Mystery Inc., Help Needed

Review by Katelynn Banville

Isabella Stewart Gardner was a collector. She had very specific ways she wanted things to be done, whether it was the construction of her home or the placement of her art. When she passed away, her will stated that she wanted everything in her home to stay exactly the way it was, and that her work should be donated to the city of Boston for the educational purposes of the youth.

Her being such a person reflected in the arrangement of her artwork in her home. She had an entertainment hall in her home where she would entertain her guests and hold events for her friends. She wanted her work to be interpreted by the viewer so none of her work had names or artists listed by it. The only painting in the building was named El Jaleo by John Singer Sargent. She watched this piece of work when her friend traveled to Europe, and when he returned he had found she turned her entertainment hall into a beautiful room to showcase this piece specifically.

The empty picture frames on the walls are beyond fascinating to sit and ponder. The museum was part of one of the largest art heists in US history. The robbers, still unknown, stole 13 paintings by cutting them out of the frames, or taking smaller ones directly off the walls. Since Mrs. Gardner’s wishes stated nothing be moved or changed within the home, the empty frames and hooks still sit on the walls leaving you to question how someone every got away with that.

She also had a controversial image of herself in an area which is assumed to be in an area that would have been her private collection. When she was alive, women were not believed to be powerful and this painting appears to defy that. She had her mouth partly open, her chest slightly revealed, with a strong posture and strings of pearls around her waist. Women were not supposed to show much skin so her body posture and skin were considered offensive when the painting was created. The pearls around her waist were another way of flaunting her wealth. Back then pearls around her waist could cost close to forty-five thousand dollars.

Overall, this museum truly shows a deep meaning of history and mystery. There is plenty to observe, and take in at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.