Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Tonight's photo was taken in March of 2008. We took Mattie to a Noah's Arc exhibit in Los Angeles and as you can see he was having a ball. Running around, investigating aspects of the arc and participated in all the activities they cleverly created for the children. Typically this wasn't something Mattie did, he usually liked exploring things in his own way and time. But this exhibit was really made for him. There were hand on things, things to crawl and run around in, and even creative activities to build your own arc. It was a great day and memory for all of us.



Quote of the day: The happiest excitement in life is to be convinced that one is fighting for all one is worth on behalf of some clearly seen and deeply felt good. ~ Ruth Benedict

I went out to lunch with my parents today before heading the museum. Check out this dessert! It was truly wonderful and believe it or not, it wasn't heavy or too sugary! It was filled inside with very gooey chocolate and fresh cherries!

After lunch, we headed to the Huntington Library. Which is a private, nonprofit institution founded in 1919 by Henry E. Huntington, an exceptional businessman who built a financial empire that included railroad companies, utilities, and real estate holdings in Southern California.
 
Huntington was also a man of vision – with a special interest in books, art, and gardens. During his lifetime, he amassed the core of one of the finest research libraries in the world, established a splendid art collection, and created an array of botanical gardens with plants from a geographic range spanning the globe. These three distinct facets of The Huntington are linked by a devotion to research, education, and beauty.

My Dad and I by the entrance of the museum and garden.

My mom in the garden with the Canna Lilies.

Pomegranates growing in the gardens.

Black Eyed Susans in their glory.

In 1910, Henry E. Huntington began acquiring a large collection of outdoor sculptures, personally deciding on the exact location for each piece of garden statuary. Some of the statues were moved as many as three times until Huntington was satisfied. Love is a common theme among the garden sculpture, most of which dates from the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

Henry Huntington and Armand Hammer never met each other, but the two businessmen had at least one thing in common: they both established great art collections that form the core of major museums in Los Angeles. In an exciting “meet-up” of sorts, 15 important works from the Hammer Museum take up temporary residence at The Huntington, offering visitors the unprecedented opportunity to enjoy masterpieces from both collections in one place.

Garden of the Rectory at Neunen -- Van Gogh painted this in 1885 while living with his family in the Netherlands. He set out to paint the bleak landscape of the Dutch winters. He purposefully picked a dark palette of greys, browns, some yellow and white. This was a sharp contrast from the vivid colors he used after moving to Paris.

View of Bordighera -- Claude Monet (1884) fell in love with the Italian Riviera town of Bordighera. Monet said that to paint this, he needed "a palette of diamonds and jewels because of the blues and pinks of the landscape.

 

Hospital of Saint Remy -- Vincent Van Gogh (1889) -- a place Van Gogh spent time after suffering recurring mental health issues.

While viewing this with my mom, I heard a docent descripting this piece of art to her group and she explained that Van Gogh had schizophrenia but she likes to look at this painting without taking into context his illness. Literally I was rolling my eyes. First of which, research shows Van Gogh suffered with Bipolar Disorder and not schizophrenia. In addition, I think it is always VITAL to take into account one's mind set and frame of reference when creating anything, or when interacting with someone for that matter. So how she can discount this and how it may have influenced what Van Gogh wanted to express is beyond me.

This stunning photo is the hallway of the Huntington Gallery. Which at one time was the actual house of Mr. and Mrs. Huntington. So the in reality you aren't only seeing incredible art, but you are getting to walk through a museum that once was their working home.

Henry Huntington was an avid reader and book collector. This was his library within their home. The wood in the library came from England.

A view into their incredible gardens from the second floor of the house.

Though it was TOO hot to walk around outside, the Gardens that surround the museum are beyond noteworthy and extensive. There is a themed garden for practically every occasion.

The chapel's stained glass window within their home.

A famous room within the Huntington because it showcases the Famous "Blue Boy" and "Pinkie."

This was Sarah Barrett Moulton, better known as Pinkie. She is permanently housed in the Huntington Library. Thomas Lawrence painting this life sized painting in 1794. The painting was commissioned by her grandmother, when the girl was age 11. The sad part about this is Sarah died from tuberculosis shortly after the completion of the work.

A room in their home/gallery

 The dining room

A garden right outside their home.

The Huntington just expanded their gift store and it was incredible. Truly something for everyone. Check out this wonderful tote bag my mom and I found. It says, Love you to the Moon and Back. This is a saying I always said to Mattie and therefore I had to purchase it. He was with me today in mysterious ways.