Behind the Scenes: Veeder House and Museum

This past weekend I was happy to join several photographers on One Elizabeth Street in the western part of Hartford. The circa 1928 former home of Curtis H. Veeder, his wife, a Hartford Public School Teacher, and their two daughters, is now the home of the Connecticut Historical Society. This well preserved 1920s Colonial Revival structure shines with influences of European architecture. Its upscale features are a wonderful representation of how Connecticut’s Hartford development was progressing at that time. As the Connecticut Historical Society explained during our tour, the home was constructed with amenities like an elevator, a central vacuum system, separate servants' quarters, and a private car-wash. These where the new standards in the ever growing affluent neighborhoods that sprung up in Hartford at the time.

We also were led on a tour of their Through a Different Lens: Three Connecticut Women Photographers Exhibit. My personal favorite part. I learned that colored potato starch was used in an early type of color photography. The process, called Autochrome Lumière, to my eye was very warmly toned with a richly saturated magenta tint and tiny graininess from the starch.

If you are in the West Hartford area and have a couple of hours, definitely stop in and see the home and museum exhibits. You will learn so much about Connecticut there. For example, did you know that Almond Joy candy bars are from Connecticut? Yum. 

Go to www.chs.org and ask about their Behind the Scenes Tour.

MoMA|AMoM

The Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan is a favorite place of mine. It sparks my creativity every time I visit. The photos from my trip are a glimpse into some of most loved pieces of art: Umberto Boccioni’s  bronze sculpture Unique Forms of Continuity in Space (actually I love many of his works); Giacomo Balla’s Street Light ; Henri Matisse’s The Red Studio; Claude Monet’s Water Lilies triptych; and Pablo Picasso’s Girl Before a Mirror. 

The day began with a wink and a nod to the idea of mirror images and reflections as can be seen in my snapshot of the museum’s facade and banner.  Later, Picasso’s girl cemented the inspiration for my February 2013 Exhibit Space concept. You can see the whole Light Reflected collection on the Exhibit Space: Feb page.

Also, I am thrilled to have learned from the exhibition on The Shaping of New Visions: Photography, Film, Photobook at the Edward Steichen Photography Galleries. The use of extreme camera angles by Charles Sheerer and shift from painting to the culture of light (photography and cinematography) as described by Laszlo Moholy-Nagy are visionary. However, the most prophetic idea I discovered was from El Lissitzky and his self-portrait from the 1920s. He challenged the notion that photography presents just a firsthand singular truth. He suggests that instead a montage, layered photographs, push the viewer to re-evaluate life as we see/know it. Wow was he foreshadowing Adobe Photoshop or what? The image below is me applauding Lissitzky and weaving the Light Reflected theme into my day out at MoMA NYC.

                                                                                    Applauding Lissitzky

Bellarmine Museum of Art

Housed in the old basement of Bellarmine Hall, the building’s exterior is in harmony with other revival mansions of the 1920’s. Its design makes use of both Tudor and Gothic architecture styles. As I walked up to the main entrance, past the stern gazes of the gargoyles’, and through the wood paneled double doors, I found myself in an ornately embellished vestibule. The next set of doors brought me to the main foyer and its splendid plaster ceiling with molded ribs, fleur-de-lis, and bird figures.

I moved to the staircase on my right and down the stairs. To the left I saw a supplementary corridor that displayed plaster casts from Athens and connected to a multi-media classroom. To my right I passed offices and the entrance to the main gallery. The Meditz Gallery, once a storage space, has been redesigned to showcase Fairfield University’s important art collection. It includes original thick concrete arches, uplifting ceilings, and sunlit hues to exhibit every art piece at its best. Two narrow side galleries are connected by seemingly ancient arches and provide a sense of history to this new space.

Fairfield University’s Bellarmine Hall and Museum of Art is located in Fairfield, Connecticut. The project team for the Museum renovation included Centerbrook Architects and Planners and the engineering team of Kohler Ronan, LLC.