Why the Long Face? by James Curley

            From the first glance of Ms. Gardner’s house, I knew that this was going to be an interesting museum, that felt not so much like a museum but more along the lines of a home. The house had three floors and each room more exciting than the last. The “museum” is in Boston, Massachusetts on Beacon street, and the museum was created around 1898. It was previously a house owned by both Isabelle Stewart Gardner and John Lowell Gardner.

            Located on the second floor, in the Tapestry Room, there was a certain piece that stood out to me. The piece of art showcased dark colors, showing a woman looking into the distance thinking and overall it seemed as though the lady was unsure or insecure about something. Having gloomy shades of green, blue and black really added to the dramatic affect and added to the overall message and how it can be perceived. It seemed to be relevant with most of the other pieces of work in the house, relating to the same time period, late nineteenth century. The Tapestry room was a room of gloominess and darkness, and this piece of art definitely added to this affect. Having no name, the painting intrigued me and made me think about what this piece of art could be named.

            Ms. Gardner’s house was full of various pieces of art, and it seemed that in certain rooms there was more art than needed. Throughout most of the art there was an overall message of success and accomplishment, portrayed through numerous portraits of friends and family and others. Ms. Gardner had the piece of the woman looking into the distance and this painting placed into the Tapestry Room. I think that by Ms. Gardner having this piece, it showed a hesitation in Ms. Gardner’s art collection. I personally enjoyed the painting, its darkness and the woman feeling mixed emotions really stood out to me as a viewer, and kept me fighting towards finding the ultimate message behind this painting. In regards to the Ms. Gardner museum and Ms. Gardner’s art collection I do not see how these two correlate, having a very proud and confident collection and then having this painting, I would have advised against Ms. Gardner from putting it into her collection, not because it was a poor piece, but because it did no comply with the overall message. Overall I would recommend the museum for it shows a prominent collection with only a few pieces a bit out of place.

At the WINdow By Emily Pisacreta

           Louis Kronberg is a Boston born painter with an affinity for painting ballerinas. His beautiful work, At the Window, is stationed in the Blue Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum. At the Window depicts a young ballerina wearing light pink pointe shoes and a large, fluffy, white tutu. The dancer stands in front of a huge window, covered with pale, flowing curtains. Her dark hair, pulled back into a loose ballerina bun is the only dark color in the entire painting. The dancer in the painting stands relaxed, casual, with her hand in front of her face, as if she is trying to recall something.

Kronberg’s work is highly impressionistic, with colors and lights and shadows seemingly running into each other. This impressionistic style works flawlessly on this painting. When we think ballerinas, we think of structured, trained, and very well put together people. At the Window tells a very different story. The ballerina’s hair is messy, with wisps of hair flying out of her rather low ballet bun. Her pointe shoes are loosely tied with the ribbons hanging out, which is the number one sin in the world of ballet. She is not standing in fifth position or with her leg ten feet in the air; she is slumped over, her legs turned in. All of these aspects along with the blurry impressionistic style show the imperfect side of the ballerina. She does not fit the mold of a typical ballerina; we are reminded of the human side of these seemingly perfect, graceful dancers. If this person, whose job it is to be put together and graceful, can have a moment of imperfection, then all human beings can. Without overstating it, this picture reminds us all that it is okay to not be put together and perfect because despite the imperfections in the ballerina’s stance and appearance, the painting as a whole is still quite beautiful.

Louis Kronberg uses the ballerina to remind all viewers that we do not have to conform to the high expectations placed on us because of our professions. His impressionistic style and imperfect illustration of the ballerina provide a sense of relief and relaxation or even a moment of truth for the viewer. As a reviewer who loves both ballet and impressionism, I highly recommend this piece to anyone who feels the same way. However, if these things are not exactly your cup of tea, you might not feel the same attraction to the picture as I did. Overall, on the nineties slang scale of fresh to not so much; I’d say this painting is pretty tight.

Transported by Lilly Harvey

          In the midst of a cold winter day in Boston, I would’ve never expected to be standing in a courtyard filled with plush green plants.  But when I ventured into the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum this is exactly where I found myself.  Founded in 1903, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum houses a unique collection of artwork all purchased by Isabelle Gardner.  All of the artwork was carefully assembled by Gardner herself and not a single piece has been moved since her death in 1924.  While I found this unique collection of work captivating, the courtyard in the center of the building remained the stand out piece of the museum. 

