Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

            The Isabella Stewart Gardner museum, also known as Fenway Court, is a museum located in Boston, Massachusetts near the Museum of Fine Arts. Before this became an official museum, this was Isabella Stewart's home. Over a span of three decades, before her house became a museum, Gardner traveled the world and worked with numerous art patrons and advisors to gather an outstanding collection of master and decorative arts. Soon after, in 1903, she finally completed the construction of Fenway Court which showcased the pieces of work that she collected. This museum provided a crucial place where visitors can have easy access and admire important pieces of art. Gardner also included furniture, textiles and objects from different cultures and time periods in her museum.

Link to official Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum website: http://www.gardnermuseum.org/home/

Review of The Art Forger

         B.A Shapiro's The Art Forger was an interesting and racing novel filled with mystery,  a bit of romance and secrets. The Art Forger focuses on the heist of 1990 at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. The painting at the center of this book is After the Bath V by Degas, which is a fictional piece of art created by Shapiro. The main character, Claire, is persuaded to complete a forgery of  After the Bath, which was stolen in the heist. Accepting this proposal leads to a whirlwind of uncovered secrets about the Degas painting stolen on the morning of March 18,1990. Although the story told by Shapiro was interesting and somewhat surprising, it lacked the action and thriller we expected. The story starts off rather slow paced and gets wordy at some points, and most of the action doesn't start until the middle/end of the book. Shapiro's style of writing was very sophisticated, but also easy to understand and follow. Overall, the book was fun to read because it followed the life of a troubled, and struggling copyist who got stuck in a sticky situation. Also the rush of finding out what happened to the real Degas painting helps the get the reader involved in the story. This novel leaves readers wanting to know what happens next.

Boston!

   In The Art Forger, the story takes place in Boston, Massachusetts, with the exception of the letters from Isabella Stewart Gardner. Those were mailed to Paris, France and discussed Gardner's relationship with her great-niece Amelia. The letters gave us an idea on what kind of a person Isabella Gardner may have been.
   Boston has a lengthy history, dating back to the the seventeenth century. It was founded by Puritan colonists around 1630 and flourished as a center for politics, business, and education in the New England colony. Although ethnic and religious diversity was almost non-existent in this time period, the town was amongst the more affluent ones in the colony.
   Boston is credited with the ignition of the American Revolution (1775-1783) because of the major occurrences that led to the start. The Boston Tea Party (1773), the Tea Act of 1773, the Townshend Acts of 1767, and the feeling of oppression in the public all acted as fuel for the revolution.
   After the war, descendants of the original colonial Boston families served as the higher class in society, until the arrival of other ethnic groups in the nineteenth century.  With the other groups of people came more diversity, ideas, and business, and soon Boston, like any other major commercial area, became a hotspot.
   Various universities were founded, the sport industry garnered attention, and above all, in relation to our book, a multitude of museums were founded. Amongst those, the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum and more. Today, Boston is filled with color because of its art.
   Anyone who has visited a museum in Boston such as the Isabella Stewart Gardner please share with us your experiences and what grabbed your attention the most in the museum. Many thanks in advance!
   Link for more depth into Boston history: http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h3865.html

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Claire Relationships with Other Characters: Aiden Markel

     Aiden Markel is introduced in the first chapter of the book as the well put together and handsome art collector who own the infamous art studio Markel G. He gives Claire the proposal of painting a forgery of Degas's After The Bath V in exchange for her own show at Markel G and the great feeling of knowing that the authentic After the Bath is in it rightful place. The beginning of their relationship starts off strictly business but the two start to develop a sudden attraction towards each other which can be a good and bad thing for their arrangement.  On one hand it strengthens their bond because they are working together towards the common goal of forging the painting. However, this also was a bad idea  because it was easier to hide things from each other because they believed that they loved the other too much to tell them or because they wanted to keep the other "safe".The quick attraction between the two could have been because they are both getting something out of the deal that they want; Aiden is getting the "authentic" After the Bath and Claire is getting he show at the gallery .Aiden's relationship with Claire can also be seen as an investor protecting his investment which is exactly what Aiden says to her when he tells her to go to Canyon Ranch for three days to relax," I have a lot invested in you. I'm looking out for my own ass." Although Claire tried to do everything she could to get Markel out of jail it was unsuccessful in the end. Their relationship between came to a bitter end as Claire builds herself up in the art world.

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Heist

          In the early morning of March 18, 1990, two thieves dressed as Boston cops stole thirteen pieces of artwork from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. The guard who was on duty at that time granted the two thieves entry because they claimed they were responding to a call. The other guard was told to get behind the security desk. The thieves then tied both guards to a pole in the basement, far from each other. While the two guards were tied up, the thieves roamed the entire museum, stealing thirteen paintings. They stole a total of $200 million worth of art. Some of the paintings included Rembrandt's Storm of the Sea of Galiee, Manet's Chez Tortoni, and Vermeer's The Concert. In The Art Forger, Claire is requested to copy Degas' After the Bath painting, which was one of the stolen paintings. Isabella Stewart Gardner was an art collector who displayed all the paintings she collected in her home, which later became a museum. The layout of each floor of the museum was to remain unchanged, so the empty frames of the stolen paintings serve as a reminder of the losses the museum suffered. To this day, the Gardner heist remains unsolved.

Isaac Cullion's relationship with Claire Roth

   Throughout the book, Claire has always been affected by this relationship with Isaac. I love how the book uses flashbacks every now and then to highlight the events of their relationship. About how they loved each other, how they supported each other in their professions, and how they got along in general. However, all good things come to an end.

