The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum opened a new wing on January 19 and I was there to capture the spirit of the day. Loved spending time in the gorgeous and retro Richard E. Floor's Living Room.

One of the highlights was meeting artist Cesare Pietroiusti and taking part in his workshop which took place in the Claire and John Bertucci Education Studio. The artist's project is the production and distribution of free drawings - 3500 to be exact. Using varying mediums (from salt-water to tea, coffee and ink) the idea is to create a work of art that you leave behind for someone else to take home the following day. Each sheet of paper had a different condition on the bottom. That day it was:

"The holder of this drawing commits to give it away, three months after having received it, to a person of their choice who lives south of them"

The medium of the day was dark Boston beer, how perfectly. And at the end of the day I was so happy to come home with both coffee and salt-water art created earlier this week. I loved how the adults and elderly who took part in the workshop sat at the tables in child-like wonder playing with the medium, totally engrossed in the whole process. I certainly spent a long time in 

The 2nd floor's Special Exhbition Gallery is absolutely stunning with it's magnificent high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling glass windows. A wonderful place to have work exhibited, to be sure. I also sat in on a fun performance in Calderwood Hall, the new space for acoustic events.

The gorgeous exterior and beautiful brightly lit Cafe G complete the new wing. 

It was my first time visiting The Palace, the original Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum which opened back in 1903. Photography was not allowed which allowed me to really immerse myself in the iconic works of art as well as be enveloped in lavish antiques and their history. 

I could have been there longer, and I was already there the whole day! :) Time flew by, it's a mesmerizing place to be in Boston.