          Perhaps what made this courtyard so interesting for me was how unexpected it was.  Even with the piles of snow outside, the courtyard made me feel like it was a peaceful spring day. There are also a variety surprising details in the space that made it more intriguing.   In the center of the space, there was mosaic piece with Medusa in the middle, which was an unexpected but extremely fascinating detail.  In addition there were several statues positioned throughout the space, breaking up the greenery.  While I loved these small details, my favorite piece was the fountain on one side of the courtyard.  The fountain is covered in small carvings and above the fountains there are three statues.  The trickle of the water made me feel as if I was outside.  The courtyard can be seen from the balconies on each of the three floors of the building and it is just as stunning from above as it is from eye level.  The garden also provides a sharp contrast to the gothic style and dark lighting of some of the rooms. 

          Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this museum. The courtyard in the center of the building made this museum memorable as well as providing a sharp contrast to the work assembled throughout the museum.  Since none of the work has been moved since 1924, the museum seems to be at a standstill, exactly the way Gardner left it.  This museum transported me to not only another time but to another season with the bright greenery and fountains.  I would highly recommend this museum to anyone who wants to enjoy a distinctive experience. 

The Attraction of Ambiguity by Ebie Quinn

            The Gardner Museum achieves it’s greatness by being both perplexing and thought provoking. In 1903, Isabella Stewart Gardner, turned her house and large art collection into a museum for the public to enjoy. She required that all of her pieces remain in the exact same place, allowing no modernizations to be made. Personally, I do not have extensive historic or religious knowledge, and in looking at a painting I couldn’t tell you the story behind it. I don’t even have the means to fabricate a fake one. That being said, the museum was just as entertaining for me as it might be for a historian or an art expert. The entertainment for me stems from a different place then it might stem for someone else, and that is the beauty of this museum. The sheer amount of material allows for many different opinions and joys.

In particular, I connected with a book shelf being featured in a hallway. The piece was understated, which spoke to me. There were many paintings and tapestries filled with grandeur to appreciate, but the bookshelf could easily be overlooked. More than anything, this bookshelf confused me. It was a beautiful brown, and it seemed to be varnished. Inside there were many different books with titles like, “Renaissance in Italy,” and “The Louvre.” Each book had a price tag hanging off of it. The bottom of the bookshelf was engraved with two scenes. The first appeared to be a King standing by himself, and the second was the same king, but now with a girl weeping at his feet. The scenes were detailed and each had an intricate background. I was immediately drawn to the piece, not only because I connected emotionally, but because it was so bewildering to me. It was so different from all of the other pieces of art. It wasn’t depicting arbitrary monarchs that I might know but probably wouldn’t, it wasn’t flashy, and it certainly wasn’t boring. I found myself captivated by this bookshelf. Gardner was known for her intentionality and I began pondering what her intent was with this. Why were there price tags on the books? Were they ever really being sold, or were they just a part of the piece? These questions probably have factual answers, but I didn’t discover any of them.

This experience with the bookshelf was reflective of the rest of the museum for me. Yes, there were answers, and stories, and reasoning that someone visiting could appreciate. But for me, each piece of art was ambiguous, allowing me to connect in whichever way I felt regardless of the intention. I relished in my own confusion. Whether you are a historian who takes pride in their knowledge of facts, or like me, a teenager who appreciates not knowing everything all the time, you will enjoy a visit to the Isabella Gardner Museum.

A Museum, but Also a Story by Ryan LaPointe

           The Isabella Stewart Garner Museum is an elegant museum with a long, interesting history.  Situated just off Huntington Ave in Boston, the museum was established and curated by its namesake, Isabella Stewart Gardner.  Gardner filled the museum with her personal art collection, which encompassed a variety of art forms and styles.  Now long deceased, Gardner lived an exuberant life filled with travel and adventure.  Her love for Venice and the Italian Culture served as a source of inspiration for the design of her museum.

