New England Trip: Part 2

I'm almost done with my jaunt through New England. In the past two days we've caught glimpses of Pilgrims, tarot card readers, and three wedding receptions. Here are some recaps.

Day 3: Artists in training

• The Florence Griswold House in Old Lyme, CT may by my favorite stop. There's a fascinating story here about a spinster sea captain's daughter and her tenant artist colony of impressionist painters. The staff tells the story well, and has added more modern gallery space that doesn't clash. It doesn't hurt that the house is in a gorgeous rural area next to a river!
• The Rhode Island School of Design has a well-stocked art gallery. The 20th Century exhibit was AMAZING, but they wouldn't let us take pictures :-( My favorite was the 1970s red "Valentine" portable typewriter marketed to amateur poets. It only had capital letter keys. There was also a garment I can only describe as what Lady Gaga would wear as a maternity dress.
  
• RISD has a great gift shop selling things designed by alumni. When we peeked in, I bought a little something that will hopefully become part of an art glass collection. (Pictures coming soon!)

Day 4: House tour mania
We hit up Newport, RI, a seaside resort town with dozens of historic houses. Since Gilded Age mansions have no place for moderation, we visited SEVEN buildings. On days like this my class goes through stages ranging from "passionate" to "interested" to "tired" to "grumpy" to "slap happy". Fortunately our schedule saved the gaudiest, Marble House, for second to last.