FWT Magazine Issue 5 Fall 2016 | Page 61

Look for the Mermaids on Parade public art project while visiting Norfolk, Virginia. venturing in for closer looks at over 50 different gardens, such as the Butterfly Garden, the Enchanted Forest, the Sensory Garden, or the Japanese Garden with small stone temples and a koi pond. Garden lore has it that if you walk around Friendship Lake while holding hands with your BFF, you’ll be friends for life. Enjoy lunch at the onsite café and peruse the gift shop for botanical-themed items. In October, don’t miss AcquaFire, when the Renaissance Pond blazes with fires accompanied by live acoustic music, and during the holidays marvel at a million sparkling lights during Dominion Garden of Lights. All Manners Of Art Surrounded by lush gardens and woodlands, the Hermitage Museum and Gardens looks like something out of a fairytale. Built in 1908 by William and Florence Sloane, Mrs. Sloane later converted the Arts and Crafts style summer home into a museum for her impressive collection of artworks from six continents. There are paintings, sculptures, tapestries, merchant chests, snuff bottles, and even a vintage Tiffany Travel set. Enjoy details such as the carvings around the fireplace in the Great Hall and a stained glass window of Columbus’ trio: the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria. There’s beautiful woodwork, an organ and a confessional that’s a closet. Contemporary art is upstairs with frequent rotating exhibits. Bibliophiles will swoon at the collection of 3,000 books that include first editions and early volumes by HG Wells and Mark Twain. You can check out the original kitchen and take a look in the gift shop housed in the old vault. Stroll through the rose garden and take a peek at the grotto and the unique collection of millstones. Glass Art as Performance Art The Sloanes could be considered the patron saints of Norfolk’s art scene, as they helped launch what is today the world-class Chrysler Museum of Art, where Roman statues and Japanese woodblocks mingle with French impressionists and modern AMY TROTTER HOUSTON HERMITAGE MUSEUM AND GARDENS Relax under the magnificent magnolia tree on the grounds of Hermitage Museum and Gardens.