After an absence of several years, we returned to Philadelphia for a friend’s birthday party. We were blessed with mostly overcast skies and comfortable temperatures—perfect for all the walking we planned to do. We did walk a lot one day, but mostly we gorged on art. In two days, we visited three art museums and re-appreciated how much this historic city has to offer.
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts was the first stop. This museum and school is the oldest of its kind in the country and was established in 1805. Philadelphia was a cultural center even then, known for a time as the “Athens of America” and from 1790 to 1800 served as the nation’s capital. As you might expect, therefore, there are paintings and sculptures of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and John Paul Jones by the likes of Charles Wilson Peale and Gilbert Stuart, along with marble statues of figures from the classics such as one of Penelope by Rinaldo Rinaldi done in 1851.
What was equally, if not more appealing, was the Academy’s theming of several of the galleries. One, entitled “Women’s Work,” contained an array of paintings from different periods each depicting a woman doing something domestic—laundry, sweeping, etc. The artists were mostly male, but there was one painting by Mary Cassatt.
We also had fun in the large gallery hung “salon style,” a practice begun in France long ago. Here the walls were covered with paintings from down low to high up and none of them had any labels! A cheat sheet on the bench enabled us to zero in on works we particularly liked to see who was the artist. And here and there the galleries had some contemporary works, works by current or former students. Today there are about 300 fulltime students.
It was the last weekend for a large Impressionism exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and this was a must. Even with tickets purchased ahead for the first time slot in the morning, we had to wait in line about 15 minutes to get into the exhibit. This exhibit focused on works that were acquired and exhibited by Paul Durand-Ruel. He appreciated what the Impressionists were doing and was instrumental in both buying and exhibiting their work and in fostering their acceptance and later success. I found this perspective fascinating and was pleased to see a number of Impressionist paintings I had never seen before—works by Monet, Pissarro, and Sisley, among others.
That afternoon, we made a return visit to the Barnes Foundation, also on Philadelphia’s grand parkway. After seeing salon style in the Pennsylvania Academy gallery, we were re-calibrated for Barnes’ version. His combines many paintings on each wall, but graced with the addition of metal hardware such as hinges and door pulls above and furniture, small chests or tables bearing vases or candlesticks, below. Since our last visit, the Barnes now offers an audio guide which we opted to take. With its focus on one or two paintings per gallery, I felt much less overwhelmed by the sheer number of paintings on display. And I liked the fact that often the curators spoke about the paintings on either side of the featured one which gave me, the viewer, a slight peek into Barnes’ rationale for his ordering of the works.
It was also noteworthy that several works on display were ones that Durand-Ruel had either purchased or tried over many years to acquire. Lots and lots of Renoirs, some Cezannes, early Picassos, a number of Matisses, and also works by Americans such as Glackens. A very rich collection indeed and, somewhat ironically, given Mr. Barnes’ strictures which were in effect for many years, now you can buy reproductions in the form of postcards, note cards, and prints for framing!
The Philadelphia of 2015 shows off well. Center City has good signage, wonderful architecture old and new, and great restaurants.
We had tasty tapas at Tinto and a good lunch at the restrainedly beautiful Granite Hill in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
And there’s Dilworth Park. We loved this addition to the cityscape! This new plaza surrounding city hall pulses with a grid of jetting fountains, serves up a café aptly named Sips, and invites slowing down with its stripes of green lawn. The whole is punctuated by jolts of color—electric blue, hot pink, and spring green—in the form of metal café tables and elegant slatted chairs.
There was even a very friendly and helpful city greeter! Overall a vibrant urban space that invites you to stop–study the soaring skyline, people watch, or just appreciate the ornate beauty of city hall.
READING For anyone wishing to learn more about Philadelphia’s fascinating history, I have two book recommendations:
Puritan Boston and Quaker Philadelphia by Digby Baltzell and published in 1979. Note, he coined the term WASP for White Anglo Saxon Protestant.
Philadelphia: A 300-Year History by the Barra Foundation, published in 1982.
