During the morning of our last day of the Elderhostel program, we visited the Barnes Foundation and learned a bit about Albert Barnes who made his fortune selling Argyrol, an antiseptic drug.  He collected late 19th and early 20th century art and maintained an arboretum.  He had some definite ideas that were preserved in his will, such as keeping the collection installed as he had installed it.  The paintings are arranged on the wall in strict symmetry with sizes, colors, and visual weights strictly balanced.  The collection will be moved into a new museum in Philadelphia (building has yet to be built) and this has caused great controversy.  I am glad I was able to view it in its original site.

Of the 800 paintings in the collection, there are 181 Renoirs in the collection, 69 Cezannes, and 58 Matisses.  Since Renoir and Cezanne are not favorites of mine, I looked for other artists who might spark my interest and found a wonderful little Miro and a couple of Klees.  I also viewed works that I often used in my teaching and they felt like old friends.

To learn more about the Barnes Foundation, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnes_Foundation


Seurat's Models


Matisse's Le bonheur de vivre


A cheerful still life by Van Gogh.

Although it was drizzly, I toured the grounds as well.  There were some unusual trees, such as a Cutleaf Beech and a Dove Tree, a form of dogwood.



The white blooms and leaves of the Dove Tree are quite large.  Because the petals droop, it is sometimes called the Handkerchief Tree.







Madeleine and I head home after lunch.  On our way out of Philadelphia we passed some of the 2400 murals that have been painted on the sides of buildings for the last 25 years.  Here are some of them.













The mural art program was initiated 25 years ago to discourage graffiti.  to view 21 of these wonderful murals, go to:

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1649278,00.html

As we headed home, the sun came out!  But we had a great time in Philly in spite of the weather!