Upon her death, Gardner's will instituted an endowment of $1 million, and forbid any significant alteration of her museum's permanent collection.  Because of this provision, the pieces found in the museum have been neither changed nor rearranged, to the fullest extent possible, since Gardner's death.  Gardner never left any explanations concerning the locations of the various pieces in the museum, and the museum staffers are left to speculate about the reasoning behind her choices.

The courtyard is a small but beautiful garden full of lush greenery and stone statues, with pebble paths that turn at right angles and an ornate tile mosaic floor in the center of it all. Located directly in the center of the building, the courtyard serves as the center piece of the whole museum.  It is surrounded by orange-tinted stone walls reaching up through all four floors of the building.  On these walls are many exquisite stone balconies that allow viewing the courtyard from a variety of angles.  No matter where you are in the museum, chances are you don't have to walk far to find a view of the courtyard.

As with the rest of the museum, it is clear that Gardner put a lot of thought into the courtyard.  At the center of the Mosaic floor, you can see a depiction of Medusa, a monster of Greek mythology whose gaze turned people into stone.  It is fitting, then, that Gardner placed this icon at the center of a garden full of stone statues.

The sunlight that enters from the skylight above the courtyard permeates much of the museum.  The ambient light in the museum noticeably brightens and dims as the sun is unobstructed or blocked by clouds.  This ambient sunlight gives many of the rooms of the museum a warm, natural feeling.

Overall, I found my visit to the museum to be a very pleasant, intriguing experience.  I found the artwork to be interesting, but I was more intrigued by the story behind the museum.  I would definitely recommend this museum, both to lovers of art and to those simply looking to have a calm interesting afternoon.

Gardner Museum by Theresa Rauh

               Things that are mysterious are always interesting and special in a way, because you don’t really know how to interpret them. They seem to carry a message, but you don’t really know what it is. One of the pieces, which seemed to really carry a secret in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, is El Jaleo by John Singer Sargent, 1882.

 El Jaleo, which is actually the name of a form of flamenco and means cheering, is almost 12 feet wide, broadly painted painting. In the foreground a woman in a white long dress dancing, one of her hands is leaning on her hip, the other one is pointing up. She is dancing very energetic. She is represented from the side. In the background there are three men accompanying her with guitars as well as two women seeming to enjoy her dance. One chair is empty, on which is laying an orange. In the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum the painting is underneath a little fixture, which is located at the very end of the room. One the left of the fixture in the inside is a little mirror. The picture is reflected and more life is given the picture. The impression is given, that the women is one time on one side and the next time on the other. In general the picture is painted in dark colors. The atmosphere of the picture isn’t friendly. Also the dark colors and the facial expressions, especially of the men in the picture don’t excite to cheering. This is also reinforced through the way Isabella Stewart Gardner set it up. The title, which means cheering, is therefore ironic in a way.

The painting El Jaleo is very fascinating. Every time you look at it you find something knew, you didn’t see before. It has something mysterious in it, as it is not painted in the way you would imagine people cheering and dancing. It seems to carry a secret. You should really try to find out yourself!

 

 

 

Artwork Inside of a Dead Person’s Home by Jonathan Coombs

            While most people believe that entering someone’s home and staring at their belongings is an invasion of privacy, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum allows you to stare at the private collection of the curator inside of her home. The museum, curated by Isabella Gardner, opened in 1903 and is located in Boston at a house she built to store her collection. In Isabella’s will, she stated that none of the pieces are to be moved from where she had placed them.               

                The collection is quite gorgeous, made up of statues, paintings, mosaics and more. My personal favorite was the courtyard, as it is a work of art constructed out of other works of art. It is a grassy place, with several statues, human and animal, meticulously placed around a tile mosaic that holds the face of medusa. The human statues face medusa while the animals all face north. The air is calming, with everything from sight to smell being authentic and unique. This is just one of several great works to be found in the museum.

