Travel Photo Journal 6: North Adams to Williamstown, The Clark
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux Mater Dolorosa, 1870
Carpeaux saw a woman weeping in the street; she had just lost her child. She became the perfect model for “A Mother’s Pain.”
One could spend a day at “The Clark” especially since its make-over. It’s a joy to take a drive through the countryside and park, a big difference from the city, though it isn’t all that easy in the summer. The permanent collections are glorious and the exhibits are unique; the museum does get crowded.
The exhibits include Whistler’s Mother. An Arrangement in Gray, Black and White. The famous painting was usually displayed in Paris at the Musee d’Orsay but was returned to Massachusetts, Whistler’s home state, on loan.
The painting became iconic over the years as it toured The United States.
There was also a brilliant exhibit on the work of Van Gogh, Van Gogh and Nature. the exhibit includes fifty-three works of paintings and drawings, very pastoral and idyllic, until Van Gogh begins his years of decline, breaking down; he enters an asylum. After that time, his work is darker, the familiar “curls” are outlined in black.
I’ve been coming to The Clark over many summers and have posted many blogs about exhibits; I have a few favorites:
The lovely new design: places outdoors to relax near water.
Dinner…back to North Adams: a half hour wait for the best restaurant in town, Public. I have been dreaming of the mussels I had there last year all this time and have adapted their recipe: they are made with spicy sausage and kale.
The streets were luminous after the rain and looked like they were glazed in gold. A few of my favorite photos of the trip.
Your photographs are beautiful!