Milwaukee Art Museum

Last night, Dave and I planned on going into the Bistro (Lake Park Bistro, where I worked up until a month ago for all you newcomers) to have a delicious dinner and to visit all my ex-coworkers since I haven't seen most of them in a month and I miss them.

I psyched myself up all day for a big martini, some escargot, trout, and creme brulee. We didn't make a reservation because we were just going to sit at the bar (it's easier to socialize with lots of people that way). We pulled into the parking lot only to find that the restaurant was closed for a private event. I was so disappointed! Shut-down Saturday night weddings are pretty rare, and of course, they were having one the night I wanted to visit.

We drove around in the pouring rain and lightning for a few minutes before deciding on Sol Fire on Farwell Ave. We waited only about ten minutes for a table and then were shown into the dining room where we proceeded to have a yummy dinner of chips and guacamole, tortilla soup, and fish tacos for him and Jamaican Jerk Chicken for me. Oh yeah, and a huge pitcher of margaritas. We hadn't been out to dinner in probably months since we're pretty broke, and it was a good time.

This morning the weather was still crappy - cold, windy and rainy. This sort of weather is definitely not conducive to an outdoor blog activity, so I decided we'd visit the Milwaukee Art Museum and see the exhibit, Rembrandt and His Time. (though by the time we left, the weather had done a complete about-face and was beautiful.)

I haven't been to the art museum in three years, which I think is pretty shameful since I live right here. At the end of our visit I said to Dave, you know, there are thousands and thousands of people who live in the Milwaukee area who have never set foot inside this museum and probably never will. I know art isn't everyone's thing, but even so, everyone should see the inside of this jewel of our city at least once.

We parked under the museum and took note that even the parking structure was "aesthetically pleasing" - to use Dave's terms. We walked inside and got our tickets to the Rembrandt exhibit - $14 per person for adults, which includes admission into the rest of the museum, too.



According to the MAM's website, "Visitors have the unprecedented opportunity to see 26 of Rembrandt's drawings and prints - the largest number of Rembrandt works ever lent by the Albertina. The exhibition is organized in conjunction with the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt's birth in 2006; Milwaukee is the only venue."

We walked into the exhibit and spent probably 15 or 20 minutes viewing Rembrandt's works, as well as many of the works of his students. There were a lot of drawings and a handful of oil paintings. The exhibit was quite crowded, and a good portion of the visitors were walking around with headsets, listening to the audio tour, which costs $4 extra.

The exhibit was very impressive. It's so amazing to think that these works right in front of you are the actual works that Rembrandt and others sat in front of and toiled over almost four centuries ago. I kept wanting to touch them, but I contained myself.

Once we left the exhibit, we toured some other parts of the museum for another hour or so. Some pieces we remembered from our visit three years ago, and others we hadn't seen before. There was probably a lot of the museum that we didn't get to again this time, but we really want to go back again - sooner than three years this time.



I really enjoyed our trip. I'm not one who can sit in front of a painting or sculpture for a half an hour, contemplating its brushstrokes or design, but I can definitely still appreciate art. I can really appreciate the museum that holds the art, too. I see the outside of it - a marvel all on its own - on a very regular basis, but very rarely do I stop to consider what's inside. We're so lucky to have this right in our city.

The architecture is as breathtaking inside as it is out, and the art inside is incredible. And being in a museum is an experience unlike any other. I love the way it's quiet except for people's soft murmurs and slow footsteps clicking against the wood floors. I love the way the lines of the walls are so precise and the colors of the walls are so bold. I love that there are windows everywhere and you can see the blue of Lake Michigan from almost all of them. I love the feeling of history, and of greatness, that comes over you as you walk through it all.

I wasn't sure if I was supposed to be taking pictures in the museum, but I snuck them when I could. I didn't take any in the Rembrandt exhibit, of course, because it was so crowded and there were a lot of museum staff milling about. Some of them are a bit blurry because I was trying to be quick, but I think I got some good shots!

Comments

[Christi]

I've never really been an art fanatic. Like you, I can appreciate art for being just that...art. Someone's creation of SOMETHING and their own interpretation of an idea is quite facinating to me. But I guess I just have a hard time understanding it all. What makes one person's piece spectacular enough to be placed in a museum, and another's only good enough for coffee shop walls? Is it pure popularity? Or is there really something magnificent about these people? But you'll have a hard time convincing me that someone like Polack merited an entire exhibit at the Chicago Art Museum. But I'm sure that's just me being unaware of the art world =)

The Milwaukee Art Museum looks amazing really. I have yet to go there, but I may have to make a trip now! I can't spend too much time in them though. After a while, the pictures start to just look the same to me. One more old painting/drawing/sculpture after another =) I mean, I was in the Louvre in Paris, one of the most facinating museums ever (supposedly) and I couldn't bear it for more than a few hours. Oh well.

[Karen]

I SO agree with you. In fact, I decided to put my money where my mouth is and I joined the Milwaukee Art Museum last month. I'm not an art fanatic, but I think the building is GORGEOUS! I also enjoy the other exhibits, my favorite piece of art being the chair on top of the talking doll head. I could just watch that for hours.

[Mark]

Just think, when Pier Wisconsin is complete, we'll have TWO marvels right next to each other! Go Milwaukee!

[Erin]

Karen, that's great that you joined - Dave and I were wondering, how much does it cost to be a member?

I hated the talking doll head under the chair. I mean, it's interesting, but CREEPY! It is kind of like a car wreck, though - you just can't look away!

And Mark, I know - I can't wait to see Pier Wisconsin once it's completed. Go Milwaukee. =)

[Lisa]

You can take pictures in the Museum, as long as it's in the permanent collection (so not the Rembrandt area because the Museum is loaning those objects from other Museums and does not own copyright to them) and it's without a flash. I used to be a security guard, volunteer, and intern at MAM. It is a jewel that as you said, sadly many Milwaukeeans themselves might never get to see. It's so sad as the collection is amazing and so it the building itself! I wish more people would get over their fear of art or whatever is keeping them from visiting and just take in the beauty of what the Museum has to offer.