by Founded in 1903, the New Britain Museum of American Art in New Britain, CT, was the first museum in the world dedicated solely to collecting American art. The museum today contains more than 8,400 items, with highlights such as colonial and federal portraits, American Impressionists, and landscapes of the Hudson River School. The museum sits at the base of Walnut Hill Park, which was designed by the famed Frederick Law Olmstead.
Museum highlights for us included Grant Wood’s Sentimental Ballad (pictured above, which was produced as a promotion for John Ford’s film, The Long Voyage Home, 1940 movie based on a play by Eugene O’Neill); a large Dale Chihuly glass sculpture, Blue and Beyond Blue; the Impressionistic Spring Tapestry by Ernest Lawson; and Portrait of Madame T by Edmund C. Tarbell; all are pictured above and below. During our visit there was an Ansel Adams exhibit, which was underwhelming, and a small exhibit showcasing Shaker craftsmanship. The real showstopper, however, was the Walter Wick “Hidden Wonders” exhibit — you can read about our visit here.