                There is one piece, however, that I would like to use this platform to discuss. By discuss, I mean I will tell you what I think, and give you little or no chance to state your own opinion. Ok? In the room titled “The Tapestry Room” there is a piano. The piano is elegant, from the sleek appearance to the gold plated brass forming different patterns along the body and legs of it. This piano is clearly a work of love, the maker did an amazing job creating it. What makes me upset is the misuse of the piano. A collection is made up of paintings and statues among other things, and a collection is meant to be looked at and admired. This is fine, as paintings and statues are made to be looked at. A piano, contrarily, is made to be played. Even if the piano is beautiful, the art it creates comes from the music it produces. The craftsmen clearly put love and effort into the design of the piano, yet, it is not allowed to be touched and played. The curator of the collection did not seem to understand that there is a difference between paintings and instruments. And that partially ruins the museum as a whole for me.

                Now take a second and form an opinion. Disagree with me? I don’t mind.

                Overall, I would recommend the museum to those with time to spare and money burning a hole in your pocket. I don’t advise bringing kids under 7, as there are small dark spaces that an energetic kid will hurt themselves in. As long as you have a basic appreciation of art there is no reason you shouldn’t love this museum. If you don’t share my same opinions, then the piano won’t bother you and ruin the collection. So yes, if you live in the greater Boston area with spare time and nothing to do, consider paying a visit to Isabella Stewart’s home.

                Rating: 8.5 skittles out of 10 skittles, good while it lasts but is quickly consumed and leaves an alright aftertaste.

               

Beautiful Painted Portrait with Terrible Music by Vanessa Hsiao

      Why is that there? What is that? Who is that? When was that created? Those were only some of the questions I had during my experience at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. Gardner opened the museum in 1903 after a fast and detailed construction. When Gardner passed away in 1924, she requested that the pieces in her museum not be moved or adjusted. To this day, the museum has not been changed since Gardner’s death.

     The Gardner museum is connected to a modern museum where an in and out concert was held. The modern museum included a gift shop, a café, and a library/lounge. Walking from the modern museum into the Gardner Museum was like traveling through time, from simple glass and metal stairs to old tiles and stones. The museum surrounds a beautiful courtyard with several different types of plants and flowers, a fountain, a grand staircase from the second floor, and a mosaic flooring work in the middle of the courtyard.

     On the third floor, there is a portrait of Gardner herself in the Gothic room. The room itself was very dark and had a medieval feel with stained glass windows shining limited light in. John S. Sargent, who had also done some other work in the museum painted the portrait. In the portrait, Gardner wears a low cut black dress with a strand of pearls from her neck to her skinny waist. Gardner placed her hands interlocking in the front of her with her mouth open and eyes and body facing forward. The portrait portrays Gardner as a youthful, educated, and confident woman. Though the portrait is obviously composed, the position of Gardner’s body presents her as a calm, collective, and strong woman.

     The modern museum also features an in and out concert most days in the afternoon. During my time there, I decided to check it out. The theater astonished me when I first quietly walked in. The rich red seats are placed perfectly in four levels that surround the center. There was glass that went in front of the seats and around the center that created a very modern look as well as the simple delicate lighting hanging by wires in the theatre. In the center of the first floor there was a pianist and flutist. The pianist had very expressive facial movement as he was playing two pianos, one being a grand. Though the theater was beautiful and the pianist and flutist were amazing, the music was quiet boring. Composed by Morton Feldman, the tempo was quite slow and minimum. There were often pauses and only a few notes before the next pause. It was interesting but it quickly got repetitive and uninteresting. I definitely recommend checking out the concert when you are there but there is no guarantee of enjoyment.

         Overall, the Gardner Museum was an amazing experience with great pieces from many time periods and each room with a different feel. The Gothic Room was certainly the most interesting to me and I would recommend checking it out if you go. The in and out concert is worth checking out just to see the theatre and feel the room but don’t expect to hear the best composed music. I definitely recommend the Isabella Gardner Museum, as it holds some of the most timeless and great pieces in European history.

Why the Long Face? by James Curley

            From the first glance of Ms. Gardner’s house, I knew that this was going to be an interesting museum, that felt not so much like a museum but more along the lines of a home. The house had three floors and each room more exciting than the last. The “museum” is in Boston, Massachusetts on Beacon street, and the museum was created around 1898. It was previously a house owned by both Isabelle Stewart Gardner and John Lowell Gardner.

