Newark Museum.

Behind every picture, painting, piece of furniture, and jewelry is a story. And every single exhibit has a tale to tell. The Newark museum in North Jersey is so far the most humbling museums to visit specifically for that reason. Knowing that some of these pieces came from ancestors of slaves, servants, transportation workers, factory workers, and even children makes it all the more humbling. It really made me appreciate every single piece of furniture, especially for those who came in contact with these items in order for them to put them on display for the world to see (or for those that visit Newark.) The Newark Museum is so far another one of my favorites, and the kids are beginning to really appreciate art in history even more. So glad I get to do this while they're young, and it's so interesting to see what they see in the eyes of a five, and 10 year old. I took quite a few photos, and read a lot about the history of some of the furniture, and art but my brain was so focused on being in awe, and amazement of how most of these pieces came to this museum. So if I don't add a caption as to what it is, where it came from, who designed it or crafted it forgive me! I, for the most part was just ogling, walking around picturing these pieces in a home at the time they were crafted.  

Including the Ballantine House which was amazing. Part of the house is connected to the museum which is totally cool. The house is amazing, and part of it has a suite of eight Victorian period rooms, and each room depicts how people decorated their homes in America, from the 1650's to the present day. As I was walking around I felt as if I was in a couple of scenes from Downton Abbey.

 ^^^ This piano made her day! Too bad she couldn't play it! ^^^

^^^ Don't you just love Noah's expression! ^^^

^^^ The art collection was distinguishing, and historical. There was African, Chinese, Korean, Indian, and South Asian art. This museum truly was amazing. ^^^

^^^ This sculpture is made entirely of shoes! ^^^

^^^ One of my favorites was the Tibetan exhibit. Apparently this museum holds the largest collection of Tibetan art outside of Asia. ^^^

Going to Newark, and visiting the museum was a great experience. Newark is not all industrial. There are actually quite a few places that were appealing to us, and this museum was one of them. The kids had a blast, and seeing them happy knowing that they got an educational lesson out of it puts a smile on all our faces! 

A great beginning to our spring break!