For New Year's Day 2017 I took my daughters to Philadelphia for the day to visit the Philadelphia Museum Of Art. Here are a few photos from our trip. (Pictured above - that's just one wing of the HUGE museum!)
It was the perfect day to visit the museum. We live about one hour away, and since it was New Year's Day, there was virtually no traffic on the turnpike and we arrived to find ample parking in Eakin's Oval, directly across the street from the museum. We paid $15 to park for the entire afternoon, which was a good deal.
This is the Washington Monument fountain in Eakin's Oval, and it's beautiful. What's really cool about it is that the statue of George Washington - his face - was created from an impression of his actual face that was taken while he was still alive. The body was created from a Prussian General.
The base of the statue features Native Americans and native American animals, such as this moose. The detail is fantastic. This bronze and granite monument was commissioned and designed by sculptor by Rudolf Siemering.
You can see the museum's Christmas tree on display in the background. And yes, those are the Rocky steps from the movie Rocky! There is also a Rocky statue that is situated to the right of the photo above.
Almost there! We were fortunate that it was pay what you want day - so you can give a donation at any price you want for admission. Nice!
When walking in the front doors, its hard to explain the immensity of the Great Hall. It really is great! I should've taken a photo from just inside the front door, because the images I took really don't give you the full effect of the size - so google it! In any case, once inside there is a great staircase and at the top of it is Diana...
Diana is perched atop the stairs in the museum's Great Hall. At 14 feet 6 inches tall, she is huge! She was created in 1892-1893 as a weather vane for the tower of New York's Madison Square Garden by Augustus Saint-Gauden from copper with gold leaf. Of course everything was beautifully decorated for Christmas.
This is not a great photo because I shot into the sun, but one of my favorite things is the mobile Ghost from Calder! Of course I am a huge Calder fan so this was probably one of the biggest highlights for me.
Amazing Peter Paul Rubens tapestries cover the walls of the upper level of the Great Hall. On the left is the Marriage of Constantine and Fausta. The tapestries were sketched by Rubens and made by a workshop in Paris in 1625.
I have to stop here because I have jewelry to make today, but I'll continue this tomorrow with part two, where I'll share some amazing plates and dishes from the museum's collection so be sure to check back!
(Read part 1 - Visit to Philly Museum of Art)
(Read part 2 - Visit to Philly Museum of Art)
(Read part 1 - Visit to Philly Museum of Art)
(Read part 2 - Visit to Philly Museum of Art)
Have a great week!
love,
love,
Laura
My broken china jewelry is always available for purchase at https://www.etsy.com/shop/dishfunctionldesigns
