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Feb 23

Main hall, Gallery of Honor Rijksmuseum
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My Rijksmuseum Layover in Amsterdam

I like to book my international flights with a long layover in an “extra” city.  This lets me sneak out of the airport and enjoy a new place for the day before moving on to my actual destination.  If you can get past the jet-lag, this is great option because really, nothing starts off an incredible trip to Turkey like lunch beside Notre Dame in Paris!

So when I visited Israel last year, I made sure to take care of some unfinished business in Amsterdam with a layover specifically designed to see the re-opened Rijksmuseum.  The renovations went far beyond repairing the structure; the museum today presents a truly innovative approach to art and culture!  It was well worth the extra stop in Amsterdam.

rijksmuseum re-opening countdown clock

The Rijksmuseum’s “Night Watch”-themed reopening countdown clock teasing me back in April 2013.

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Feb 2

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Till Death Do We Part: Love, Art, and Funerary Monuments

The monthly ArtSmart Roundtable brings together some of the best art-focused travel blogs to post on a common theme.  Something must be in the air this month because we’re discussing LOVE in art.  Check out all the stories below!

Maria Theresa's tomb

The Tomb of Maria Theresa & Francis I, Kaisergruft, Vienna. Despite his infidelity, Empress Maria Theresia of Austro-Hungary was deeply devoted to her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor. She designed their dual tomb with portrait busts that would forever gaze at each other. (Photo: Gregg, flickr)

Romantic pursuit, courtship, and love in general whether between Gods and Goddesses, royals, or peasants, is a common theme in art history.  Universally appealing and understood, it crosses cultures and time periods.  While it’s interesting to infer attitudes from the images used, we have to extrapolate from these ideal pictures to see what “love” was like for everyday people.  Studying mortuary monuments are one little glimpse into these romantic relationships.  Some memorials are so personal and meaningful, we can’t help but feel the love these couples shared.

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