By: Marcia Abramson
I was reminded by local residents that Nashville had money and an interest in art long before it had music. They pointed out the Belle Meade Plantation known as the Queen Of the Tennessee Plantations, a Greek Revival mansion built in 1853. It was the home of the English Derby winner Bonnie Scotland and over the years gained fame as a thoroughbred stud farm. Another example of wealth and art is the Belmont Mansion. It was built by one of America's wealthiest women of the 19th century, Adelicia Acklen. The 1850s home has her original and period furnishings in addition to her collection of art and statuary. Another important historical destination in Nashville is President Andrew Jackson's home, the Hermitage, a National Historic Landmark. It was an interesting trip back in time to see the old Presidential mansion, Rachel Jackson's Garden and their tombs. What I hadn't expected to see in Nashville was an exact replica of the Greek Parthenon built for the World's Fair many years ago and is the world's only full-sized reproduction of this building. It also houses Athena, the Goddess of Beauty and the tallest indoor structure in the Western world. It is truly a spectacular golden image. The gift shop is a great place to buy some Grecian God's pendants and earrings at modest prices. Other museums I visited were the Tennessee State Museum which traced the state's history with special emphasis on slavery and the Civil War. The Cheekwood Botanical Gardens and Museum of Art which was a private estate of 55 acres developed by the founder of Maxwell House Coffee. Cheekwood is an extraordinary beautiful property of exterior sculpture trails, exquisite bird houses, a fantastic English porcelain crystal and silver collection. I was intrigued by the Cumberland Science Museum & Sudekum Planetarium, a museum dedicated to encourage scientific learning in a fun, dynamic and interactive environment. The staff showed enthusiasm as they engaged the youngsters' imagination and curiosity, having them actively touch the displays and enjoy the world of science. What a wonderful place for interaction even for the parents and their kids when they descend from the two-story kinetic slide. Visiting all these sites does require vehicular transportation since most of these destinations are not in the downtown area where Music City is. Therefore I would suggest a rental car from the airport which is east of town and Nashville covers over 500 square miles. For an overview of the downtown area I boarded the Grayline Trolley just outside of the new Convention and Visitors' Center. I found this tour very worthwhile and I do recommend it. The Nashville city fathers felt that their city needed an Art Center in the downtown area. They decided that the beautiful old federal post office built of marble and granite more than 70 years ago in the Art Deco style would be ideal. One of their distinguished citizens, Dr. Thomas F. Frist, Jr., chairman of HCA, the giant Hospital Corporation of America, took up the cudgels to get the building for what became the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. He prevailed upon the United States Postmaster General, Marvin Runyon, a native of Nashville, to sell the building to the city. After the proper appraisals, Nashville was on the way to having their centrally located Art Center. The City bought the building, renovations were begun and Dr. Frist gave about $30 million for the project and land for parking. In seven years from the date of purchase, the Center opened last year in 2001. It is indeed a thing of beauty with its beautifully preserved dark grey and marble floors to the cast aluminum grillwork and light fixtures reminiscent of the Art Deco decorative period of the 1920s and 30s. The Center is used for traveling exhibitions. I saw wonderful Whistler, Sargent and Steer Impressionist paintings on loan from London's Tate Gallery Collection. There is also an interactive section for children to work at easels and drawing boards and I did watch some of the future artists doing some fine graphics. Don't miss the Frist. I can also recommend the Nashville Opera at the Poke Theater. "The Barber Of Seville" was an excellent performance and I spent a wonderful afternoon at the Opera before taking off for a Cumberland River Cruise on the General Jackson Showboat. It is a 300-foot paddle wheeler that sails up the river from Gaylord Opryland.
© Copyright by Marcia AbramsonE-mail: mascribe@aol.com
