490 miles; 7 hours 47 minutes.
Since I started at 8:45, I missed a lot of the rush-hour traffic going up to Nashville, but it was still somewhat stop-and-go. The Parthenon opens at 9, so a little traffic is unavoidable. Of course, I started today listening to Bob Dylan's "Nashville Skyline" - his back cover:
and my photo today:
The Parthenon is a replica of the building in Athens, Greece, built in 1897:
They have a “no photos of the art” policy, but public-domain images show beautiful paintings by:
Sanford Robinson Gifford - Autumn in the Catskills, 1871
Thomas Moran - Town Pond - East Hampton, 1909
other artists in the collection include Albert Bierstadt, Frederic Edwin Church, and Winslow Homer.
Only a few miles south is the Cheekwood-Arts & Gardens property.
Although they have paintings by William Bradford, Sanford Robinson Gifford, and William Sonntag, none were on display. But it is a beautiful property.
Then 3 hours down the road to the Birmingham Museum of Art in Birmingham, Alabama. They have a GREAT collection, starting with Albert Bierstadt - Looking Down Yosemite Valley, 1865
William Sonntag - Grand Canyon, Yellowstone River, Wyoming, 1886
Thomas Moran - Venice: Grand Canal at Sunset, 1906
Canaletto - View of the Grand Canal, late 1720s
There were additional works by Rodin, Remington; and paintings by Thomas Doughty, Robert Duncanson, Martin Johnson Heade, John Kensett, Claude Monet, Thomas Moran, Peeter Neefs (the Younger), David Roberts, and (new to me) James Everett Stuart. Well Worth The Trip!
1 hour southwest is Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which has the Tuscaloosa Museum of Art: Home of the Westervelt Collection. It is more of a private collection/corporate collection, but they allow visitors, and photographs. The design is Japanese Pagoda/Garden, and they pull it off very well:
As for the art, it is VERY IMPRESSIVE!
John Kensett - Lake George (Adirondack Mountains) on the left, and William Trost Richards - Sunlit Clouds and Sea, 1897 on the right
Highlights include
Albert Bierstadt - Seal Rock, off The Golden Gate, California, circa 1872
Albert Bierstadt - Afterglow: "The Glory of the Heavens, Donner Lake"
Alfred Jacob Miller - Trappers Around a Campfire
and 3 oil paintings by John Stobart, including Decks Awash: Aboard Cutty Sark
I always wondered where the original paintings went...
Once again, in Alabama, I figured I might as well fill up the car
Looks like tomorrow will be another good day for driving around - I wonder how far I can go.
Because it was 5, and I had had a big day, I skipped my side-trip to the Tallahatchie Bridge:
lyrics from Ode to Bille Joe, by Bobbie Gentry (#1 in 1967)
It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day
I was out choppin' cotton, and my brother was balin' hay
And at dinner time we stopped and walked back to the house to eat
And mama hollered out the back door, "y'all, remember to wipe your feet!"
And then she said, "I got some news this mornin' from Choctaw Ridge
Today, Billy Joe MacAllister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge"
...
And me - I spend a lot of time pickin' flowers up on Choctaw Ridge
And drop them into the muddy water off the Tallahatchie Bridge
I finished the day driving 517 miles. Wow de Wow de Wow - Thank you, God, for a great day!
Music today was albums: starting today listening to Bob Dylan's "Nashville Skyline"
Then I listened to The Best of the Lovin' Spoonful, including their song "Nashville Cats"
Johnny Cash - The Legend of Johnny Cash
which includes his fabulous song "I've Been Everywhere"
Drive-by Truckers - A Blessing and A Curse
with their song "Space City":
"Space City's one hour up the road from me
One hour away from as close to the moon as anybody down here is ever gonna be"
Miranda Lambert - Revolution
Lyle Lovett - Anthology
then back to rock-n-roll:
The Animals - Absolute Animals: 1964-1968
The Allman Brothers - 1st album and 2nd album
Led Zeppelin - 1st album and 2nd album
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