Berkshire Journal: The Clark

"Reflecting Pool at the Clark Art Institute" (watercolor by Hallie Cohen)

Viewing art can be a slog, despite how people rave about this or that exhibit. You have to deal with your admission credentials (digging into your wallet for the card if you’re a member) or trying to negotiate the varying ticket prices for students, seniors and then, if it’s a very popular show, waiting on long lines (unless you have gone to the further trouble of purchasing a timed entry ticket). Then there's the jockeying for space amongst all the enthusiasts who are trying to get pictures of this or that masterpiece. On the other hand what’s the choice if you’re not a hedonist who prefers the seraglio or the opium dream? Beauty is a consolation which is also challenging. After all, what is it? The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown is one of those destinations which is high on the list for art lovers and like the nearby MASS MoCA, it’s also work. However, the Clark offers a moment of Zen repose when you sit on one of the Adirondack chairs at the three-tiered reflecting pool created by the museum’s architects Tadao Ando and Reed Hilderbrand. The setting has the stop-time quality of a masterpiece, with the glass-like surface of the water set against the backdrop of verdant Berkshire mountains.