Reprinted with permission from: DESTINATION ART D 800.610.5771 or International 011-561.655.8778. CLICK TO SUBSCRIBE Truly a Voyage to Remember By PETER TRIPPI GH lthough its official name was the A Russian Art Cruise, Fine Art Con- noisseur’s first adventure abroad (August 7- 14) actually delivered even more by intro- ducing our guests to the cultural riches of St. Petersburg in the context of the Baltic region as a whole. Conceived by FAC publisher Eric Rhoads, this voyage proved an ideal way to mix world-class art and architecture with five- star comforts and a delightfully cohesive group of passengers who eagerly shared with each other their passion for artistic beauty and quality. (Our group’s camaraderie was particularly noteworthy considering its di- versity: We came from the U.S., Canada, and China, and ranged in age from the early 20s to mid-80s.) On August 7, this merry band of collec- tors, artists, and enthusiasts met for the first time over cocktails on the Lido deck of the LAURIE AND ERIC RHOADS 922-passenger Crystal Symphony as it glided WITH CINTHIA JOYCE out of Copenhagen’s harbor at sunset on a balmy evening. After changing into more for- mal attire, the guests reassembled in the ship’s main dining room for the first of five dinners together; the seating plans changed each evening so that, by the end of the week, all participants had found an opportunity to con- verse with everyone else. The Crystal Sym- phony is itself a work of art, encompassing a spa, gym, casino, boutiques, and several bars and performance spaces, not to mention two specialty restaurants operated by chefs Nobu Matsuhisa and Piero Selvaggio. BARBARA AND CHARLES ROBINSON WITH JUDITH POND KUDLOW SCOTT CHRISTENSEN AND KRISTIE GRIGG GETTING ORIENTED JEANINE JACKSON On our first morning cruising the re- AND ROGER ROSSI markably calm Baltic, we gathered in the ship’s plush cinema for a formal welcome by Eric Rhoads and the first of my three illustrated lec- tures on-board, “The Baltic World: What Every Art Lover Needs to Know.” Offering detailed maps and thumbnail portraits of this region’s historical movers and shakers, these one-hour talks were intended to prepare guests for what they would encounter on shore. Also intro- duced was Gabriel Haigazian of Creative Travel FINE ART CONNOISSEUR.COM | November/December 2010 Copyright 2010 Fine Art Connoisseur. Used by Permission. Planners, who coordinated every detail of the voyage — in advance and Back aboard the Symphony that evening, I lectured on the history of on site — with both rigor and a contagious sense of humor. “St. Petersburg: A Cultural Capital, Against All Odds.” Our group disem - The next morning we awakened to find Tallinn, the capital of barked early the next morning for the first of three busy days in Russia’s the Baltic republic of Estonia, beckoning outside our windows. All former capital, led by three charming Russian women fluent in both Eng - guests were shuttled to the city center and enjoyed six sunny hours ex - lish and the vocabulary of art history. Our first destination was a rare pri - ploring its hilly, cobblestoned streets. Once a rich trading post inter - vate visit ( sans touristes ) to St. Isaac’s Cathedral, the gigantic gold-domed connected with other Baltic and North Sea ports operated by the Ger - structure that kept the French architect Auguste Montferrand occupied man-led Hanseatic League, Tallinn’s well-restored core features an un - for 40 years (1818-58). Next came the Fortress and Cathedral of Saints expected range of architectural styles, from medieval half-timbering Peter and Paul, on the small island from which Peter the Great’s imperial to Art Nouveau whiplash curves. capital emanated during the first quarter of the 18th century. Taking ad - vantage of the sunny weather, we next enjoyed an open-air boat tour of the city’s canals. Although I had visited St. Petersburg before, I had not seen it from this unique vantage, truly the best way to appreciate the refinement and vari - ety of its facades and towers. We dis - embarked at the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood, the fantasia of col - orful “onion domes” erected on the spot where Tsar Alexander II was assassi - nated in 1881. After ogling its Russo- Byzantine interior, we relaxed over JOHN AND GAIL O’B RIEN SUSAN AND LINDA PERRY lunch at Lumière, a glass pavilion perched atop a building overlooking Arts Square, which focuses on a mon - BUD LESLIE AND ument to the poet Alexander Pushkin. DAVID ORCUTT Having enjoyed two free hours shopping and sightseeing along bustling Nevsky Prospekt, we re - assembled for tea and cakes at the el - egant Hotel Astoria before strolling to the State Hermitage Museum. One of the largest museums on earth, the Her - mitage is a familiar name to all read - ers of Fine Art Connoisseur , yet few people have experienced its grand gal - leries and halls after public hours. In - THE