Tomorrow morning we will pick up our moving truck and leave NYC. Atlanta, here we come!
Farewell, Brooklyn. Thanks for a great 7 years.
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| (A tasty farewell.) |
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Last Night in Brooklyn
It's our last night in Brooklyn. Instead of some crazy night, sweet hubs and I went out for a nice dinner and cocktails at The Farm on Adderley with my parents, who so kindly drove up here to help us move.
Tomorrow morning we will pick up our moving truck and leave NYC. Atlanta, here we come!
Farewell, Brooklyn. Thanks for a great 7 years.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tomorrow morning we will pick up our moving truck and leave NYC. Atlanta, here we come!
Farewell, Brooklyn. Thanks for a great 7 years.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, July 17, 2011
A Visit to The Philip Johnson Glass House
A few years back, I discovered the work of architect Philip Johnson and instantly fell in love. I find that his simple yet thought provoking designs that integrate so beautifully into their surroundings inspire me in so many ways. While delving deeper into researching his work and style, I discovered that he had resided for a good portion of his life in a little town an hour and a half north of New York City called New Canaan, CT. I also discovered that his property, The Glass House, which is now a part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is open for daily tours.
As soon as I read that it was open to the public to experience, I decided I needed to experience it as soon as possible. Unfortunately, as soon as possible didn't really happen until almost three years later. Sweet hubs and I had attempted to buy tickets a few times in the three years before, but the dates sold out almost immediately that we were able to make the trip up. When this past March rolled around and the 2011 ticket sales opened, I was probably one of the first to buy tickets.
Fast forward to yesterday and I finally was able to experience The Glass House in person. I was in heaven. From all of the photos I've seen, it truly wouldn't matter what time of year you were to visit - I can only imagine that it is a spectacular experience regardless of weather or season. We were lucky to have an absolutely perfect July day - sunny and warm, but not hot, and with a few beautiful, puffy clouds in the sky.
Our tour guide was phenomenal - unfortunately, I didn't catch his name, but he was so incredibly interesting to listen to. He told us details on the property that I'm sure he'd acquired from his five years of giving the tour, but also was able to give us a local's perspective, being as he'd lived in New Canaan most of his life. He made it interesting, personal and fun, which are all of the things that make a tour more interesting.
The property itself covers 47 acres of land and contains several bulidings. The Glass House, which was Philip Johnson's home, The Brick House, which was his guest house, The Lake Pavilion, which was his outdoor dining room, The Painting Gallery, which houses his personal collection of paintings, The Sculpture Gallery, which houses his personal sculpture collection, The Study, which was his library and workroom, Da Monsta, which is a building that was designed and constructed on the inspiration of Frank Stella, Frank Gehry and Peter Eisenman, The Ghost House, which was inspired by Frank Gehry, and The Kirstein Tower, which was a sculpture that Johnson created in honor of friend and poet, Lincoln Kirstein.
Below are my personal photos from The Glass House. To view the rest of the gallery, click here.
As soon as I read that it was open to the public to experience, I decided I needed to experience it as soon as possible. Unfortunately, as soon as possible didn't really happen until almost three years later. Sweet hubs and I had attempted to buy tickets a few times in the three years before, but the dates sold out almost immediately that we were able to make the trip up. When this past March rolled around and the 2011 ticket sales opened, I was probably one of the first to buy tickets.
Fast forward to yesterday and I finally was able to experience The Glass House in person. I was in heaven. From all of the photos I've seen, it truly wouldn't matter what time of year you were to visit - I can only imagine that it is a spectacular experience regardless of weather or season. We were lucky to have an absolutely perfect July day - sunny and warm, but not hot, and with a few beautiful, puffy clouds in the sky.
Our tour guide was phenomenal - unfortunately, I didn't catch his name, but he was so incredibly interesting to listen to. He told us details on the property that I'm sure he'd acquired from his five years of giving the tour, but also was able to give us a local's perspective, being as he'd lived in New Canaan most of his life. He made it interesting, personal and fun, which are all of the things that make a tour more interesting.
