Mutation Sternutation: The Beginning

[x-traction.livejournal.com]

A few of the mansion residents decide to spend Sunday morning checking out Austin Saggus' exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art.

Marie paused as a particularly bright painting caught her eye, scanning the series of brightly colored spheres. Part of her was still surprised that Kurt had invited her to this exhibit. She hadn't exactly been avoiding her half-brother, but she also hadn't been going out of her way to spend time with him, since her latest return to the mansion. There were just things she'd rather avoid thinking about that she couldn't when she was around the blue skinned mutant.

Kurt had noticed, which was why he'd invited her out. Perhaps, he reasoned, if there was something else for her to focus on, she might enjoy their time together a little more. He smiled over at her as he saw her pick out one painting. "You like that one?"

"It's...interesting. Ah'm not sure Ah always understand modern art. Ah mean, the colors are pretty, but Ah'm not sure Ah buy that the picture means anything deeper than that," she replied as she continued down the hallway. "Anything catching your eye?"

"It can be hard to see the meaning the artist had in mind", he agreed. "And no, not as yet. They are all very well done, but I have to admit I am not much of an art connoisseur."

One gloved hand twirled a white strand of hair around Marie's finger. "It's neat that this artist has an exhibit though...even if Ah don't get the art, the fact that a mutant using their ability to create art is getting an exhibit in a major museum with a decent turnout is pretty significant, right?" Her eyes scanned a sign briefly. "Think it's that way," she added, pointing to the right.

"It can only be seen as a step forward", Kurt said with a smile, glancing down the hall to their right. "Shall we go and see what he has done?"

----

It wasn't hard to get Amara out of the house and into the museum, and the new exhibition of mutant art was certainly no exception to that. Especially given such an unusual medium, at least for Amara. Glassblowing wasn't a skill that had surfaced in Nova Roma, and even now, there were things in America she hadn't encountered. She'd once had a crash course in how glass was made - a woman on fire shouldn't walk on sand, fyi - but this was something else entirely. And it was that she'd come to see this morning, smiling at the attendant as she paid for her ticket and headed in.

---

Laurie placed a hand on Crystal's arm and pointed out the arrow that would lead to the arms and armor exhibit. "We could go there first, or is there something else you really wanted to see?" Laurie asked her companion.

"We can go there first," the older blonde replied. "We are not in a hurry; we can stay and see all of the exhibits that we wish to see."

"True," Laurie noted, watching the crowds as they walked toward the arms and armor exhibit. She noted a few very obvious mutants, and smiled. Having an exhibition that was obviously mutant friendly had inspired an entirely new feeling of confidence, even if it were just within the confines of the museum. It was good to see, even if it only lasted for as long as the exhibition. "We should see the new exhibition as well afterwards."

"Austin Saggus? Of course." Crystal smiled. "That is why we are here, yes? We can save the best for last; it is good to see someone use their abilities like he is, for a positive, artistic reason."

"It's good that he decided to do their exhibition here in New York," Laurie noted, looking up at the various Impressionist paintings in the gallery they were walking through. They would need to go the long way to get to the exhibit she wanted to see first, but she had no problem with that considering what great works they were going past in the meantime. "Did you have a favourite type of art?"

"I do not suppose that I have one specific favorite," Crystal mused out loud. "I appreciate the classics, but I do enjoy some of the Abstract or Modern sort. Some people take the concepts a bit too far, I believe, but that does not negate the beauty, the creativity, and the surprises behind the others."

"I like Abstracts," Laurie mused quietly to her friend as they walked toward the back part of the art gallery. "I like how they make what a thing is, even if it's not necessarily what a thing looks like. So, do you think there'll be a lot of people at Mr Saggus's exhibit?"

"I certainly hope there will be," Crystal told Laurie. "The exhibit is open for two weeks, so there is plenty of time for many people to come and see his work, even if we might not see many people there today."

***

"I can't say I would've painted full plate mail orange with daisy patterns," Laurie noted as they walked toward the Austin Saggus exhibit. "But it was pretty. 'Make love, not war' was a pretty clever title for it too."

---

It was early, or at least earlier than he'd been up since classes had wrapped up. The sun was still rising and the air was cooler than it would be when they were leaving as the group from the Xavier Institute entered the discrete museum.

It had been Callie's idea to get out of the mansion for a while, art exhibits had never been 'his thing' growing up. The paintings and sculptures just never seemed to speak to him, but walking between towering glass statues Julian could tell something about this exhibit was different.

While he had been told ahead of time that this particular artist was a mutant, he hadn't expected any of this. Graceful glass figures on a scale that no human artist could match; the vibrant colors that popped off the canvas or the portraits that showed mutants split down the middle, half of their body in the uniform of a professional occupation, the other half in a colorful, comic-inspired costume. Keller wished that Doreen had joined them today, given her love for comics.

"So, who is the artist?" Julian asked while examining a portrait of a doctor who was also wearing a white hooded robe.

"I do not recall his name, but his work is quite...evocative," Jean-Phillipe settled on a descriptive term after some thought. While he had a reputation for slight aloofness, he'd been eager to attend the opening, as mutant positivity in any form was on his list of things to be supported. And the artist's work was quite good as well, he had to admit.

