…this book provides relaxing summer reading or the basis for summer outings, both close to Lexington or while away in the mountains or by the sea.
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While most people are familiar with the Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, few are aware of the scores of other wonderful museums throughout New England. From the Colby College Museum of Art to the Museum of Russian Icons and the National Museum of American Illustration, the cradle of American art is home to a dazzling abundance of cultural opportunities. Traute M. Marshall has written this smart and engagingly personal guidebook for curious travelers, bringing to light the wealth of small and large art museums in the six New England states, ranging from world-class encyclopedic collections to more modest and specialized venues. While providing the information found in a traditional guidebook—addresses, websites, opening times, directions, and so forth—Marshall also offers readers informed and intimate introductions to the museums and their histories, holdings, traditions, and architecture. This guide also explains exhibition practices, the presentation of the permanent collection versus the attraction of temporary shows, the different educational activities offered, and the special relationship between a town or city and its art museum. Each entry concludes with a special “PLUS” section designed to further enrich any visit. This might point you to other types of museums nearby, an architecturally distinctive building in the neighborhood, the home of a famous local artist, or other sites such as artist colonies or distinguished galleries, historic inns or restaurants, or even movies with some connection to the locale. Useful as both a resource for planning your next road trip and an essential glove- compartment companion, Art Museums PLUS is a must-have for New England natives and tourists alike.
“Art lovers will be amazed by the treasures this guide reveals, be they squirreled away in small, little-known collections or located in the obvious places.”
Christina Tree
…this book provides relaxing summer reading or the basis for summer outings, both close to Lexington or while away in the mountains or by the sea.
Traute M. Marshall's "Art Museums PLUS: Cultural Excursions in New England" covers a lot of ground-six states and more than 150 destinations. Marshall travels state-by- state, city-by-city, to each museum, offering quirky histories, detailing collections, and even commenting on the architecture.
To selectively focus her attention on art in New England, Marshall has defined "art" to include "craft, prints, illustration, and photography." She offers an equally "liberal" definition of "museum" to include artist's homes or studios, such as the country estate of Augustus Saint-Gaudens in Cornish, New Hampshire."But each "museum" should have a permanent collection, and that stipulation discounted many university galleries or regional art centers. The "Plus" part of the book's title comes from addressing travelers who would enjoy an art excursion that might also include "hiking, antiquing, [or] visiting historical homes;" and so she tells readers what is nearby that might round out their museum visits. To me, this book provides relaxing summer reading or the basis for summer outings, both close to Lexington or while away in the mountains or by the sea.
New England treasures are found in great museums, but also in historic houses, churches and unexpected places. In Art Museums PLUS, Traute Marshall highlights personal favorites at well-known institutions, but surprises even the expert with wonderful nearby finds that are often overlooked.
To describe New England’s many art museums knowledgeably and enticingly is a tall order-which this guide fills nicely. Art lovers will be amazed by the treasures this guide reveals, be they squirreled away in small, little-known collections or located in the obvious places.
TRAUTE M. MARSHALL holds a doctorate from the University of Chicago, and has been active in educational publishing for many years. She lives in Newton, Massachusetts.
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