It's been a while since I've stopped by NOMA for an exhibition. I think the last exhibition I saw there was several years ago. It was the Madeline Albright brooch/pin exhibition. Time has definitely flown by since then.
Kristina and I had planned to come by the museum in the fall of last year for the Orientalism exhibition, but never made it out to New Orleans. I'm glad we didn't because it gave us a chance to see another exhibition, A Life of Seduction: Venice in the 1700s.
The exhibition featured paintings by Joseph Heintz the Younger and other Venetian artists that depicted Venice as a cityscape and as the location for Carnival, a celebration that lasted from October until the spring.
While I enjoyed the paintings of the city and celebrations, my favorites were the clothing.
A boy's dress
Mourning Gown
This gown in addition to the embroidered vests below was my favorite item in the exhibition. I can't imagine how long it would have taken a team of seamstresses to quilt this gown. The gown was modeled after the French style of dress during that time period as the entire world looked to France for fashion.
Women's high heeled clogs
These clogs were worn by women to protect their clothes from getting dirty or wet when traveling around the city. Apparently this style of shoe wasn't new in the 1700s. The Romans used something similar as well. I wouldn't want to be the woman who had to wear these shoes. They look uncomfortable.
Men's Suit
Close up of embroidery on the coat
Embroidered vests
The Orientalism exhibition while interesting was a small room of paintings, drawings, photographs, objects, and furniture. We were disappointed with the size of the exhibition so seeing the Venetian exhibition made up for it.
Our favorite piece in the exhibition was a beautiful cabinet holding various American ceramics decorated in Oriental themes. Can I have one? Looks like I'll need to win the lottery to buy one :)
Overall, we had a great time at the museum. They have changed their permanent galleries upstairs and have a lot of African, Oceanic, and Native American material on view. If you have time to stop by and see the museum before Venetian exhibition closes, please do!!
Until next time ^___^
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