Boston Proper 1st Day
After my Sudbury experience was over at the Wayside Inn, I headed back into Boston via a shuttle with the other photogs. Many were headed to the airport, but my rooomie for the workshop, Caroline, and I weren't flying out that day. I, was waiting for my family to fly into Boston that night, Caroline had scheduled a flight the following day so she could take in some Boston culture. It was great to have a friend to troll around the museums with.
Our first stop was the MFA....Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I would like to say that I walked into the museum with a confidant knowledge of art. But that would be far from the truth. I have been to the Dallas Museum, but that was for the Egyptian exhibit, and we didn't venture any farther in due to time. Abilene's museums are great for a city our size, but there are no Rembrandt's, DaVinci's, Rodins, Veneers, Monets...you get the point. I was blessed to be with Caroline as she has a Masters in Fine Arts and she was a wealth of knowledge. I am sure I seemed as though I was about 6 years old and at Disneyland for the first time. My eyes were huge and I had a million questions, to which Caroline knew all the answers.
Here is the beautiful ceiling that greeted us when we arrived.
I think I could have stayed in the MFA all day and still would not have been ready to leave. There was something so amazing about standing right in front of a painting that I had seen on a movie or tv show, or in a book, that was painted 600 years ago. The original. The brush strokes, the lighting so carefully painted. I felt as though I was on the verge of tears over and over. I do believe that I have fallen in love with art. I was enticed to the MFA by the Chihuly glass exhibit. It was an amazing show, and SO beautifully put together. Here is an interesting link on how he creates his glass and the painstaking process of designing the exhibit. Chihuly's exhibit travels, so there are many opportunities to see his work.
Below are some of Chihuly's exhibits within the museum.
It was the shiny colors of Chihuly that brought me to the MFA never dreaming that seeing the paintings and sculpture would rock my world as I knew it. I still tear up thinking about the sculptures of Christ many dating back to 1200 AD and the old Italian artists who painted the icons exhibited. It was all amazing. Most of these works below were created between 900-1500 AD.
The Picasso's...well they were...hmmmm...odd. But it was cool to see on a large wall a comparison of Picasso's work as a 20 year old, then as a 50 year old, and then 70 year old. It was interesting that the Picasso we all imagine...was only his later work. His work in his early to mid years looked what we would think would be...normal. But had he not been so abnormal he might not be so talked about today.
Once we finished up the MFA we quickly walked to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. We only had 20 minutes before it closed, not near enough time to take it all in. The museum was like no other. It featured a center courtyard set in Roman times with the foliage switched out each season. The collection was owned by Isabella Stewart Gardner and her husband, Jack. She died in 1924, but her life's goal was to bring beauty to our young country. Here is a link to click over to learn about the museum.. Here is a link ot the museum. Each large room within the three levels was decorated as though it was a large living room. Each room, and there were about 4 rooms per floor, filled with art that hung on the wall, along with statues and furniture to complete the look of the room. The rooms were decorated from top to bottom, each with special moldings and fabric coverings for the walls. It felt as though I was in an old castle just wandering from one room to another. I wish I could have gone back to the "Izzy" and if I ever make it back to Boston it will be at the top of my list to return. There was no photography allowed in the Izzy :(.
Once our museum tour was completed Caroline and I parted ways. She back to her hotel to meet friends and me to my hotel to wait for my sweet family to arrive. I ordered some yummy pizza for the family to eat as by the the time they arrived it was 9:30pm. Too late to head out. But we all settled in with the lights of Boston outside our hotel window and rested up for our tour of Boston that would start the next day.
Our first stop was the MFA....Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I would like to say that I walked into the museum with a confidant knowledge of art. But that would be far from the truth. I have been to the Dallas Museum, but that was for the Egyptian exhibit, and we didn't venture any farther in due to time. Abilene's museums are great for a city our size, but there are no Rembrandt's, DaVinci's, Rodins, Veneers, Monets...you get the point. I was blessed to be with Caroline as she has a Masters in Fine Arts and she was a wealth of knowledge. I am sure I seemed as though I was about 6 years old and at Disneyland for the first time. My eyes were huge and I had a million questions, to which Caroline knew all the answers.
Here is the beautiful ceiling that greeted us when we arrived.
I think I could have stayed in the MFA all day and still would not have been ready to leave. There was something so amazing about standing right in front of a painting that I had seen on a movie or tv show, or in a book, that was painted 600 years ago. The original. The brush strokes, the lighting so carefully painted. I felt as though I was on the verge of tears over and over. I do believe that I have fallen in love with art. I was enticed to the MFA by the Chihuly glass exhibit. It was an amazing show, and SO beautifully put together. Here is an interesting link on how he creates his glass and the painstaking process of designing the exhibit. Chihuly's exhibit travels, so there are many opportunities to see his work.
Below are some of Chihuly's exhibits within the museum.
It was the shiny colors of Chihuly that brought me to the MFA never dreaming that seeing the paintings and sculpture would rock my world as I knew it. I still tear up thinking about the sculptures of Christ many dating back to 1200 AD and the old Italian artists who painted the icons exhibited. It was all amazing. Most of these works below were created between 900-1500 AD.
The Picasso's...well they were...hmmmm...odd. But it was cool to see on a large wall a comparison of Picasso's work as a 20 year old, then as a 50 year old, and then 70 year old. It was interesting that the Picasso we all imagine...was only his later work. His work in his early to mid years looked what we would think would be...normal. But had he not been so abnormal he might not be so talked about today.
Once we finished up the MFA we quickly walked to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. We only had 20 minutes before it closed, not near enough time to take it all in. The museum was like no other. It featured a center courtyard set in Roman times with the foliage switched out each season. The collection was owned by Isabella Stewart Gardner and her husband, Jack. She died in 1924, but her life's goal was to bring beauty to our young country. Here is a link to click over to learn about the museum.. Here is a link ot the museum. Each large room within the three levels was decorated as though it was a large living room. Each room, and there were about 4 rooms per floor, filled with art that hung on the wall, along with statues and furniture to complete the look of the room. The rooms were decorated from top to bottom, each with special moldings and fabric coverings for the walls. It felt as though I was in an old castle just wandering from one room to another. I wish I could have gone back to the "Izzy" and if I ever make it back to Boston it will be at the top of my list to return. There was no photography allowed in the Izzy :(.
Once our museum tour was completed Caroline and I parted ways. She back to her hotel to meet friends and me to my hotel to wait for my sweet family to arrive. I ordered some yummy pizza for the family to eat as by the the time they arrived it was 9:30pm. Too late to head out. But we all settled in with the lights of Boston outside our hotel window and rested up for our tour of Boston that would start the next day.
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