To say that the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is one of the most romantic places in Boston would not be an overstatement - not by a long shot. This incredible museum, tucked away behind the Museum of Fine Arts in the Back Bay, houses the late Mrs. Isabella Stewart Gardner's life's work: her art collection.
According to Gardner's will, nothing in the museum can be altered or moved from the way she originally positioned it. Though the curators occasionally manage to use loopholes to create special exhibits - a collection of three pieces culled from the museum's permanent collection is currently being featured as "Off the Wall: New Perspectives on Early Italian Art" - almost everything in the museum has been left exactly the way it was when Gardner died.
Born in 1840 in New York to a wealthy family, Gardner often traveled to Europe as a child. It was there that she developed an appreciation for art and met her husband, Jack Gardner, whom she married in 1860.
The two settled in Boston, Jack's hometown. Following the death of Jack Jr., their two year old son, Gardner fell into a deep depression. Since these were the days before Prozac, her husband took her on a long trip to Europe to revive her spirits and it was during this excursion that the two began to amass their vast collection of art.
When visitors walk into the cloister-shaped building that houses the museum, a dismantled 15th century Venetian palace, they are welcomed by a flourishing courtyard, brimming with lush, verdant trees and plants, exotic flowers in unusual colors and tasteful stone statues.
The courtyard is enclosed by a translucent glass ceiling which lets in enough sunlight to see but not too much so as to glare. The effect is warm,
inviting, and peaceful.
The walls of the building are painted with an Italian marbleized effect in a warm shade of pink which complements the exposed brick of the rest of the building. It is rumored that Gardner, then in her sixties, climbed on a ladder to help paint the walls alongside the contractors she brought from Italy.
Upstairs one will find more treasures arranged just as Gardner left them. The museum prides itself on the sensual experience one can derive from visiting. The art is diverse, ranging from paintings to tapestries, to jewelry and everything in between and from all of over the world.
The collection is arranged with care so as to evoke feelings and thoughts in the viewer, making him concentrate on the art and the experience of experiencing the art instead of focusing solely on who the artist is, how famous the piece has been deemed or if styles of various pieces displayed together match.
John Singer Sargent's large painting, "El Jaleo" or "The Ruckus" (1882), is displayed on the first floor. The piece is loud in the sense that your eyes tell you to hear the music being played in the painting's dark Spanish tavern. One can hear the clapping of the people in the background and the mournful wailing of the man singing, and nearly feel the stamping of the dancer, clad in a thick white skirt, and the rhythm of the guitar music being played. Sargent even casually scribbled "ol?©" on the wall to emphasize the energy.
Instead of simply hanging "El Jaleo" on a wall, Gardner decided to create a gallery for it. A Moorish arc opens up this unique space where, on the wall surrounding the painting are Mexican tiles adding a Latino flavor, a large mirror to the left works to open up the dark space, and there are handmade pots, pans, and vases on the ground.
In another example of Gardner's curatorial skills, beneath the Titian masterpiece, "Europa" (1575-80), Gardner chose to hang a swatch of one of her dresses because she felt that the design on the material mimicked a portion of the painting. This tasteful touch displays the amount of care she put into the design of the museum.
Other masterpieces to be found in the collection include an early self portrait by Rembrandt, a portrait by Manet, a landscape by Whistler and the first Matisse ever in the United States.
Mrs. Gardner had a zest for life and a passion for the arts. Even following her husband's death, she continued to travel around the world to bring pieces of interest back to Boston for her museum, which was completed in 1903.
The Gardner Museum still stands just as she planned it. Her will requires that nothing be changed - but it's for good reason. The Gardner Museum is a truly unique space and Boston is lucky to have it, whatever its perspective.
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is located at 280 The Fenway in Boston. Admission is $10 during the week, $11 on weekends.<$>
