very slow pace. There were about six of us in the room quietly viewing the performance including Noo. It wasn't until we walked out that Noo said to me "you have to be very quiet in that room". For a boy that doesn't do still or quiet very well, I was most impressed.
The piece by Xu Zhen totally freaked Noo out. He wasn't in the room for more than a few seconds before he ran out in horror at what he'd seen. I was fascinated by the fear the performance invoked in him. He can watch anything on TV without so much as a flinch but the performance in this room scared him silly. Mum said to me later that he'd told her he thought the person in the room was dead. You must check out the link to see what he's talking about.
We recently saw the 13 Rooms exhibition down at Walsh Bay. Noo was really excited about going when I explained to him that we were seeing performance art which is very different to the installation pieces he had grown to love in the Kapoor exhibition (which he saw twice!).
After exiting the first room, which contained a pair of twins, Noo complained "I want to see art!". He couldn't quite see the art in Damien Hirst's offer at the exhibition. As we moved from room to room I enjoyed watching Noo's reaction to each piece as much as the performances themselves.
When we reached Joan Jonas' piece titled Mirror Check Noo's enormous restraint and respect made me one proud mumma. In this piece a naked woman is standing in one spot, holding a small round mirror, scanning her entire body at a very slow pace. There were about six of us in the room quietly viewing the performance including Noo. It wasn't until we walked out that Noo said to me "you have to be very quiet in that room". For a boy that doesn't do still or quiet very well, I was most impressed.
The piece by Xu Zhen totally freaked Noo out. He wasn't in the room for more than a few seconds before he ran out in horror at what he'd seen. I was fascinated by the fear the performance invoked in him. He can watch anything on TV without so much as a flinch but the performance in this room scared him silly. Mum said to me later that he'd told her he thought the person in the room was dead. You must check out the link to see what he's talking about.
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| From top left: Anish Kapoor at MCA, 13 Rooms at Walsh Bay, Cardboard City at the MCA, Anish Kapoor out the front of the MCA, drawing at the MCA, Noo and me at 13 Rooms; last row - MCA |
When my parents took my sister and me to galleries when we were little I thought it was one of the most boring ways to spend my time. It actually wasn't until I went to Vienna in my early 30s that I fell in love with contemporary art so it pleases me no end that Noo has got into it early. I know kids go in and out of phases as they get older and their interests change but I really hope Noo's fascination for creatives arts continues to flourish and that we can keep discovering new artists together.
Now to encourage Noo to pursue our family's passion for music.
V.
Now to encourage Noo to pursue our family's passion for music.
What hobbies or passions do you share with your kids?
Are there any in particularly you'd like to encourage them to get into?
Are there any in particularly you'd like to encourage them to get into?
V.
