Today we took tram #1 into Den Haag to visit a museum and walk around the parliamentary buildings. The historic buildings are quite ornate. We saw two different statues of Willem the Silent (Pins van Oranje) who led the fiight for Dutch independence from Spain in the 1500s. The reflecting pond at the Hofvijver gives a pictureque view of the Binnenhof. In background, you can see modern skyscrapers.
Our main destination was the Mauritshuis - the Royal Picture Gallery. http://www.mauritshuis.nl/index.aspx?siteid=54 It is a wonderful and manageable art museum with masterpieces from Frans Hals, Jan Steen, Adriaen Coorte, Carel Fabritius, Anthony van Dyck, and Peter Paul Rubens. The kids liked the bull (1647) by Paulus Potter. The museum had a small brochure that one of the security guards showed to Miles pointing out the cow (bull), a butterfly, and a bird (details in masterpieces to look for). Upstairs, Grandma asked Miles to look for the cow; he pointed to the painting and then went to find Grandpa to show him the brochure and the painting. We all got to listen to the wonderful audio tour discussing important works within the museum. The boys liked to take turns too, especially enjoying the period music before the talking began. Eliot and I tried to find all the works in the brochure. You have to find something for little ones to enjoy!
Of all the magnificent paintings, I most enjoyed the works by Vermeer. Of course, the Girl with the Pearl Earring was captivating. But I think I enjoyed View of Delft even more. It was cool to see such a great painting from 1660/61, to know where it was painted (just down our street) and to see the new church spire still here today. It was awesome being up close to such fantastic works - to see the brush strokes, the layers, the textures, the colors and mixing. To think that they were painted nearly 350 years ago is humbling and awe-inspiring. The other paintings the boys and I both enjoyed were these painting by various artists of flower vases. The detailed flowers in a vase on a black background were unbelievable. The artists added fun things like butterflies, caterpillars and other bugs in amongst the flowers and leaves and twigs.
It is the 400th birthday of Rembrandt this year, so there are a lot of special exhibits all around Holland. Trivia Question: What is Rembrandt's full name? Mauritshuis had one as well. His use of light and layers was amazing - I enjoyed his Self Portrait (one of many he did) and The anatomy lesson of Dr Nicholaes Tulp. It was great just getting to see his work. We watched a video of the life of Rembrandt - a special production for the 400-year celebration. It gave me a much better appreciation for his work. He was a master in etching - probably the best the world has known. If the Mauritshuis had an etching, I must have missed it. Next time or maybe in Amsterdam! Answer: Rembrandt van Rijn.
posted by Whitney @ 1:09 PM
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