Friday, November 23, 2007

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts ... Eugene Boudin exhibit

"I owe everything to Boudin." -- Claude Monet

Eugene Boudin (1824-1898) ... French impressionist painter ... Monet's mentor ... seascape master....

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond has an exhibit of Boudin's paintings now through January 27, 2008. It is well worth the visit to enjoy 22 paintings and 24 drawings and watercolors that represent and capture the beauty of coastal France ... most notably the beaches of Trouville and Deauville off the coast of Normandy. The paintings offer a glimpse into the lifestyle of the upper crust of French society as they vacationed on the beaches during the 19th century, an artist's snapshot of a time long passed in history....

While there you may want to stroll through the galleries to see some of the other exhibits including the famous Faberge collection.
The cafe area is a nice place to sit and talk over a cup of coffee ($1.50) or a glass of iced tea ($1.50) ... and there is a gift shop for those who need something to take home.

The exhibit is free and open to the public Wednesday through Sunday from 11 am until 5 pm. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is located at 200 N. Boulevard. Construction at the museum has closed off the main parking lot (but handicap parking is still available there) so you will need to either park in the VMFA parking deck at Shepherd Street and Stuart Avenue ($3) or find on-street parking.
On "Black Friday" it was a nice way to spend the afternoon instead of mixing it up with all the shoppers at the mall....

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I painted alot, then my friend talked me into politics. I never paint anymore because of time constraints. I miss the carefree days of an artist.

Lynn R. Mitchell said...

Your friend was right to talk you into politics ... you have plenty of time for carefree days of being an artist. ;)