Aug. 16, 2017
Although I'm a Cubs fan through and through, I became a Red Sox fan when I visited the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Isabella was a die hard Red Sox fan, so the museum gives you a $2 discount if you don Red Sox apparel.
The open courtyard in the middle was one of my favorite parts of the museum. There are several rooms/galleries that surround the courtyard on each of the three levels.
The Standard Bearer of the Harvest Festival
By Antonio Mancini, 1884
Isabella Steward Gardner in Venice
By Anders Zorn 1894
The Gothic room was one of my favorite. Likely due in part to the mystery and intrigue that enshrouds it. As you see here, there are huge empty frames hanging on the walls. On March 18, 1990, two men pulled off the largest-value theft of private property in history. They stole 13 pieces of art valuing a total of $500 million. Three of the stolen pieces were Rembrandts. The Storm on the Sea of Galilee hung in the frame on the right. It is his only known seascape.
It's also in this room that Isabella placed her portrait by John S. Sargent, which he did in 1888. It is also in this room that she allowed John S. Sargent to use as his studio in 1903 and he painted several portraits here.
Verdict: No. Admittedly, I probably only feel this way because, while I appreciate art and enjoy art, I'm not an art lover. So, I enjoyed it. I'm glad I went. I learned a lot. But unless you are in fact an art lover, you can indeed go to your grave without experiencing this museum.
Cost: $15. If you wear Red Sox apparel, you'll get a $2 discount making it $13. There is limited metered street parking. We drove around for a while and couldn't find an open spot, so we parked in a nearby lot for $18.
No comments:
Post a Comment