A Trip to the Philbrook

Who let the winter cold back in after a couple of lovely spring-like days? DH asked yesterday when we open the deck usually. Well NOT in February. Today the temp is back to the 30s, and the air feels so much colder after a warm sunny 70 of Friday.


Although we did not know how nice it would be on Friday, the forecast was for a nice warm day. We had been not been out for any reason for days and weeks so we planned a ride. When the boys were still home, we had gone to see the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa but did not have enough day to see the Philbrook too. We always intended to return; after 22 years we made it on Friday! It was a pleasant and easy drive down I-44. We went straight into the city and back out again, only stopping to see the art museum.

The art is housed in an Italianate villa built in 1927 by oilman Waite Phillips who donated it to the city of Tulsa for the museum. Phillips also donated another home in New Mexico to the Boy Scouts for their Philmont Scout Camp. It is a breathtaking building and one can only imagine what it would have been like to live in this palatial setting during the 1930s. There are 23 acres of gardens and walks around the structure. Even in stark February, one could picture how beautiful it must be when flowers and shrubs are at their best.

Inside were several small collections of European, American, Southwestern, Egyptian, and Modern art. The upper gallery had a special exhibit of Wyeths by Andrew, N.C. and Jamie. These were my favorites for the day, although they competed with the Rodin sculptures for that honor.

 Rodin’s Adam graces the entrance space. The special traveling exhibit was American Streamline Design: The World of Tomorrow which showed the streamlined designs of household appliances, toys, office machines, etc that became popular during the 20th century. There was an accompanying film with this exhibit. It all made me a little sad to have lived through this time of sleek trains and bicycles and fancy typewriters (what are those?) that no longer are the IN thing.

We went downstairs to the la Villa restaurant for lunch. It was chrome, glass, and very modern. It was cold looking to me, but I had heard the food was good. It was excellent as was the presentation and the service. We both had the chicken BLT on ciabatta bread and sweet potato fries. It was huge and tasty. The iced tea was some of the best I have ever tasted.

We were tired when we left, but my winter mind felt restored a bit. We eased out of Tulsa, caught old Route 66 to Claremore, where we stopped for a visit with a relative and return visit to J.M. Davis Gun Museum, but Claremore is a story in itself for another day.