John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art

Welcome to the Big Top!

We’re headed to the circus… okay okay. Maybe not to the circus per say, but the Ringling Brothers Museum in Sarasota. Year after year, my family and I would spend glorious vacations soaking up the sun in the Gulf of Mexico. I’d never even thought to step foot in a museum.

Isn’t the ocean the most beautiful art for miles? In order to test out that theory, my mom and I decided to be adventurous and step out of our usual comforts.

Welcome to the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art.

We walked through these magical gates, paid our admission fees and were given these pretty little maps (and bright orange museum wristbands).

And as good museum goers do, we decided to follow the mapped order… starting with The Big Show!

The entrance hall is grand and adorned with this giant beautiful portrait.

Which leads you through to check out the fanfare.

This way to The Big Show please.

We strolled about the exhibit, enchanted by the old world costumes and glamour.

And then we spotted this guy.

That’s right, a clown car.

We may have had a go…

My “sad” clown.

And my Mom is so tiny that she of course, actually fit in it.

Okay okay, enough clowning around.

It’s time to debut our tightrope walking skills. Serious stuff.

More difficult than it looks, that’s for sure.

We carried on to see a little bit of the circus wardrobe… those elephants were such fashionistas back in the day.

And then we played with the tiger.

But that was enough time under the top, it’s time to head back to the great outdoors.

All of the outdoor space leads to the Ca’d’Zahn a.k.a. House of John.

You sneak around the back of the mansion and are greeted with ocean views.

It all screams Great Gatsby.

From the Ca’d’Zan we were granted stunning views looking out onto the bay.

But we couldn’t stare out forever, so we walked on to keep with the tour route.

Look how far we’ve come!

Anyways, let’s check out some modern art.

This one is titled “Fatboy.” I can’t even make these things up.

Then we took cover in the cool air conditioned art museum…

We went along, spotting the norm of large pieces of European religious works.

This oil on canvas called The Blue Madonna was my favorite. The blue stands out spectacularly.

We had to go outside again to continue the tour through the rest of the gallery. The building structure is as lovely as the art inside it.

Admittedly, we dashed through the rest of the museum. My sunburn was a bit worse for wear.

It was such an interesting day.

I’m glad we decided to forgo a few beach hours and explore a part of Sarasota that I never knew existed.

What do you guys think of the museum? I think it’s wonderful incorporating both indoor and outdoor exhibits. 

xx Kelly