Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: an intimate and culturally-rich BOSTON treasure.

The

Isabella Stewart Gardner

Museum

An intimate collection of fine and decorative art and a vibrant, innovative venue for contemporary artists, musicians and scholars. Housed in a stunning 15th-century Venetian-style palace with three stories of galleries surrounding a sun- and flower-filled courtyard, the museum provides an unusual backdrop for the viewing of art. 

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum's preeminent collection contains more than 2,500 paintings, sculptures, tapestries, furniture, manuscripts, rare books and decorative arts. The galleries house works by some of the most recognized artists in the world, including Titian, Rembrandt, Michelangelo, Raphael, Botticelli, Manet, Degas, Whistler and Sargent.  The spirit of the architecture, the personal character of the arrangements and the artistic display of the enchanting courtyard in full bloom all create an atmosphere that distinguishes the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum as an intimate and culturally-rich treasure.

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Enjoying the day with other MeetUp group members turned into a 'two for one' adventure.   Arriving early, I had the chance to chat with friends and wander around this beautiful palace, then off to enjoy  Anonymous 4 . Renowned for their unearthly vocal blend and virtuosic ensemble singing, the four women of Anonymous 4 combine historical scholarship with contemporary performance intuition to create their magical sound.

 Performing in the newly opened and innovative Calderwood Hall, a cappella vocal quartet Anonymous 4 presents a truly unique program drawn from its 19 chart-topping albums- featuring music from plainchant to French motets, Hungarian polyphony, and contemporary works.

If you're already a fan of Anonymous 4, who released their first album in 1993 and still retain three of their four original singers, you'll be well aware of their unearthly purity, perfect precision and inviting style of programming.

(For 'Secret Voices,' they have arranged the music to evoke a day at the convent, from first light through darkest night).

If by chance you haven't yet made the acquaintance of this fine group – who are as close to superstars as the early music community comes – you are in for a remarkable treat.

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After the concert we wandered through the beautiful palace, experiencing the many priceless masterpieces.
                                              Some of my favorites ...

The archangel Michael, wearing a suit of studded armor, sits on a throne backed by an elaborate blue and gold brocade. In this painting, Michael simultaneously enacts his two principal roles: weigher of souls on Judgment Day and destroyer of Satan. On the left an angel embraces a soul, while on the right, Satan appears as a fantastic two-faced monster ready to capture another soul. Michael positions his lance over the monster. This painting was originally a side panel of a large altarpiece dedicated to John the Baptist, installed in the church of Sant Joan del Mercat in Lleida, Catalonia.

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum opened to the public on January 1st, 1903.         

Following a concert performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, mirrored doors were rolled back to reveal the spectacular interior courtyard, brimming with flowers and dramatically lit with Japanese lanterns.  Surrounding the courtyard, galleries displayed art in a highly intimate and personal setting.       
Fenway Court, as the museum was called at its inception, is the only private art collection in which the building, collection and installations are the creation of one individual.  Isabella Stewart Gardner's vision that the museum remain as she arranged "for the education and enrichment of the public forever"
  

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      .....The.................NEW ................and the................. OLD..........         

Today as in Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime,

the museum bustles with artistic activity and presents ongoing programs in celebration of historic art, contemporary art, music, education and horticulture.