The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Titian

 Boston's beloved ISGM is always a hugely rewarding visit.  I fume and rant and rave at all the art which is buried in the darkness, hidden in corners, etc., but you keep going back, because it is such a spectacular and challenging scene.  You understand, of course, the conservation efforts (for the first time I saw a "reproductions to protect originals" display, something I had never seen before at the Gardner, four Islamic miniatures), and what light can do to fabrics and oils, but there has got to be a better way.  And another real annoyance is the lack of identification, no labels anywhere, which means you have to search for a guide, or use your phone and scan an app (sigh), and after a while, you just observe in ignorance.  I know, I know, if I really cared, I'd look it all up, but, but....

By the way, when I visited the huge art museum in Beijing, I was astounded to find that the majority of the objects on display were reproductions.  Jamie, my host, said he was embarrassed to realize how much of the collection wasn't original!  I know the Chinese can copy anything, but really!

So here is a visit of Susan and me, thanks to the great generosity of a great friend, Mark Slawson, who bought tickets for him and me, and then became sick, last-minute.  He texted the tickets to me (that phone again!), and we saw the super-hyped Titian exhibit, which was the first gathering together of the six mythological scenes Titian painted for Philip II in the 1500's, since the Renaissance.  A truly historic event for Boston, and for the Gardner. 

And I will say again, what you see in this posting is so much more that you will see at the museum, thanks to digital camera efficiency (my I phone), and computer editing.  More light, more detail, etc.  I searched out small things probably missed by most visitors, and delightful to find.  But none of the negativity in this blog in any way should keep you from not rushing, rushing to the ESGM and see the Titians.  Like the Forbidden Palace exhibit at the MFA, you are unlikely to see them together again.  And I challenge you to find some of the details in this posting!

Susan waiting in line to get into the Titian exhibit.  One of my favorite outfits. 

The Rape of Europa
This is the Gardner's one Titian.  It has been cleaned, after years of being in a 
room with an open fireplace, and subsequently covered by coal dust. 

A detail, and Titian's mark (signature?)

Perseus and Andromeda
I was allowed to photograph 5 of the 6.

Diana and Callisto

detail

Diana and Actaeon
Much was made in the descriptions in the exhibit of the sensuality, violence, rape, etc. of the subjects, and of the non-existent rights of women in the 15th. century.   

After the darkness in most of the galleries of the palace, the courtyard is 
breath-taking.  Worth the visit alone. 

An entire corner display of lace, difficult to see. 

On to details, seen and unseen. In a cabinet in a dark corner. 

A magnificent halberd in the Venetian Room. 

A Chinese plate, hidden away. 

Light, light!

To be fair, after a solid week of rain, including our nor'easter, the sunlight of Sunday was
so welcomed. 

On occasion, a beam of light in a large room. 

Not a lot if Islamic art at the ISGM, but a few beautiful examples. 

One of my favorite pieces, in a hallway, but too beautiful to miss. And that frame!

A double miquelot, or snaplock, found on many muskets in the Ottoman empire.  (I looked it up!)

A magnificent pair of wall hangings in a hallway.

The museum has some spectacular Asian art, especially huge folding screens, found in connecting hallways behind glass, almost impossible to see.  In most museums, these would have their own gallery, and here they are relegated to, well, wall paper. 

Desk front. 

This piece was very dark, but visable in one on the large halls.   The camera brings out
the glory of its colors. 

The same thing with this desk front. 

In the tapestry room.

About the size of letter stationary, this is a small masterpiece. 

Hidden is a dark hallway. 

Tooled leather

Giving thought to Trump in 2024?

It is hard to take in that this is one small room off to one sideof one of the
huge halls that make up the three floors of the museum.  And in this room are treasures that would
be a delightful full collection for most lovers of art. 

Nacre (mother of pearl) inlay, chest of drawers.

St. George Slaying the Dragon (Crivelli)
Here is a favorite, mostly because no lack of illumination can take a way the 
unbelievably beautiful color, violence, virtuosity of this painting.  

Quietly sitting in a corner. 

More nacre, sewing cabinet. 

Well-lit, in a window, and profound. Angels with just torsos?

And two wonderful characters. 

On the first floor, very visible, a marble alter piece.  For the first time, I saw the detail carved  into
these faces.  And the hair!

And a final visit to "El Jaleo"
Despite all my carping, it is place where you will always find stuff that is jaw-dropping, revelatory, historic, rare, and above all, so rewarding.  Come go with me!