Getting refined in Richmond

The Illuminate Light Show at the Meadow Event Park in Doswell, Virginia

And the furlough goes on. It looks like it I won't be returning to (paid) work until Monday at the earliest (which, of course, is New Year's Eve), but  all the major news outlets are reporting that the government shutdown is likely to continue into next year. If it goes on for too long, there's always manual labor. In any event, I'd already arranged to take leave yesterday (Thursday), but being furloughed wiped out the independent study I was going to do today.

My wife is a big fan of Papa Murphy's, a take-and-bake pizza chain based out of Washington state. Here in the other Washington, however, franchises are few and far between, much to Shu-E's disappointment. So when she found that there's an outlet near Richmond, VA area, as well as a seasonal light show in the same area, she suggested a family road trip into southern Virginia. The plan was to see some of the sights of Virginia's capital city, pick up a pizza (or two) afterward, and then stop off the see the lights before the drive home. Unfortunately, traffic on I-95 heading south was unexpectedly heavy and very slow-moving all the way from Washington to at least Fredericksburg. After pulling off the freeway for a bite to eat at Arby's, a decision was made (by me) to take a slightly longer, but infinitely more scenic (not to mention much-less crowded) detour through the countryside to Richmond. The Virginian capital is known for its monuments and historic districts, but by the time we showed up (around 1430), there wasn't time to do much more than visit one spot. And at the suggestion of my wife, that spot turned out to be one of the better museums I've visited, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts:

Entry to see the permanent collection is free, and what a collection it is! The VMFA has something for everyone - American, modern, European, Asian, African, ancient, Art Deco, Art Nouveau etc. We began our tour with the McGlothin Galleries, which focus on American art. One of the best-known paintings in the collection is Progress (The Advance of Civilization). Completed by Asher Brown Durand in 1853,  its depiction of Native Americans on the left with the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution on the right shows the sacrifices that we were made in the "advance of civilization":

Catfish Row (1947) by Jacob Lawrence was one of the results of the artist's travels to African-American communities in places like Memphis, Vicksburg and New Orleans:

This Japanophile appreciated a couple of works in particular in the galleries. First, there was The Temple Court of Fudo Sama in Meguro, Tokyo (1891), by Robert Frederick Blum. A friend of mine used to live close to the depicted temple:

Then there was Miss Kaji Waji (1909), by Robert Henri. The portrait's subject was the daughter of Katsu Kaishū 勝海舟:

Shu-E isn't a big fan of modern art, unlike her husband. Wall Drawing #541 (1987) by Sol LeWitt:

One of the highlights in the VMFA is without a doubt its collection of five Fabergé eggs. This stunning specimen, the Imperial Tsarevich Easter Egg, was presented by Tsar Nicholas II to his wife, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, in 1912. The "surprise" inside was a diamond-encrusted platinum miniature portrait, which you can see to the left of the egg:

In the Marble Hall stands Septimius Severis. Most of it dates from the 3rd century, though the head and body belong to different statues that were joined together in the 1630's, with the arms, legs and other elements being added around that time. Apparently this was standard Baroque restoration practice:

Willem van Heythuysen (2006) by Kehinde Wiley is one of the artist's realistic portrayals of African-American men in Old Master settings. This one humorously references a 1625 painting of a Dutch merchant by Frans Hals:

I took a particular interest in the African gallery when I came across the following:

Life and Miracles of Saint Gäbrä Mänfräs Qeddus together with a Homily and Miracles of Saint Michael (17th century, artist unknown):

Triptych Icon (circa 1670-1720) depicts Mary and Jesus flanked by archangels and surrounded by images of the Crucifixion and Resurrection, apostles and Sts. George and Theodore:

A silver processional cross, from the 17th-18th century. The Ethiopian empire in the 4th century was one of the first in the world to adopt Christianity as a state religion:

Masks from the Congo region:

A late-15th century depiction of St. Denis. Legend has it that he carried his severed head to his burial place after his execution in Paris in 280:

The coffin and mummy of Tjeby (2195-2040 BCE):

The mummy was placed on its left so it could look out through the Eye of Horus painted on the side of the coffin:

The East Asian gallery had some excellent examples of Japanese Buddhist art, like this Kamakura period 鎌倉時代 Kannon 観音 statue, made of wood, with traces of lacquer and gold leaf:

This 13th-century (Kamakura period) statue of Zōjōten 増長天 (the Guardian of the South) originally held a weapon in its right hand:

A magnificent Kamakura period trio - Kannon (13th century) in the middle, flanked by two 14th-century Boddhisattvas, Monju 文殊 (on the lion) and Fugen 普賢 (atop the elephant):

A pair of 14th-century guardian lions, known as komainu 狛犬 in Japanese:

I was pleased to find that I've visited almost all of the places depicted by Hasui Kawase 川瀬巴水:

Tsuruoka Hachiman Shrine (1931):

Snow at Zōjōji Temple (1929):

Nigatsudo Hall, Nara (1934):

Konpira Shrine, Sanuki (1948):

The Chinese section also included Buddhist statuary, but I was more impressed with this 7th-century earthenware with white glaze Bactrian camel, dating from the Tang dynasty 唐朝:

The ceramics were also impressive, like these beautiful Qing dynasty 清朝 vase and cups:

An 18th-century lacquer container (wood with mother of pearl inlay) with a floral design, from the Korean Joseon dynasty:

The South Asian gallery...:

...featuring a stunning 19th-century garden pavilion from the Indian state of Rajasthan:

The gallery is also home to some outstanding Tibetan mandala paintings...:

...and this magnificent figurine:

The final galleries we visited contained various works of Arts Deco and Nouveau. I could picture myself relaxing at home with these 1926 furniture pieces designed by French painter Félix Del Marle:

Punch Bowl with Three Ladles, made in 1900 by the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company:

It was almost 1730 when we were done with the museum. On the way back to the car we passed a reminder that Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy. I only saw one Confederate flag flying in front of someone's house on the drive to the city, but signs for the Jefferson Davis Highway were unfortunate reminders that we were in the South:

Following our pizza pickup at Papa Murphy's in nearby Mechanicsville, we drove to Doswell to see the illumination. Coming after Christmas and on a Thursday evening, there thankfully weren't too many cars in the queue. The lights were synced to music which was simulcast on a local FM radio station:

I'll end this post with a few short videos from the light show. My camera's battery gave out while driving around (as you can hear me observe in the second video), so the last three are courtesy of my wife's phone. Enjoy: