The Gilded Dish: A Rienzi Blog
Rienzi is the house museum and collection of European paintings and decorative arts at the MFAH. Our articles highlight elements of the collection, discuss additions and changes to the house or gardens, and review events held at Rienzi for those of you not able to be here in person. Feel free to e-mail rienziblog@mfah.org with questions, comments, and suggestions. Welcome!
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25 AprWed / 2012
Earlier this month the Rienzi and Bayou Bend Book Club read Founding Gardeners, a book that examines gardening, a common passion, of four of America’s founding fathers: Washington, Jefferson, Adams, and Madison. Written by Andrea Wulf, the book incorporates political history with that of nature, and how these four men with a common goal but differing means shared a great interest for all things botanical. In particular the book looks at the transfer of seeds from North to...
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09 AprMon / 2012
I don’t think of myself as a television person, except maybe a little Modern Family; I tend to prefer the world of words: books, magazines, and news websites. I’m generally lost when movies are discussed; I might only see one a year in the theatre, usually something odd (please don’t ask me if I will be seeing The Hunger Games). But, recently, I’ve adopted some television programming that I just can’t get enough of –...
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07 MarWed / 2012
We're just two short days away from the start of Azalea Trail, and the gardens at Rienzi are gorgeous! I popped out to the Ralph Ellis Gunn designed gardens for a bit this afternoon and photographed the beautiful white, pink, and red azaleas that are blossoming - check them out in the accompanying slideshow and join us this weekend to see them in person.
Last spring, we wrote about the origins of azaleas here. This year, we want you to share your azalea photos...
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24 FebFri / 2012
Rodeo at Rienzi, the MFAH's house museum for European decorative arts? Yes, it's true!
This morning I decided to treat myself to a store-bought coffee (it is Friday, after all). Upon entering the grocery store, I immediately noticed the plethora of cowboy hats and boots. My companion reminded me that today is "Go Texan Day" (forgive me for not knowing, I'm a recent transplant!). I didn't think much of it until arriving at Rienzi where some of the longtime staff...
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23 FebThu / 2012
In late January, Rienzi’s first ever exhibition, English Taste: The Art of Dining in the Eighteenth Century, closed. I find that it is still slightly jarring to walk through the Dining Room, where during the four months the exhibition was on view, I became used to the sight of dishes such as larded hare, flummeries, and samphire.
Replacing the elaborate dinner table setting is a display of Paul Storr silver pieces. Three...
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