   Although some aspects of their relationship would be controversial with society, with their age difference of sixteen years and their previous student teacher relationship, they lived happily for the most part. After Claire revived him from his artistic slump, he became more distant, solely focusing himself on what Claire had brought up: 4D paintings.  The had a falling out and thus separated, even though Isaac was still married, so he simply went on with his life where as Claire suffered more emotionally.

   Their breakup acts as a reference point for her behavior in the book. Compared to her previous behavior while dating Isaac, she was less gullible, naive, and seemed more independent and mature when it came to taking action herself, instead of relying on someone else. Her new "spunk", her will to move on with her life came from the breakup. I really enjoyed how the author created that transition of mentality in Claire's character. i admire her development as a person.  

Paintings Mentioned In The Art Forger: Edmondo and Thérèse Morbilli

               In B.A Shapiro's novel, The Art Forger, Claire comes across one of Edgar Degas popular works of art, Edmondo and Thérèse Morbilli. She comes across this painting while she was in a museum and she begins to appreciate his work and analyze it. She breaks down the painting when she said "...his solemn brother-in-law dominates the image while Degas' sister is smaller, slighter, sadder. Yet the way she touches her husband's shoulder, the way she leans into him, shows that she's not saddened by him, but along with him." She also states that she is touched and in awe of Degas artful use of asymmetry to catch the viewer off guard according to page seventy-two of The Art Forger.

Claire's Relationships With Other Characters: Rik

         Rik is Claire's closest friend. He is the only graduate-school friend who stuck with her through thick and thin. He always looks out for Claire, and is always genuinely interested in the things going on in her life. Since Claire's boyfriend, Aiden Markel, also gets tangled in the Bath II case and gets sent to jail, Rik becomes Claire's date for the night of her show. Before the show, Claire tells Rik about a hunch she has about the real Degas painting hiding in the basement of the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum. She plans to sneak into the basement to look for the painting. Rik is incredulous and thinks Claire is crazy for doing such a thing, but Rik agrees to help her out. They sneak into the basement with flashlights, and sure enough they get caught. Rik saves Claire when the guards question them. He makes up a story by saying Claire is writing a story about the museum and was told there was material in the basement. He also gives Claire reassurance and support when she explains her story and reason for being in the basement to the the director of the museum, Alana Ward. Ward wanted to stop Claire, but Rik told her to let her keep going. Additionally, he defends Claire's occupation by saying that reproducing paintings is neither illegal nor unethical. Rik is definitely someone Claire can always rely on and go to when she needs help or is feeling down.

Paintings Mentioned in the Art Forger: Storm on the Sea of Galilee

        In B.A.Shapiro's The Art Forger many paintings are mentioned including those stolen in the Gardner heist of 1990. One of these paintings is Rembrandt's "Storm on the Sea of Galilee" which depicts Jesus and his twelve disciples on a ship in the midst of a storm. This bible story is told in Mark 4:35-41. As Jesus and his disciples sailed the Sea they entered into a great storm. The boat was tossed around as the waves began to crash against the boat and water came inside. However Jesus was asleep in all of the commotion sending his disciples into a frenzy. The other men awoke Jesus saying "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" Jesus arose and calmed the storm saying to them "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith? " In  Rembrandt's depiction of the bible story he captures the exact time as Jesus began to calm the storm. The left side of the panting shows a brighter side in comparison to the dark clouds that cover the right side which signifies the storm. Rembrandt's use of darker colors really set the mood for the paintings as if that is how a storm would look. His use of the white for the waves crashing against the boat and the light blue of the sky shows a great contrast to the the dark blue of the ocean and the dark grey sky.

Vermeer's The Concert

   While reading B. A. Shapiro's The Art Forger, my group and I have come across bunch of paintings- real and fiction- throughout the text. A lot of these paintings help the flow of the story and the story itself practically revolves around them.
   Today, I will focus on The Concert by Vermeer.  Created in 1664, this painting depicts two women and a man, each with an instrument. Vermeer created this masterpiece on a canvas with oil paint.

   This priceless classic represents one of the best Vermeer's paintings, one that may possibly not be recovered. In 1990, it was stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in one of the most notorious heists involving art.
   Knowing that Vermeer was the Dutch master of light, the title does him justice because I can't help but admire his use of light in the artwork. Although the painting does mostly have a dark color to it, the lights illuminates what would be dark corners in the painting.

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Paintings Mentioned In The Art Forger: At the Races in the Countryside

         One of the more popular paintings painted by Edgar Degas that was mentioned in B.A Shapiro's novel, The Art Forger, was At the Races in the Countryside. "It's a painting of a young husband and wife sitting in a carriage with their infant and wet nurse under a luminous blue sky...A few tiny horses and tents are scattered in the background, giving the image both depth and a cheerful attitude." According to page seventy-one of The Art Forger. Also, you can see how Degas allowed the man and his family with the carriage taking up the entire half of the painting. Even though this painting was considered part of his horse racing series, there is hardly any racing imagery in the painting.

Paintings Mentioned in The Art Forger : After the Bath

           In The Art Forger, Claire gets a request to recreate Degas' After the Bath painting from an art gallery owner, Aiden Markel. The painting is of the back view of a woman drying herself after her bath. She is sitting on a wicker chair with her body twisted, as she dries herself with a white towel. Degas' wanted the audience to feel like they were "looking through a peephole" because he wanted to capture this moment in time. Degas usually paints women in intimate moments and unusual poses. The After the Bath painting is one of the many paintings in Degas' bathers series. You can tell that this is one of the more later paintings in the series in that it shows how Degas' style changed over the course of fifty years of the series. This painting utilizes vibrant colors and strong texture. In the painting, you are able to see the tension and contours of the woman's body due to the shading on her back and arms. The pastel colors create a tense atmosphere. Degas' goal was to paint women in their natural form, and appearing unaware of the artist or viewers.