Some 22 years ago, my first paid writing gig was for a British magazine, reviewing a Ralph Earl show at The Wadsworth Athenaeum, which was then celebrating its 100th Anniversary. A short business trip to the Hartford area brought me back to the Wadsworth for the first time since then. And I found its eclectic collections just as impressive as two decades ago.
Now, many regional museums have eclectic collections. It’s a function of availability and necessity—they take whatever they can get, by any reasonably-recognizable artis. But the Wadsworth is both eclectic and selective, with deep, well-chosen areas of expertise from early American furniture and painting to Minimalism (Sol Lewitt in particular).
There isn’t much else to see in Hartford, but if you’re ever in the area it’s absolutely worth a visit... Below is a gallery of some additional cameraphone shots of rooms and pieces there.
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