On holiday in Tokyo

Lucinda is on vacation this week, and today we went to see the amazing Picasso exhibit at the gorgeous National Art Center, Tokyo.

The "Picasso: His Life, His Creation" show, plus a second show at the nearby Suntory Museum in Tokyo Midtown, presents more than 200 paintings, drawings and sculpture on loan from my favorite museum, the Musee National Picasso in Paris.

At the National Art Center, the works are laid out by period - blue period, Cubism, and so on - with famous paintings of Dora Maar and one I'd never seen, "Massacre in Korea."

In a parenting inspiration, I brought pads of paper for Lucinda and 3 other first graders who came with us (and another mom), and the museum provided perfectly sharpened, high-quality pencils when they saw us take out pens.

The girls seemed overwhelmed by the museum experience at first, but settled down when they started to copy some of the paintings and to, as I suggested, "move the furniture around" on drawings of other girls' faces.

This exhibit, which will close on Dec 14, is super-fantastic. Adults: 1500 yen; elem school kids: Free! I hope to take Blaine back, sans enfants, for a second look.