            Located on the second floor, in the Tapestry Room, there was a certain piece that stood out to me. The piece of art showcased dark colors, showing a woman looking into the distance thinking and overall it seemed as though the lady was unsure or insecure about something. Having gloomy shades of green, blue and black really added to the dramatic affect and added to the overall message and how it can be perceived. It seemed to be relevant with most of the other pieces of work in the house, relating to the same time period, late nineteenth century. The Tapestry room was a room of gloominess and darkness, and this piece of art definitely added to this affect. Having no name, the painting intrigued me and made me think about what this piece of art could be named.

            Ms. Gardner’s house was full of various pieces of art, and it seemed that in certain rooms there was more art than needed. Throughout most of the art there was an overall message of success and accomplishment, portrayed through numerous portraits of friends and family and others. Ms. Gardner had the piece of the woman looking into the distance and this painting placed into the Tapestry Room. I think that by Ms. Gardner having this piece, it showed a hesitation in Ms. Gardner’s art collection. I personally enjoyed the painting, its darkness and the woman feeling mixed emotions really stood out to me as a viewer, and kept me fighting towards finding the ultimate message behind this painting. In regards to the Ms. Gardner museum and Ms. Gardner’s art collection I do not see how these two correlate, having a very proud and confident collection and then having this painting, I would have advised against Ms. Gardner from putting it into her collection, not because it was a poor piece, but because it did no comply with the overall message. Overall I would recommend the museum for it shows a prominent collection with only a few pieces a bit out of place.

A Moment of Leisure Amidst a Restless City by Lisa Li

            Walking through a staircase with a glass wall displaying the scenery of Boston, you won’t feel tired when you reach the third floor. Following the gentle breath of the flute, you will be drawn toward the entrance of the auditorium of Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Decorated with dim, yellow lights and cushioned red chairs, the auditorium has four floors, with the stage located in the middle of the first floor and the audience seats located in the balconies that surround the stage. This is an optimum arrangement for chamber music. Once you pick a seat, you may close your eyes and experience the unprecedented leisure and peace in the In-And-Out Concerts, presented by flutist Paula Robison and Pianist/Celeste player Bruce Brubaker.

            The music will slow down your heart rate, lighten the pressure in your brain, and block you from the chaos, distress, and ugliness of reality. The music does not have a specific rhythm or melody. It is a fusion of dissonance—a combination of unresolved and unrested non-chord tones—between the three instruments, which brings a rather unearthly and mysterious tone to the listeners’ ears. The soft whistles of the flute may bring you to a mountaintop surrounded by clouds and bamboo or a shore with gentle waves and dim sunlight. The warm dissonance of the piano interacts with the flute, as if two heavenly creatures are enjoying a leisurely cloud-gazing conversation. The innocent sound of the celeste interludes between the flute and piano, like the shimmering stars in a restful night and the pure morning dews that perches on the grass in a foggy dawn. Musically, the amiable interactions between these three instruments create a perfect heavenly dissonance, building a simple world for the audience to meditate in, and setting humans free from the stress, turbulence, and pain in the human world.

            Although the music is brilliant, there are some distracting movements on stage. The piano player, especially, opens his mouth and widens his eyes constantly, as if he is aghast at his music score. He also squints at his score once in a while, as if he has a hard a time finding his place. When he presses down his keys, we understand that he needs to be careful, but he presents a combination of grin and frown on his face that looks very painful. If you were to see the concert, I recommend you not to look at the piano player because he WILL make you laugh.

            Just like the name of the concert, In-And-Out, you may feel free to come and leave at any moment. If you are seeking for a moment of leisure, even for five minutes, you are welcome to come to this concert. If you are experiencing some hardship, stress, and depression, I highly recommend you to attend this concert because it helps you to clear your mind. If you live in the city and have a busy job, I especially encourage you to attend this concert and experience a slower pace of life. This concert, however, is not recommended for young kids who would be bored by the slow pace and the lack of melody of the music. If you’re interested, the concert will be held in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum on March 16^th and 23^rd, so make sure to mark your calendar.

 

 

Isabella’s Piano by Tommy Petroskey

Isabella’s Piano by Tommy Petroskey

  

            I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t impressed by the collection of art in the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum in Boston, MA. What I’d have to say astonished me the most was the size of the museum itself.  To scale each room, and notice each piece of art, it took me about 2 and half hours.  However I feel as if observing every room in this museum is borderline unnecessary. 

