Art

Saint Catherine attributed
 to Onorio Marinari

Art comes in many forms and is all over London. Musicians play in the tube stations, performers gather in Convent Garden, plays and musicals of every caliber and museums abound.

Today, I visited The Wallace Collection. Though a National Museum, this is the smallest museum I have been to. In about an hour or so, I was able to see and enjoy the entire collection. The Wallace Collection is first and foremost an art collection, housing paintings by Rembrandt, Hals, Poussin, Fragonard, and Decamps. According to the website, some artists that can be found in The Wallace Collection cannot be found in higher profile museums. There were many beautiful pieces, but I absolutely fell in love with Fradonard's "The Swing."

The Swing by J. H. Fragonard

Along with paintings, the museum houses ceramics, furniture, sculpture, armor, and other works of art. It was interesting to look at the different armor. It's amazing to see how intricate some weapons were. Also in one room, they had to knights mounted on their noble steeds. It was certainly a sight to see.

Armored Knight                Ceremonial Canon              Cupid & Psyche

The Wallace Collection is made up of five generations--including four Marquesses of Hertford and Sir Richard Wallace--of family collectibles. Lady Wallace, the last of the collectors, bequeathed the entire collection and estate to the British Nation. Her only stipulation was that it was an "as is" deal--nothing may be added or removed. The museum first opened to the public in  June of 1900 and has been open ever since.  This year marks the 111th anniversary. Not one that's typically honored, but this is probably one of the oldest museums I've ever had the privilege to visit.

Getting to museums, however, is definitely not a strength of mine. Like getting to the V&A, Vanessa and I got turned around a few times and took a bit longer than we should have to get there. Once were there though it was nice to walk around, especially when it's possible to see basically everything it has to offer.

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Ceremonial Cannon: Giovanni Mazzarioli
Cupid & Psyche: Flippo della valle

The collection as museum. (n.d.) The Wallace Collection. Retrieved from http://www.wallacecollection.org/thecollection/historyofthecollection/thewallacecollectionasmuseum