Much of the Gulf Coast resides in the cultural shadow of New Orleans. The Big Easy casts its spell far and wide down here. But it doesn’t quite manage to eclipse nearby Mobile.
The pace in Mobile is a bit less hassled, a tad more genteel than its neighbor down the way off Interstate 10. A great destination unto itself, here are some summertime goings-on down by Mobile Bay:
- Masters of Graphic Art from the Collection of Gerald Swetsky is showing at the Mobile Museum of Art through Sept. 16. Come see the works of Picasso, Chagall, Miro, Dali and the like translated into the medium of print. Peruse the images conjured up by American artists Norman Rockwell, Alexander Calder and Ralph Bakshi too
- Come see Old Havana – Spirit of the Living City at the History Museum of Mobile. The exhibit captures the sights and sensations of La Habana Vieja through the lenses of photographers Chip Cooper and Nestor Martí. Get the sort of insight into a city and its people only great photography can render. The show lasts just till July 8.
- Alabama is no stranger to the wrath of Mother Nature, be the instrument hurricanes or tornadoes. It’s the latter that’s the subject of the IMAX film Tornado Alley at the Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center through Sept. 9. Storm Chasers’ Sean Casey and the scientists of VORTEX 2 take you along for the ride in their effort to better understand what makes tornadoes tick. Explore the inner architecture of weather’s most feared phenomenon – and do it on the real-world expanse of an IMAX screen.
Mobile works hard to differentiate itself from New Orleans. In most instances, it succeeds. But not when it comes to summertime weather. All the events we just laid out are indoors, bathed by air conditioning. Mobile, like the Big Easy, can be a steam bath during the summertime.
(Image: RPG Master)
