Read more about the article Lost Central Park: south end
Casino in Central Park, 1863. Annual Report of the Board of Commissioners for Central Park, 1864.

Lost Central Park: south end

If you've read any of my books on Alexander Hamilton, you know I'm a fanatic about primary sources. So when I started to research Central Park, one of my first…

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Protected: Sunday Recommendations 5/16/2021

This week's recommendations are all from Michelangelo's Medici Chapel (a.k.a. the Sagrestia Nuova), in the Basilica di San Lorenzo, Florence. He worked on this project from 1519 to 1534. 1.…

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Read more about the article Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 4
Dining room, Railcar No. 91. Flagler Museum, Palm Beach. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 4

Click here for all posts on the Flagler Museum. This week we’re looking at Henry Flagler's private railcar, built in 1886 by Jackson and Sharp of Wilmington, Delaware. In 1912, Flagler celebrated…

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Read more about the article Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 3
Heliotrope Room, one of the guest bedrooms at the Flagler Museum. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 3

Click here for all posts on the Flagler Museum. This week we're looking at the upstairs of the mansion. Master Bedroom Master Suite, Flagler Museum, Palm Beach. Photo copyright ©…

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Read more about the article Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 2
Drawing Room, Breakfast Room, Hotel Addition, 1925. Grand Ballroom, Flagler Museum, Palm Beach. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 2

The introduction to this series is in last week's post. Click here for all posts. South Hall Off the South Hall open the Billiard Room (left) and the Grand Ballroom…

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Read more about the article Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 1
Grand Hall. Flagler Museum, Palm Beach. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, part 1

Henry Morrison Flagler (1830-1913) became enormously wealthy as one of the founders of Standard Oil, which he joined in 1867. He was credited by John D. Rockefeller with developing the…

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Read more about the article Ringling Museum, Sarasota: Ca’ d’Zan
Ca' d'Zan. Ringling estate, Sarasota. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Ringling Museum, Sarasota: Ca’ d’Zan

In my last two posts (here and here), I looked at the Ringling Museum in Sarasota. Also on the grounds of the Ringling estate is the home of John and…

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Read more about the article Ringling Museum, Sarasota, part 2
Enomoto Chikatoshi, Skier, ca. 1936-1940. Ringling Museum, Sarasota. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Ringling Museum, Sarasota, part 2

For more on the Ringling, see last week's post. Gardens Between the wings of the Ringling Museum is a formal garden with a couple dozen bronzes, mostly famous works from…

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Read more about the article Ringling Museum, Sarasota, part 1
Detail of a Lettuccio with symbols of the Strozzi and Medici families, Florence, 1508? Ringling Museum, Sarasota. Photo copyright © 2021 Dianne L. Durante

Ringling Museum, Sarasota, part 1

The grounds of the Ringling estate in Sarasota include a fabulous art museum (mostly European art of the 15th-19th centuries), the Ca' d'Zan (home of John and Mable Ringling), and…

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Read more about the article Favorite Recommendations from 2020, part 2
Gardens at Naumkeag, Stockbridge, MA.

Favorite Recommendations from 2020, part 2

In 2020, I emailed 157 art-related items to members of my free Sunday Recommendations list. (To join, just ask: DuranteDianne@gmail.com.) For supporters, I recommended 51 more items. The items in this…

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