I began the day by driving to Norwalk, Connecticut, and touring the Lockwood-Matthews Mansion Museum. The house is so cool!
The original owners (the Lockwoods) were railroad barons, in the same league as the Vanderbilt family that built The Breakers mansion in Newport. However, Mr. Lockwood went bankrupt one year after he finished building this home. After passing through a few owners, the house was eventually owned by the city of Norwalk. The city slated it for demolition, but a lady and her friends saved it.
The first floor of the home has been restored, but the second floor needs a lot of work. Every room has an amazing ceiling.
In addition to the main house, we explored the servants quarters, which were pretty nice. Each servant had their own room and their uniforms were made by a prestigious designer (sorry, I can't remember which one).
Next, I drove to New Haven and visited the Yale Art Gallery. Parking tip: I parked at the Crown Street Garage (213 Crown Street) because it was within walking distance to the Yale Art Gallery and the Shubert Theatre. Also, the garage had a daily price cap of $15, it accepts credit cards, and it is well lit.
Now back to the fun things. The Museum has re-installed their galleries since the last time I visited and they look great! I'm in love with their second floor!! They have a fantastic collection of 19th century, 20th century, baroque, and medieval art.
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| Peter Paul Rubens, Head of a Bearded Man in Profile, ca. 1615 |
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| Frans Hals, Heer Bodolphe, 1643 |
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| Claude Monet, The Artist's Garden in Giverny, 1900 |
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| Vincent van Gogh, The Night Cafe, 1888 |
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| Edgar Degas, The Ballet Rehearsal, ca. 1891 |
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| Left to right: Edgar Degas, Four Jockeys, ca. 1889, The False Start, ca. 1869-72, & The Jockeys, ca. 1882 |
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| Diego Velazquez, The Education of the Virgin, ca. 1617-18 |
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| Francesco Trevisani, The Crucifixion, ca. 1720 |
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| Edward Hopper, Rooms for Tourists, 1945 |
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| Amedeo Modigliani, Portrait of a Young Woman, 1918 |
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| Pablo Picasso, La rue Lepic, ca. 1900 |
When I visited, there was a Leonardo da Vinci exhibition on view in their temporary gallery space. There were only three da Vinci paintings in the exhibition, the rest of the works were by the artist's contemporaries, but it was a nice show none the less.
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| Leonardo da Vinci, The Annunciation, 1475-79 |
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| The Annunciation detail |
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| Andrea del Verrocchio and workshop(?), Virgin and Child with an Angel, ca. 1475-85 |
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| Leonardo da Vinci and Lorenzo di Credi, A Miracle of Saint Donatus of Arezzo, ca. 1475-85 |
After I finished exploring the Yale Art Gallery, I had lunch at Prime 16 and caught up on my journaling at a nearby Panera before it was time to watch Les Misérables at the Shubert Theatre. At the theatre, I sat halfway back in the center of the second floor mezzanine. The seats were descent after the couple in front of me left/moved during intermission. Otherwise, there needs to be a steeper incline because it is difficult to see around/over people's heads.
I was a little skeptical of seeing Les Misérables. I had seen the movie and I was not a fan. However, it's a classic and many times the live theatre productions are better than the movie so I took a risk and saw it performed live. I'm sorry to say that I still don't care for it, lol. I'm not a fan of the story line; it's too depressing for my taste. Even though I didn't care for the story, the actors were fantastic and the sets and costumes were superb.
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