May 18, 2015
Van Vleck House and Gardens | Montclair, New Jersey
Van Vleck House and Gardens
Van Vleck House and Gardens in Montclair, New Jersey began as a 12-acre private estate in 1868.
In 1992 the heirs of the Van Vleck family gave the house and the gardens to the non-profit Montclair Foundation.
The private gardens are free and open to the public from dawn to dusk 365 days a year.
There are classes, concerts, and special events that take place through the year.
The grounds are beautiful and peaceful, and the estate is especially famous for the wisteria blooming around the house.
You can read more about the Van Vleck House and Gardens here.
You can also read my 2011 post about Van Vleck Gardens.
Our World Tuesday @ Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday @ Wordless Wednesday
Outdoor Wednesday @ A Southern Daydreamer
Thursday Favorite Things@Katherine's Corner
Simple and Sweet Fridays @ Rooted in Thyme
Pink Saturday @ How Sweet the Sound
Thanks for visiting New Jersey Memories!
May 14, 2015
Morley Safer and Modern Art | Television
Morley Safer And Modern Art
I grew up watching 60 Minutes on CBS (Channel 2 in New York).
My parents would watch the show every Sunday night, and so I watched it with them.
It is a show that has a style all its own -- just like The New York Times and The New Yorker. Mike Wallace, Morley Safer, "Gunga Dan" Rather, Andy Rooney, Harry Reasoner, Point/Counterpoint -- I remember it all.
On Tuesday, I posted about art at The Montclair Art Museum. I really liked all of the sculptures on the front lawn. I thought they were creative and interesting.
However, I have always remembered a controversial 1993 60 Minutes story on modern art by Morley Safer. It has probably become his most famous story, because it playfully skewered the pretentiousness of some modern art and art criticism.
Here is the infamous 1993 episode:
For some reason, Safer did not do a follow-up on the story until 2012. This one is fun, too.
You can watch the follow up here when you click Watch on YouTube:
Thanks for visiting New Jersey Memories!
May 12, 2015
The Montclair Art Museum | Montclair, New Jersey
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| Tom Nussbaum, Listen, 2008 |
The Montclair Art Museum
Even though Montclair, New Jersey has fewer than 40,000 residents, it boasts of many parks, a diverse population, and a strong interest in the arts.
The town even has a fine art museum, situated on a beautiful street with quite a few splendid mansions.
The museum has a special collection of the works of George Inness (1825-1894), a well-known painter from the Hudson River School of art.
He resided in Montclair in his later years and painted many landscapes of Montclair.
The Montclair Art Museum celebrated its 100th Birthday in 2014. Even if you don’t go inside, you can see some interesting art outside the museum.
The top photo and the next two photos are of a sculpture by a Montclair-based artist, Tom Nussbaum.
It is called Listen, was made in 2008, and it is constructed of polyurethane over fiberglass.
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| Tom Nussbaum, Listen |
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| Tom Nussbaum, Listen, 2008 |
The next project is made out of wood, Plexiglas, metal screening, acrylic paint, roofing paper, tar, wall paper and an 11-watt bulb.
It is by Donna Dennis and is called Blue Cabin from Tourist Cabins on Park Avenue, 1976-2007 (2007).
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| Donna Dennis, Blue Cabin, 2007 |
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| Donna Dennis, Blue Cabin, 2007 |
The next sculpture is called The Sun Vow by Hermon Atkins MacNeil (1866-1947).
It was made of bronze in 1899 and cast in 1902.
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| Hermon Atkins MacNeil, The Sun Vow |
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| Hermon Atkins MacNeil, The Sun Vow |
The last sculpture shown here is Earth Mother by Allan Houser (1914-1994). It was made of bronze in 1981 and cast in 1986.
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| Allan Houser, Earth Mother |
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| Allan Houser, Earth Mother |
From 5-9 p.m. on the first Thursday of the month and from 1-5 p.m. of the first Friday of the month, the museum offers free admission.
These free admission days run from October through June.
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| The Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, New Jersey |
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| The Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, New Jersey |
Linking up to:
Our World Tuesday @ Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday @ Wordless Wednesday
Outdoor Wednesday @ A Southern Daydreamer
Thursday Favorite Things@Katherine's Corner
Simple and Sweet Fridays @ Rooted in Thyme
You can read more about The Montclair Art Museum here.
You can also read about Morley Safer and Modern Art.
Thanks for visiting New Jersey Memories!
May 04, 2015
The Pink Cherry Blossoms are in Full Bloom | Newark, New Jersey
PINK PINK PINK
The pink cherry blossoms in Branch Brook Park in Newark, New Jersey are now in full bloom!
We had a weekend of gorgeous weather and they have responded beautifully in an explosion of PINK!
These pink ones are my favorites. They inspire me in so many ways.
They bring joy and beauty to the thousands of visitors who come to see them every year.
Somehow I always think of this song when I see cherry blossoms:
I was humming that #1 song as I visited the lovely flowering trees on Sunday.
Linking up to:
Monday’s Music Moves Me @ Xmas Dolly
Inspire Me Monday @ Create With Joy
Our World Tuesday @ Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday @ Wordless Wednesday
Outdoor Wednesday @ A Southern Daydreamer
Thursday Favorite Things @ Katherine's Corner
Simple and Sweet Fridays @ Rooted in Thyme
Pink Saturday @ How Sweet the Sound
You can see more cherry blossoms at Cherry Blossom Time.
Thanks for visiting New Jersey Memories!
