Providence is the capital city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It’s home to Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design, whose RISD Museum displays American art and silver. Nearby, 18th- and 19th-century homes line the streets of College Hill. Waterplace Park is the backdrop for the WaterFire art installation, which lights up the surrounding tidal basin most nights in the summer and for special events.
Tag Archives: Rhode Island
Christmas Tours: The Elms In Newport, Rhode Island
The Elms was the summer residence of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Julius Berwind of Philadelphia and New York. Mr. Berwind made his fortune in the coal industry. In 1898, the Berwinds engaged Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer to design a house modeled after the mid-18th century French chateau d’Asnieres (c.1750) outside Paris.
Construction of The Elms was completed in 1901 at a cost reported at approximately $1.4 million. The interiors and furnishings were designed by Allard and Sons of Paris and were the setting for the Berwinds’ collection of Renaissance ceramics, 18th century French and Venetian paintings, and Oriental jades.
The elaborate Classical Revival gardens on the grounds were developed between 1907 and 1914. They include terraces displaying marble and bronze sculpture, a park of fine specimen trees and a lavish lower garden featuring marble pavilions, fountains, a sunken garden and carriage house and garage. These gardens were recently restored.
Mrs. Berwind died in 1922, and Mr. Berwind invited his sister, Julia, to become his hostess at his New York and Newport houses. Mr. Berwind died in 1936 and Miss Julia continued to summer at The Elms until her death in 1961, at which time the house and most of its contents were sold at public auction. The Preservation Society of Newport County purchased The Elms in 1962 and opened the house to the public. In 1996, The Elms was designated a National Historic Landmark.
Christmas: The Breakers In Newport, Rhode Island
A short tour of The Breakers in Newport, Rhode Island in mid-December, 2021. The Breakers, which is owned by the Preservation Society of Newport County, is the “grandest of Newport’s summer ‘cottages,'” as the Preservation Society puts it on their website, and I personally thought it lived up to that.
The Breakers is the grandest of Newport’s summer “cottages” and a symbol of the Vanderbilt family’s social and financial pre-eminence in turn-of-the-century America.
Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794-1877) established the family fortune in steamships and later in the New York Central Railroad, which was a pivotal development in the industrial growth of the nation during the late 19th century. The Commodore’s grandson, Cornelius Vanderbilt II (1843-1899), became Chairman and President of the New York Central Railroad system in 1885, and purchased a wooden house called The Breakers in Newport during that same year.
TOP TRAVEL VIDEOS: “AERIAL AMERICA – RHODE ISLAND” (SMITHSONIAN CHANNEL)
With an array of lighthouses and even more stories of rumrunners, pirates and captains of industry, Rhode Island represents our nation’s progress and its excesses. See it from the sky and witness the East Coast’s tiny gleaming treasure.
From the Series: Aerial America: Rhode Island http://bit.ly/2ilXKpy
Destination Restaurants: Clarke Cooke House Is A Newport, RI Institution Dating Back To 1780
From the ClarkeCooke.com website:
…hosts to royalty and yachting stars, captains of industry and charming scalawags, to occasions whimsical and outrageous. Whether a quiet dinner or late night revelry, our goal has always been to provide great food, professional service, and a sophisticated environment. The Clarke Cooke House lends its unique charm to any celebration or meeting, whether a victorious America’s Cup crew or family gathering – our dining room and porches are the perfect Newport setting.
At The Clarke Cooke House Chef Gidley controls all food operations: café dining in the Bistro and Candy Store, our fine dining environment, The Sky Bar, a full Oyster Bar, and the renowned Summer Sushi. With his training in classical brigade kitchens and his contemporary sensibility, Chef Gidley’s approach would be best be described as Mediterranean-influenced American Cuisine.
Website: https://www.clarkecooke.com/
Top Museum Exhibitions: “Gorham Silver – Designing Brilliance 1850–1970” At The Rhode Island School Of Design
From a RISD Museum online exhibit:
Established in 1831, the Gorham Manufacturing Company adeptly coupled art and industry, rising to become an industry leader of stylistic and technological achievement in America and around the world. It produced public presentation pieces and one-of-a-kind showstoppers for important occasions, as well as tableware for everyday use. Its works trace a narrative arc not only of great design but also of American ambitions. In this volume, insightful essays are accompanied by gorgeous new photography of splendid silver pieces along with a wealth of archival images, design drawings, casting patterns, and company records that reveal a rich heritage of a giant in decorative arts and silver manufacturing.
Produced in collaboration with the RISD Museum, which has the world’s most significant collection of Gorham silver, this major new book casts new light on more than 120 years of grand aesthetic styles in silver, innovative industrial practices, and American social and cultural norms.
Top Upcoming Festivals: Newport Jazz Festival Features 60 Artists For 65th Anniversary Event
“Referred to as the grandfather of all jazz festivals, this event draws thousands of people from all over the world to Newport, Rhode Island — a city famed for its spectacular coastal scenery and awe-inspiring architecture. The Newport Jazz Festival was founded in 1954 as the first annual jazz festival in America and has been host to numerous legendary performances by some of the world’s leading established and emerging artists.”
(NBC Boston – June 17, 2019)
Boomers Daily 