If you are looking for hot tight rooms that contain not much more than dusty furniture and old musty china, than by all means the first floor is the floor for you.  If I were to go back to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum I would skip right to the 2^nd floor, no questions asked.  I tend to be absolutely mesmerized by size and quality of art, as opposed to the age or a captivating theme.  The 2^nd floor of the museum had a great mixture of mind-blowing architecture and hypnotic art.  Specifically the tapestry room was easily my favorite part of this whole museum.  The dark wooden walls and perfectly polished stone floor made this the most attractive looking room in the house.  Ten large tapestries decorate the walls floor to ceiling.  Not to mention this was probably the biggest room I have ever set foot in, everything in it was so tastefully done.  The piece on this room, however, that caught my eye greater than any other in the museum was the unique grand piano at the end of the room accenting the beautifully sculpted fireplace.  The piano was entirely made out of rich mahogany wood and lined every edge with golden leafed molding.  The distinctive intricately carved legs accented the design of the beading the surrounded each edge of the piano.  Upon the two front legs, closest to the keys, there was a young golden face imprinted within the artistic edging.     

In total the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum was certainly remarkable.  The unique, deep-rooted architecture certainly contributed to a fantastic atmosphere for the paintings.  Although one like myself may get a little tired of wondering the whole entire building, this museum was definitely worth a visit. 

           

           

A Traveler's Collection by Aoife Hughes

A Traveler's Collection by Aoife Hughes

Cloister garden at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

         An idyllic garden encompassed by great rooms complete with ornate decorations and an extensive collection of artwork is one of the last things one would expect to find amongst the hustle and bustle of Fenway. Like a 15^th century Venetian Palace, the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum, or Fenway Court, as it was known during the founder’s life, is an incredible home to more than 2,500 pieces of artwork collected by Isabella Stewart Gardener during her lifetime in the early 20^th century. While making your way through the three floors and plethora of rooms in the museum, it is easy to find yourself questioning the choices and placement of every artwork, seeing as though nothing has been moved since Gardner placed them, respecting her wishes in her will. Some are more obvious choices; the Raphael room on the second floor is filled with renaissance artwork of mothers and children, possibly an expression of her struggle following the death of her two-year-old son when she was in her early twenties. The Gothic Room, on the third floor, is home to an oil painting portrait of Gardner herself, painted by John S. Sargent in the late 1880s.

           Walking around the palace it is difficult to remember that this is simply one persons collection. Owning a post-revolutionary French flag given to Napoleon’s personal guard which hangs in the short gallery is quite a personal accomplishment, even for Gardener, especially since it survived an attempted theft during the infamous 1990 robbery. The museum is an incredible place to spend time, and it truly changed my debatably closed minded opinion on museums. 

Step Into Another Time by Julia Duato

Step Into Another Time by Julia Duato

new entrance at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

        Walking through the glass corridor the sense of the XXI century invades you. As you walk and the glass corridor turns into brick corridor the XXI century goes away and the sense of time disappears. 

        The first thing that stands out as soon as you go inside the museum is the architecture of the building itself. The three floor building with the inside garden it is just as astonishing as all the art pieces that the museum contains. The colors of the walls and the refreshing air that the flowers and trees give the museum leaves you with a relaxed mood just as if you were just finishing a long race and you were drinking a cold beverage. The only difference is that leaving the museum leaves you with the feeling that you have been instructed with a large amount of new knowledge from all around the world, and from a large amount of different eras, leaving you with a sense of nonexistence present but infinite past that creates, to every single person, our own present. Connecting us to the human nature and all the leaving persons that one day had experimented emotions by looking at a piece of art that is in the Gardner. 

           The Gardner gives the opportunity to connect with different cultures and places around the world in a three floor building of more than a hundred years old. And like at the end of a race, the museum leaves you mentally tired, but with a good feeling on your body, just like if your brain had created endorphins from looking to the art in the museum. 

A transportation through time by Kara L'Heureux

A transportation through time by Kara L'Heureux

Isabella by Anders Zorn

To look from wall to wall gives clues and evidence of Isabella Gardener’s lifestyle and the world she lived in. The renovated house turned museum allows onlookers to step back into the past and see themselves as Isabella Gardener living in her house. From sculpture to painting each room in the house is filled with its own collection of work and it’s own little world.

