The Wednesday before Thanksgiving we went over to the Palace of the Legion of Honor to see the Bernini Medusa. There is something extraordinarily moving about Bernini’s work, dating from the 1600’s. This head of Medusa shows her as she was changing from a beautiful woman to a snake-headed monster. (It doesn’t pay to make enemies of the gods.) According to the museum, this is a unique opportunity to see his work in this country.
There is an interesting exhibit of Pisarro’s work downstairs. Most are paintings, but I loved this sketch of a nude done when he was a student.
The color of the rooms set off the paintings so perfectly, I asked the guard if they repainted the rooms for every exhibit. Yes, they do!
If you are ever in Rome and have a chance to see Bernini’s statues at the Villa Borghese, you are in for a real treat. This album shows one statue, Apollo chasing Daphne, just before she escapes him by turning into a tree. The detail photos give you a sense of his work. And in this small museum, provided you go early, you can really enjoy it up close.
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As it was, however, we weren’t in Rome, and had to endure excruciating traffic getting home. Nonetheless, it was worth it.