Boston's MFA, Day 2

Art doll made from vintage leather speed bag in Kendall Hotel's lobby

Face of Prince Hemiunu, from a tomb wall fragment;
as overseer of all royal construction projects, he built the Great Pyramid at Giza

Besides being the largest Classical sculpture in any US museum, the provenance of this Juno statue is just as fascinating to me.  A tidbit:  "She was recorded as early as 1633 in the inventories of the Villa Ludovisi, a grand Roman complex of palaces and gardens filled with antiquities."

Wreath of gold oak leaves and acorns, Greek, 4th Century BC 

Wreath of gold olive leaves -- like the previous one, probably deposited in a burial setting

Coin of seated Zeus holding an eagle; Memphis or Alexandria, about 323-317 BC -- still so crisp and sharp 

Eretrian coin with octopus

Virgin and Child, by Sano di Pietro, about 1447;
I am not religious but I love icon paintings.

More beautiful icon paintings

Infanta Maria Theresa, by Diego Rodriguez de Silva y Velazquez;
this was probably sent to potential suitors -- she married Louis XIV, the "Sun King"

Center bottom portion of Allegory of Man's Choice,
about 1635, by Frans Francken the Younger.
I was fascinated with the entire painting, esp the lower half which was devoted to representations of Hell.  Here, Satan sits astride a dragon.

Lower left portion of Allegory of Man's Choice, about 1635, by Frans Francken the Younger; "the arrival of a crowned monkey on a throne-palanquin, hoisted by fools" -- that's a $14M painting!  

Wax jack used for sealing letters and documents;
note the bird-clip on top -- English, about 1675 

Untitled, by Tara Donovan; styrofoam cups, hot glue, metal structure

Confessional, by Martin Puryear; Wire, mesh, tar and wood

Black River, by El Anatsui; a metallic tapestry 
of aluminum bottle labels, bottle caps and copper wire,
105" x 140" -- this was my very favorite item in the whole museum

Vase, by Gerhard Richter, 88" x 78" -- my second favorite item in the MFA

Lullaby:  Madame Augustine Roulin Rocking a Cradle 
(the rope in her hands leads to a cradle), by Vincent van Gogh, 1889

American Robin in the courtyard

Crows in the courtyard -- chatterboxes!

At the seashore in Cape Ann, with the Atlantic Ocean in the background

Wild roses by the sea

We took a walk after dinner along the ocean

* * * * * * * *

When I arrived for my second day at the MFA, a guard recognized me from the day before, asking if I was doing okay navigating the galleries, and said to ask if I needed help.  They're so nice there.  In fact, everyone Tien and I have encountered on this trip has been kind.

I started with more Egyptian art.  I am still drawn to it, not only because of the beauty, but also because of the treasure hunting aspect, and MFA often has in situ photos beside descriptions.  There was still much to take in:  Greek wreaths of oak and olive leaves in pure gold.  An entire room dedicated to old coins -- coin strikes are sooo crisp!  Museum conservation areas had glass walls so in-process restorations could be viewed -- I love the idea of restoration work.  From reading French history, an extra thrill came from portraits of familiar figures, such as a painting of Infanta Maria Theresa of Spain who married Louis XIV.  It was meant for prospective suitors.  Imagine, what would you, the suitor, do with the painting if you declined?  The painting is 51" x 40", not exactly wallet-sized.  One old painting that captured me was by Frans Franken the Younger, "Allegory of Man's Choice," showing the importance of choosing wisely – stairs separated heaven’s earthly delights and hell’s consequences.  There were paintings by Cezanne, Renoir, Monet, Picasso, Rembrandt, van Gogh, religious icons and altars, a Stradivari violin, a 17^th century silver gilt toilette set, Rothschild family treasures including diamond jewels and antique books.  I saved the best for last, contemporary art and fine craft -- so much to inspire.  An eye-catching abstract turned out to be by Gerhard Richter (now it is my computer screensaver); at home last year I experimented with his squeegee painting technique.  There was a "fabric" piece which I recognized immediately as the work of El Anatsui of Ghana, who works with recycled bottle caps and other discards, and chains them together to make a metal tapestry.  On the ceiling was a bulbous white cloud made from Styrofoam cups.  I loved that!  There was a bronze Degas dancer and some paintings; most interesting was an unfinished piece found after his death.  I discovered a "wax jack," a contraption for melting a coil of wax to seal letters and documents.  Now I want one.

I sat outside to eat my snack and fed birds with bits of hard-boiled egg -- cannibals!  It was time to go home.  A headache was taking form and I was exhausted.

Once back, I waited for Tien in the hotel lobby.  A pill, lots of water and a large coffee made everything better.  Tien was having a last beer with colleagues, and then we drove to Rockport, Massachusetts.  We took side roads and saw plenty of old wooden houses.  It’s so different from the West Coast.

Our weekend-home-away-from home was Emerson Inn by the Sea in the town of Rockport, so named for Ralph Waldo who stayed.  The inn is by the water, separated by a lawn edged with peonies, lovely-scented irises, roses and other bushes.  Our tiny room faced a quiet street, with a full-sized canopy bed and a tiny 15" TV.

We put away all our stuff and had dinner in the hotel, at the Grand Cafe.  Good food:  great bread with evoo, ahi seaweed and noodles, classic Caesar with stale croutons, filet mignon, half rack of lamb; wine and a Cosmo.  Their 23 year old chef knows his way around the kitchen.

Along our post dinner shore walk were massive slabs of stone lining the water's edge.  Really easy and fun to walk, plus the houses and gardens were lovely, and there were tiny wild roses in white, pink and pale pink.  We walked back via the street.  It was getting dark.  In the lobby a man on a piano played lovely music of his own compositions.  We are looking forward to exploring town tomorrow.