TOUR ’S MUST -HAVE ACCESSORY deed, our first glimpse of its exterior was marred by the sight of thousands of tourists exiting the building at clos - ing time… ugh! Thus our group truly savored the privilege of entering after 6 p.m., and we particularly enjoyed a rare demonstration of the huge Pea - cock Clock, sent in 1781 by the Lon - don goldsmith James Cox to amuse Catherine the Great. We also relished a detailed introduction to the Her - mitage’s collection of British paint - ings, provided by its curator (and my one-time classmate) Elizaveta Renne, whose comprehensive catalogue of this KAY HOOPER , P EG AREY , holding will be published in English PETER TRIPPI DELIVERS A LECTURE JOYCE VARGA next year. Copyright 2010 Fine Art Connoisseur . Used by Permission. November/December 2010 | FINE ART CONNOISSEUR.COM EXPLORING ST. P ETERSBURG ’S CANALS DUNCAN AND CAROLYN POND FISHER , B URRITT POND , JUDITH POND KUDLOW , AND CORNELIA POND AT ST. ISAAC ’S CATHEDRAL THE CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOR ON SPILLED BLOOD PARTICIPANTS IN ARTS SQUARE ERIC RHOADS AND PETER TRIPPI AT THE CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOR ON SPILLED BLOOD THE ACADEMY, RUSSIAN MUSEUM, AND PALACES After a night’s rest, we departed the next morning for the Academy of Fine Arts (also known as the Repin Institute), which covers a full block of prime real estate overlooking the Neva river. Here we were greeted and oriented by the Acad - emy’s ebullient rector, Semyon Mikhailovsky. Having shown us the proverbial red-colored telephone that once linked his office to the Kremlin, Mikhailovsky guided us through every interior space worth seeing, including a spectacular suite of galleries filled with plaster casts of classical sculpture, as well as the original amphitheatre where students still learn to draw from live models and skeletons. After viewing the impressive exhibi - temporary, and with particular strength in the 19th century. Here we tion of artworks by graduating students, we enjoyed an al fresco lunch enjoyed a tour of paintings by the great academician Ilya Repin (1844- in the Academy’s circular courtyard, then inspected two dozen can - 1930), plus sufficient time to buy hard-to-find catalogues in the mu - vases delivered for our enjoyment by recent graduates and current fac - seum shop. Approximately half the group attended an evening perfor - ulty. This was the first such show-sale in the institution’s history, and mance of the ballet Swan Lake at the Mikhailovsky Theatre, while the many of these works were promptly purchased by our guests, who rest of us relaxed aboard the Crystal Symphony or returned downtown are now admiring them at home in North America. to paint. (Five guests spent this entire day in Moscow, traveling by the The afternoon was spent at the State Russian Museum, which of - new high-speed railway that links it with St. Petersburg and enjoying fers a comprehensive survey of Russian artmaking — from icons to con - tours of such sites as the Kremlin and Red Square.) FINE ART CONNOISSEUR.COM | November/December 2010 Copyright 2010 Fine Art Connoisseur . Used by Permission. SEMYON MIKHAILOVSKY WITH ERIC RHOADS LIBBY WHIPPLE , S EMYON MIKHAILOVSKY , K ATIE WHIPPLE THE ACADEMY 'S GALLERIES OF PLASTER CASTS LUNCH IN THE ACADEMY ’S COURTYARD THE ACADEMY ’S EXHIBITION OF WORK BY GRADUATING STUDENTS The group’s final day in St. Petersburg began with a tour of the jolly sing-along performances of folk music. Completely recharged, Catherine Palace, located in the resort town of Tsarskoe Selo (Pushkin), we finished the day at Peterhof, the suburban summer palace initiated 16 miles southeast of the city. This enormous 18th-century Rococo by Peter the Great and expanded by subsequent tsars. Essentially Rus - confection is best known for the decorative panels of its Amber Room, sia’s version of Versailles, this complex is well known for its many foun - the originals of which disappeared during World War II and have been tains, which cascade down a hill toward the Gulf of Finland. It was replaced by hand-crafted replicas that sparkled in the sunlight stream - on the pier here that we boarded the hydrofoil that sped us back to ing through the windows. Dazzled by all the gold leaf surrounding us, St. Petersburg for a final glimpse before we departed Russia. (That we rested our eyes at Podvorie, a charming restaurant constructed of night a cocktail reception in the ship’s nightclub helped lift our newly logs in the vernacular style and famous for its peasant cooking and Russophilic spirits.) Copyright 2010 Fine Art Connoisseur . Used by Permission. November/December 2010 | FINE ART CONNOISSEUR.COM THE ENTRANCE TO THE WINTER PALACE AT THE HERMITAGE HERMITAGE CURATOR ELIZAVETA RENNE THE PEACOCK CLOCK AT THE HERMITAGE A H ERMITAGE PICTURE GALLERY WENDY CHUANG SWEDEN AND BEYOND WITH CARAVAGGIO ’S The next day was our final one together.