The property itself covers 47 acres of land and contains several bulidings. The Glass House, which was Philip Johnson's home, The Brick House, which was his guest house, The Lake Pavilion, which was his outdoor dining room, The Painting Gallery, which houses his personal collection of paintings, The Sculpture Gallery, which houses his personal sculpture collection, The Study, which was his library and workroom, Da Monsta, which is a building that was designed and constructed on the inspiration of Frank Stella, Frank Gehry and Peter Eisenman, The Ghost House, which was inspired by Frank Gehry, and The Kirstein Tower, which was a sculpture that Johnson created in honor of friend and poet, Lincoln Kirstein.
Below are my personal photos from The Glass House. To view the rest of the gallery, click here.
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| The coolest driveway gate ever. |
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| Da Monsta |
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| The Study and The Ghost House |
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| The Glass House |
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| The Glass House |
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| The Glass House Interior (Kitchen / Living Room / Dining Room) |
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| The Fireplace |
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| The Bedroom |
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| The Kitchen |
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| The Bathroom (Located on the back half of the fireplace) |
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| Back of The Glass House |
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| The Back View from The Glass House |
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| The Kirstein Tower and The Lake Pavilion |
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| The Glass House Property (The Brick House - Left, The Glass House - Right) - Interesting fact: The pool doesn't have a flat bottom, it's cone shaped and the only way you can get out is by pulling yourself out on the cement slab. |
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| The Painting Gallery |
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| An Andy Warhol original of Philip Johnson |
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| Interior of The Painting Gallery - the walls rotate to display different works of art. |
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| The Sculpture Gallery |
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| Interior of The Sculpture Gallery |
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| Interior of The Sculpture Gallery |
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
In a Month's Time...
We sure have gotten a lot accomplished.
Since we made the official announcement that we're relocating from Brooklyn to Atlanta, sweet hubs and I have gotten a lot done with regard preparing for our upcoming move, worked a lot, put a lot of miles on the open road and we managed to have some fun along the way. Actually a lot of fun.
I'm not going to lie, I am completely exhausted to my bones and know that I will continue to be until we get settled down south, but I'm happy. I'm really happy. It's been an adventure and I'm excited about our new future.
A few things we've done recently:
Ventured to the Coney Island 29th Annual Mermaid Parade.
Experienced the Brooklyn Cyclones 2011 Season Opener.
Stayed after the baseball game to watch the fireworks on the boardwalk.
Went down to Atlanta for a week and signed a lease on an adorable little house that I can't wait to get my grubby little hands on to start painting and decorating.
Spent Independence Day weekend with my parents in Virginia and went to the Luray Caverns.
Totally missed seeing any fireworks on the 4th of July because we were too exhausted to go back out after driving back to NYC.
Whew!
So that's a little recap of life up till now. Busy bees, we are.
Ta ta for now, friends.
Since we made the official announcement that we're relocating from Brooklyn to Atlanta, sweet hubs and I have gotten a lot done with regard preparing for our upcoming move, worked a lot, put a lot of miles on the open road and we managed to have some fun along the way. Actually a lot of fun.
I'm not going to lie, I am completely exhausted to my bones and know that I will continue to be until we get settled down south, but I'm happy. I'm really happy. It's been an adventure and I'm excited about our new future.
A few things we've done recently:
Ventured to the Coney Island 29th Annual Mermaid Parade.
Experienced the Brooklyn Cyclones 2011 Season Opener.
Stayed after the baseball game to watch the fireworks on the boardwalk.
Went down to Atlanta for a week and signed a lease on an adorable little house that I can't wait to get my grubby little hands on to start painting and decorating.
Spent Independence Day weekend with my parents in Virginia and went to the Luray Caverns.
Totally missed seeing any fireworks on the 4th of July because we were too exhausted to go back out after driving back to NYC.
Whew!
So that's a little recap of life up till now. Busy bees, we are.
Ta ta for now, friends.
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