"It really highlights the struggle that mutants face in our society." Okay so that may have been from the brochure, but it sounded good, at least to Callie. She could feel the eyes glancing her way, but shrugged it off. No one here was out to get them, she figured, or else why would they bother to support a mutant artist? "The way the um, figure twists and sticks out? It's kinda ugly but pretty...?" Yeah, she didn't really know anything about art, but the idea was interesting, and she certainly was enjoying the exhibit.

"It's more so pretty than ugly, I'd say...I mean, it's very gentle, isn't it?" Julian resisted the temptation to reach out and touch the glass sculpture behind the velvet ropes. "Think the artist is around?"

"I believe the press release said that he was going to be here to answer questions, but I do not see him." Jean-Phillipe scanned the room, but there were only small knots of people observing the artwork and talking amongst themselves, much like the group from Xavier's was. He shrugged and went back to observing the artwork. It was a bit modern for his tastes, but still quite interesting.

Callie glanced around at the people milling about. No one jumped out as the artist, but then again she didn't know who she was looking for. "Perhaps they'll be here later," she said moving on to the next piece. "I mean we have time."


Everyone finally makes their way to the big exhibit...and it turns out the art isn't the only show to watch.




"It's a lot more crowded than Ah would've thought," Marie said, nervously checking her clothes as she looked over the people filling the room. She wasn't surprised to see some other mansion residents had taken advantage of an empty Sunday morning by coming to check out the exhibit as well, waving at those she saw.

Kurt smiled at the familiar faces in turn, then looked back at Marie. "It does seem very popular, yes. But I am sure everything will be fine."

One of the unfamiliar faces was a young man, maybe high school-aged. He was studying each piece of art intently, pausing to scrawl on a notepad before moving on to the next. Jakal Bhadsha was not really an art fan - if a school project hadn't brought him here he would certainly have found other things to do with his Sunday - but he was also a big believer in good marks and all the benefits that came along with them.

He really would have preferred to be somewhere else, though, the young man thought, frowning as he sniffled, then coughed. He felt like he was getting a cold today. Or maybe it was allergies?

Callie wasn't paying much attention to the many patrons who were milling about, she was too absorbed in the sculpture she was currently observing. They had been in the exhibit for awhile, and she supposed it would be good to get going soon. Maybe get some ice cream before heading back to the mansion. As she turned to find Julian she heard someone behind her cough, probably just someone trying to politely hint that she should move, she figured and continued past without a second thought.

Amara had been pretty surprised to see others from Xavier's here on a Sunday morning - mostly because Sunday morning was so typically a morning to laze around and do little in. Or attend Mass, neither of which Amara had done. She hadn't really talked to anyone else there - too absorbed in the art to do much socializing. But that didn't stop her from flashing a smile and murmuring hello to Callie as they crossed paths.

He spotted Callie approaching and turned from the twisting column of glass that swirled into a goddess of some kind, looking down over the gallery. The art was impressive and he wanted to get his friend's opinion on several of his favorite pieces. In a hissed whisper, Julian grinned at the pink girl, "Come on, I have something you have got to see."

Jean-Phillipe was a bit extra attentive to people and things in the art gallery. He'd heard stories about some of the disasters that had befallen the van trips and vacations in the past, and he very much wanted this outing to go smoothly, even though he wasn't really responsible for it. Still, he also allowed plenty of time to observe the artwork, as well.

Crystal looked around the room, enjoying both the art and the large number of people in the exhibit. Maybe some people were here merely out of curiosity, but that could lead to interest or respect. She was glad the artwork was actually good, it was a definite plus that the artwork tended to be pleasing to the eyes rather than harsh and shocking.

Elsewhere, although not terribly far from where Crystal stood, Laurie examined one of the artwork pieces closely, being careful not to reach out and touch it. While her fingers itched to feel the clean lines of what looked to be metal, and possibly some form of coloured gesso, she kept them firmly clasped behind her back. She couldn't quite tell what the artist had used, and looked around for the little plaque that usually came with these things. She finally found it on the wall a small distance away, and smiled. They'd included an explanation of the work, and a little of the history of how it had come to be made.

Jakal sneezed explosively, just as a small child (with his agitated mother in pursuit) ran past. The boy looked up at him, disgusted, and Jakal gave him an apologetic look. "Mickey!" the boy's mother called, almost desperately, and Mickey took off again, headed directly for Crystal.

Crystal looked down to see a young boy standing next to her, grinning up at her. "Oh, hello there," Crystal said, looking down at the toddler. "Are you lost?" She looked up, scanning the crowd. "You must have a... OW!" Crystal looked at the small child again, this time in shock. "You... you bit me!?" the young woman said, both incredulous and horrified. "That was not a nice or proper action at all!"

Marie turned as she heard a sharp scream and turned around just in time to see a small boy release his bite on Crystal's leg paired with the indescribable look of horror on the Attilani princess's face. Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh... she kept repeating in her head, but a small giggle made it past her lips. "Quick, let's get out of here," she said softly towards her blue furred companion. "Children are attacking," she managed to get out in between a couple other giggles.