Artsy Fartsy

Last Sunday, we ventured to the National Gallery of Victoria to take a stroll around and see what kind of art was on display.  The NGV was founded in 1861 and it is the oldest and largest art gallery in Australia.  The collections are housed in two locations, the one below is the one on St. Kilda Road...the other half is part of Federation Square.

Water feature in the front of the NGV.

There is a Napoleon exhibition starting in early June, and Jeff was getting ready for his debut.

There's quite a resemblance, huh!

The NGV is known for this ceiling...it was made by Leonard French, an Aussie stained glass artist that was born on the north side of the city.

Leonard French ceiling at the NGV.

 I thought this guy looked like Mr. Burns from The Simpsons...I'm guessing that Jean-Antoine Houdon (the artist) didn't know that Voltaire would look like Mr. Burns.

Voltaire sculpture in bronze by Houdon.

This next series of shots is of Jeff and a random art stalker that hung with us (very close to us at all times) for a good part of the day...as you can see, he was all up on Jeff...

Jeffie peaking through windows that look onto the Leonard French hall.

The information claims that she used to have a
fighting helmet, but I think she had a lobotomy.

 One of the galleries is set-up as a Salon viewing room, and is reminiscent of how art was shown in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries.  I love this look - it is a total assault of art.

There was also exactly ONE room of "contemporary" art...including this never-ending neon ladder.

That's me and the camera in the lower left-hand corner!

After our morning at the NGV, we headed to a cafe that is under a bridge on the Yarra.  

Notice that the sign says, "until sold out"...they
were sold out of all quesadillas :(

As you can probably tell, it was a beautiful day, but it was windy and pretty chilly.  And, the city is behind me, so most of the time the sun was blocked from the buildings...

I look thrilled...a result of being cold and the racket/music that was played
every time a train came...which we believe was to block out the noise
pollution of the train.  The "music" was HORRIBLE.

The little restaurant under the bridge.

We enjoyed the NGV, typically like a bit more contemporary art and more photography, but it was a good lesson in art and we still got to enjoy some Monet, Manet, Picasso, and Rembrandts.