Wednesday, January 6, 2010

A Trip To The Museum- chapter 1

I recently took the kids on a road trip, about an hour North, to Detroit. It had been quite a few years since we had been to the DIA, Detroit Institute of Arts.
E. was 8, N. was a new baby, and A. was about 4 and now she is less than a week from age 14! So you get the idea.
We love going on day trips when we can and this was our only one planned during the kids' Christmas break. It was enjoyed by all.


The DIA had closed for about a year several years ago to redo many areas. I was anxious to see the changes amid the beautiful things they have within the stone walls of this very large museum.

So here is my first installment of the museum trip and our adventures there. This post is mostly about the architecture that caught my eye and interest, with a few other items shown too. I am attracted to architecture for some odd reason, always have been. Maybe I was some famous architect in a former life. Ha!

We were happy to see this beautiful painting in the museum because a copy of it is painted in our own church from floor to ceiling. Our reproduction painting was done by a member of our church back in the 1940's and the models for the cherubs faces were children in the church at the time.
I love doorways and gates and arches. This view intrigued me as it showed the hint of other beautiful things to come as we wound around through rooms like a maze, afraid we would make a wrong turn and miss something wonderful.


A ceiling reconstructed . The modern lighting amid the chandelier is somewhat a distraction, but was needed to illuminate the detail in the complex wooden construction and intricate gargoyles which peeked out from immense brackets. I could imagine being in a grand place long, long ago and drinking some kind of grog at a 50 foot long table beneath this ceiling.


Many ancient carved wood artifacts were displayed in this room. Can you imagine the stories these could tell of the years they have survived and things they have seen?

I was really fascinated by this gate and archway! Such grand detail. I find I am always drawn to anything that has swirly, scrolly movement in it's design. Some of my favorite fabrics in my sewing room have background designs that have such swirls and curves. Are you a straight line or curved line kind of person? Think about it.





N. bumped me while I took a photo of this gate, so it's all blurry. I thought I had snapped an additional photo of it too, but when I got home and reviewed my memory card I was disappointed to see that I didn't have a nice clear shot . That's why I didn't hit that ol' delete button on this one. Oh well, an excuse to go back!! Right?
My boy N. is at that age were he sheepishly wants to look at the nudes in the museum but doesn't want to be found out. Age nine! Whenever we often went to our own museum closer to home, in years past, he never seemed to even notice the nudes. How funny!
I made a comment that he would probably go back to school and write in his journal that he had seen LOTS of boobies on Christmas break and I would get a call from his teacher!
His oldest sister E. -age 17- said to N.,
"It's not naked people. It's ART, N.!! You dork!!"
You gotta love siblings and the life lessons they toss your way, right?!
I reassured N. that yes, it was ok to look at "the art".
I couldn't even guess how high the ceiling is in this area but I loved the perspective of this arched window and the staircase beyond. The photo above is in my Studio blog.


Above and below is a grand sized painting showing some great architecture. You really can't get a true idea of the size of this from my photo. I could study paintings like this for hours!





The museum itself is art to be appreciated. Photo above is featured in my Studio blog.


More architecture in painting, above. This painting took up a whole wall and this was just one tiny portion of it. That's a monkey on the steps.


Sparkle and glow! So many different kinds of crystal chandeliers. Some were incredibly massive in size and still seemed small due to the ceiling height. This photo above is featured in my Studio blog.

I could not keep a count of how many gorgeous stained glass windows were displayed. Each one more breathtaking than the last. Have you ever noticed that things like paintings and tapestries and stained glass windows are very different when viewed both close up and far away? I enjoy viewing the different perspectives and experiencing the seemingly optical illusion some provide.
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of the tour as seen through my camera.
Stay tuned for more lovely items and rooms to come.

1 comment:

Diva Kreszl said...

what a wonderful trip...and to get your children to come along, even better!