The house itself is a work of art. Exploring the house through the halls and stairs you are surrounded by her collection everywhere. Carvings on walls, sculpted columns, marble stairs and rugged walls cover each floor, letting onlookers not just to look at the art but to be surrounded by it and engulfed in it as Isabella would have been when living there.

Like an Italian villa the house is built around grand sculpture garden. Each floor has window balconies on looking the garden. From each room you can stare down at the enclosed garden making it seem like the house has its own paradise of perfect weather inside.

Isabella’s collection exposes her taste in romantic and Christian art throughout time. Each room contains its own theme of style of art and each holds their own unique feel and attitude. The design of each room is impeccable, designed as if you are entering her house when she has left for just the afternoon, where every object still in place. Tables set, cupboards filled and small home touches everywhere. Her world collections make each room unique and allow visitors to explore throughout time.

Visitors will find their own favorite rooms and areas of the house easily. The gold room with it’s beautifully painted ceiling contain mostly gold furniture, it’s a room of luxury that makes any one dream of living in it. Then there is the blue room with a wide collection of watercolor and soft pastel paintings. Each painting has a touch of blue but all seem to also go together with their light coloring and soft feel and emotion. To take an even closer look into her life small counters are set in many rooms displaying her personal letters. With letters from Victor Hugo, Marie Antoinette and Anders Zorn it lets visitors wander in to her life and understand her influence just by seeing who was her friends.

Along with her the permanent collection, the new building holds the Anders Zorn collection. As a friend of Isabella who shared similar ideas and tastes in art his collection connects but is separate from the main building. His portraits of socialites, including Isabella Gardener, allow a view into Isabella’s friends and the people in her world. Zorn’s love of smooth brush stroke and etching shows trials and the small steps he took to complete his art. Accessories and jewelry on each women and man carefully detailed complete each portrait. His collection is both elegant and a bit rough through his brush strokes.

The entire museum’s collection transports visitors back in time. Like a playground going from room to room, and up and down stairs, both are entertaining and fascinating. The collection is vast and different. Unlike regular exhibits, this museum presents art in all forms and places them creatively for display. Isabella Gardener has designed her house not only as a beautiful museum but as everyone’s dream home. 

Mary, Queen of the Heavens by Patrick Burns

Mary, Queen of the Heavens by Patrick Burns

Death and the Assumption of the Virgin by Fra Angelico

Purchased in 1899 by Isabella Stewart Gardener from art historian Bernard Berenson, Fra Angelico’s Death and the Assumption of the Virgin  (1432) hangs on the side of an ornate fireplace mantle in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s Early Italian Room. If you are not particularly observant, you may pass by the diminutive exquisite work of art. But if you navigate the museum with care, actively searching each decorated wall, doorway, and ceiling, you will be sure to find this 61.8 x 38.5 cm treasure.

            Death and the Assumption of the Virgin is the final piece of Fra Angelico’s four piece series depicting the life and death of the Virgin Mary. The tempura painting features two depictions of Mary; mortal Mary’s corpse on earth, and immortal Mary’s spirit in heaven.  Mary’s corpse lies on a gilded bed, surrounded by apparitions of Christ and his disciples, as her spirit ascends to heaven, welcomed by a choir of angels. Fra Angelico adorns his figures in vibrant pinks, greens, and blues, giving the painting a celebratory richness. The use of gold lacquer throughout heavenly skies create a sense of enveloping holiness, giving the figure representative of Mary’s spirit an otherworldly aurora. Though the vibrancy and impressive gold work separates this work of art from the characteristically darker 15^th century paintings found in the museum, the most striking element of the painting is the contrast between ornate holiness and naturalism. The figures in the painting retain a sense of humanity through the natural positioning of their faces and bodies, which works against the notion of depicting religious figures idealistically, an idea common to many of Fra Angelico’s contemporaries.  The vibrant hues and grand, golden glazes of this painting may capture the eye at first, but Fra Angelico’s attention to detail in the depiction of facial expressions and body language will keep the viewer in awe.