Cheekwood Estates During Coronavirus

This is going to be our last adventure for a while. I feel as though we have been lucky thus far venturing out into our new world filled with coronavirus and its new restrictions.

We are going to go to the Cheekwood Estate which is currently exhibiting the Dale Chihuly glass sculpture collection. It is mostly outdoors, with limited reservations to view the home. so I feel quite comfortable with their precautions. 

Of course, I will not be touching anything, or breathing anyone's air!

This estate was once the family home of Mabel and Leslie Cheek. It is an extraordinary 1930s estate with a large Georgia mansion surrounded by 55 acres of splendid gardens. 

Upon arrival, we were greeted by an amazing "tree of glass"! It was red, orange, and yellow and was the largest glass sculpture I have ever seen. Truly a remarkable piece.

As we continued to wander through the estate, we were met with one astounding sculpture after another. They were sprinkled into forests, ponds, and gardens which created a serene environment, one that could calm even the most anxious person. I was mesmerized by the enormity of glass.

I have seen Dale Chihuly's work before, as there is a hanging sculpture in Palm Desert, Ca. where I lived for 16 years. It was on the way to my parent's home and at the time, I had no idea who Dale Chihuly was, I just knew that there was a huge yellow, octopus looking glass sculpture, that I was curious to see whether or not it would survive our earthquakes. Thus far, it has!

This was amazing!

I have also seen his work at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. 

Seeing his pieces out it the open, set amongst beautiful gardens was a unique treat. Apparently, they are even more stunning at night. We hope to go back to the Cheekwood, during Christmas time, as we have been told that between the Chihuy's lit up at night, and all of the Christmas decorations, it is a sight not to be missed.

This view is astounding!

If you are ever in the Nashville area, I highly recommend enjoying this property.

After perusing the gardens and seeing all of the outdoor installations, we headed inside for our tour of the estate. I was pleasantly pleased with how they limit the guests inside. The home is truly stunning and the views are magical! I can only imagine a bride and groom standing on the verandah overlooking the rolling hills of Tennessee!

In the entryway, there was a new installation of light, suspended from the ceiling. When you looked at it, it just appeared to be a circle of pendants lights, but when you stood underneath it, with a camera, you saw a completely different illusion. It was oh, so cool!

There were Chihuly pieces throughout the home, with a large collection of bowls and vases on the second floor.

Love the Neon!

Sketches?

While we were looking at a poster of his work from the 1970s through 2000, I suddenly remembered that my cousin, Lee Ann Koveleski, was a glassblower in the Pacific Northwest. I was telling Joe and Kevin that story when I looked up and saw her standing in the poster from the 1980s!! Seeing her smiling, behind Dale Chihuly while he worked gave me chill bumps!

LeeAnn Koveleski; my cousin

My husband and son were like, "What?" And I was like, "That, right there, is my cousin!!" I was not kidding and was just shocked to see her in that poster! My husband immediately saw the family resemblance, and we marveled that we had just seen her Mom and Dad this past November.

It was such a funny coincidence! Kinda' topped off the whole day with a bit of nostalgia. As children, we were quite close, but our family moved away from Pennsylvania during my later childhood years, so unlike today, where communication is so easy, we lost touch and did not remain close. I was, however, aware that Lee had become quite a reputable glassblower until the art destroyed her body, so seeing her standing there was a real treat!

Who is that old lady????

We had a lovely day and decided since we were so close to "Prince's Hot Chicken" food truck, that we should give it another shot! I really decided to throw caution to the wind and actually ordered some hot chicken for myself! IT is the very first food that I have eaten, that we have not cooked, since March, and I gotta say, It did not disappoint!!

The medium is HOT!

Yes, Please!

Prince's Hot Chicken is the bomb!

Now to start the two-week countdown over; that's how long it takes, right?

Happy Day, hope you enjoyed the photos!

on the ceiling!

FaceBook: CML: A Place for Hope and Humor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cmlmichele
Email: CMLMichele59@gmail.com

#chronicillness #cancer #chronicmyelogenousleukemia #coronavirus #leukemia #lovemylife #cml #selfisolation #quarantine #grateful #thrivingwithleukemia #livingwithcancer #isolation #coronavirus #coronavisiting #cheekwoodestates #dalechihuly