Thursday on Telfair Square

The Telfair Academy in Savannah, Georgia (shown above in a vintage 1940s/50s image), is one of my favorite museums, even though it may not boast the largest or most prestigious collection. What I love about it is the building that houses these art treasures. Walking in, you feel like you are stepping back in time, and halfway expect a few of the masters to be popping out from one of the galleries. From the Telfair website:

Telfair Museums is the oldest public art museum in the South. The legacy of one visionary Savannahian, it was founded in 1883 through the bequest of prominent local philanthropist Mary Telfair, who left her home and its furnishings to the Georgia Historical Society to be opened as a museum. Designed by British architectural prodigy William Jay in the neoclassical Regency style, the Telfair Academy is a former mansion built from 1818-1819 for Alexander Telfair, son of Revolutionary War patriot and Georgia governor Edward Telfair. In 1875, Alexander’s sister Mary – heir to the family fortune and last to bear the Telfair name – bequeathed the house and its furnishings to the Georgia Historical Society to be opened as a museum. After significant renovation by German-born architect Detlef Lienau, whose adaptations included the addition of the Sculpture Gallery and the Rotunda, the building opened to the public in 1886 as the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences.

The shot below is from February 24, 1955, when admission was free from 10am-5pm:



Flash forward to April 1979:



Any interest in seeing the Victorian Dress exhibit?



My first shot of the Academy is from March 2005:



…and my most recent, which just happened to hit the Golden Hour, circa November 2016:



Not sure why, but this is one of my favorite paintings at the Academy:



It is called “Calme Blanc,” by Raoul du Gardier, circa 1900-1909. Below is an interior shot of the Academy:



Nearby, also in Telfair Square, is the Trinity Methodist Church, built in 1848. This image is from April 1979:



How it looked during my June 2013 visit:



…and an interior shot from November 2016:



It’s been over five years since I last visited Savannah. I think I’m about due for a return trip.

See more Savannah, Georgia, photos at my main website.