About the Temple on the Hill Walk in Philadelphia
Constructed in the wake of the great Centennial Exposition of 1876, the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) rises on a manmade hill above the city, at the end of a great Parisian-style boulevard that cuts through William Penn's rational grid in ceremonial flourish. Everything about the museum, from its founding in the great age of public institutions that saw the birth of the Met in New York City and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, to the neoclassical temple architecture that houses it, speaks about American aspirations at the turn of the last century and the importance of public culture and education.
During this three hour visit to the museum and its collection in the company of a scholar we will comb through its most important masterworks and decorative arts, using the theme of collecting in America (and its social and political aspects) as a guiding principle.
An art historian-led tour of the Philadelphia Museum of Art
We will begin on the front steps of the museum (made famo
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Constructed in the wake of the great Centennial Exposition of 1876, the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) rises on a manmade hill above the city, at the end of a great Parisian-style boulevard that cuts through William Penn's rational grid in ceremonial flourish. Everything about the museum, from its founding in the great age of public institutions that saw the birth of the Met in New York City and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, to the neoclassical temple architecture that houses it, speaks about American aspirations at the turn of the last century and the importance of public culture and education.
During this three hour visit to the museum and its collection in the company of a scholar we will comb through its most important masterworks and decorative arts, using the theme of collecting in America (and its social and political aspects) as a guiding principle.
An art historian-led tour of the Philadelphia Museum of Art
We will begin on the front steps of the museum (made famous in such movies as Rocky) overlooking the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and discuss its original founding in the waning years of the 19th century, a product of the 1876 Centennial Exposition. With the Parkway as its red carpet and the Greek neoclassical architecture as its throne, we'll discuss how the first collection was pulled together and the curatorial prowess that has kept the PMA at the forefront of American museums today.
Once inside our walk may take many trajectories, depending on the background of our docent and the intellectual proclivities of the participants in the group. We will make sure to spend ample time in the European painting and American art collection—two of the most significant collections of their type in the U.S., and home to masterworks by Rubens, El Greco, Eakins, Van Gogh, and Duchamp. We will also carve out time to consider the American period rooms, one of the finest collection of early American furniture and decorative arts in the world, where we will discuss some of the major curatorial impulses that have driven the museum over the past century.
Other collections worth considering include a staggering assemblage of medieval arms and armor, a world-class Chinese porcelain holding, and furniture from Europe and Asia. Depending on the time of year, we may also include a visit to any significant current exhibition, which in recent years have included such diverse topics as Frida Kahlo and Cezanne.
Regardless of our specific path, in the company of our docent, a trained scholar with deep experience in the museum and its collections, we will emerge with a profound knowledge of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and its place in the history of American collecting, museums, and art.
