Two Weekends in Wisconsin (Part 2)
Or, House on the Rock: premier weird-ass tourist attraction in the nation
or the creepiest and/or campiest house of horrors in the world?
Our second foray into Wisconsin was a weekend jaunt to Madison, where we did a lot of strolling, shopping, and pub-grub sampling. And where Jeff purchase a lovely new mandolin... but on the way we simply HAD to visit HOTR yet again. Now, you can read about and see photos of an earlier foray to this uber wonder cabinet in this blog's November 2007 archives (although I note that Photobucket has taken it upon themselves to deem some of the naked statuary depicted therein to violate their code of decency... go figure!), so I won't take you through yet another tour. This time I'd like to discuss this attraction in terms of the macabre: If you observe the details (and there are hundreds of thousands to observe), you will have to admit that it is a very spooky place.
First off, it's very dark throughout. I think in the house proper that this serves several purposes. It lends an air of rustic serenity.
For example, this seating area. The thick slabs of tempered glass set horizontally in the wall are one of my favorite design features in the place. I would love to have something like this in my home, honestly. And yet, if you take the same picture with a flash, the whole feel of it is lost. It's just garish (not that being garish isn't part and parcel of HOTR--oh, it very much is!--but not here in the house portion... well, not so much).
In addition, the house portion of the tour has a number of Tiffany and other stained glass lamps on display, and the general gloom of the living area highlights the jewel-like glow of these fixtures quite nicely.
And then, of course, there is the cobwebby state of the place in general--more light would require a much, much larger cleaning staff. Or a cleaning staff to begin with.
Once you have made your way through the original house and into the maw of the display buildings, the gloom only increases. This allows items that would be cute and colorful in more brightly lit display situation to appear incongruously sinister. Case in point:
Shudder!
Of course, the Streets of Yesteryear are "gaslit" and, of course, very dark. All the better to highlight the somber moving tableaux that beckon for your tokens throughout.
The Drunkard's Death
The Death of the Miser
I don't recall what this one is called--something to do with a magician, I think--but it's creepy, don't you agree?
Then there's the overwhelming Heritage of the Seas display with its huge sea monsters battling to the death in the past-twilight darkness, surrounded by ever-mounting catwalks.
But even so the nautical displays, which consist of ship models of all sorts and lots of scrimshaw and memorabilia, can't escape the subtle (or not so subtle) creepitude that permeates the place:
Nothing enhances a detailed scale model of a battleship better than a hovering sailor's torso!
This theme recurs throughout the attraction. Even in the nostalgic 40s-era cafe in the Spirit of Aviation exhibit, we encounter the disembodied:
What's with that guy peering out from the kitchen?
Then there are the creepy dolls just about EVERYWHERE.
Not to mention that the place has not one, but TWO whole carousels of dead-eyed, staring DOLLS.
Penny arcade attractions such as this one abound throughout:
Note the disembodied arm atop this treasure...
Don't get me wrong--I LOVE this aspect of the House on the Rock. I love it that in among the opulent (if, yes, dark)
the nostalgic
and the oddly fanciful
there are also things such this seemingly abandoned tzotchke-mobile
and this
and THIS
All of which makes a sign like this one
make me wonder: Do they actually realize where this guy's true genius lay?
or the creepiest and/or campiest house of horrors in the world?
Our second foray into Wisconsin was a weekend jaunt to Madison, where we did a lot of strolling, shopping, and pub-grub sampling. And where Jeff purchase a lovely new mandolin... but on the way we simply HAD to visit HOTR yet again. Now, you can read about and see photos of an earlier foray to this uber wonder cabinet in this blog's November 2007 archives (although I note that Photobucket has taken it upon themselves to deem some of the naked statuary depicted therein to violate their code of decency... go figure!), so I won't take you through yet another tour. This time I'd like to discuss this attraction in terms of the macabre: If you observe the details (and there are hundreds of thousands to observe), you will have to admit that it is a very spooky place.
First off, it's very dark throughout. I think in the house proper that this serves several purposes. It lends an air of rustic serenity.
For example, this seating area. The thick slabs of tempered glass set horizontally in the wall are one of my favorite design features in the place. I would love to have something like this in my home, honestly. And yet, if you take the same picture with a flash, the whole feel of it is lost. It's just garish (not that being garish isn't part and parcel of HOTR--oh, it very much is!--but not here in the house portion... well, not so much).
In addition, the house portion of the tour has a number of Tiffany and other stained glass lamps on display, and the general gloom of the living area highlights the jewel-like glow of these fixtures quite nicely.
And then, of course, there is the cobwebby state of the place in general--more light would require a much, much larger cleaning staff. Or a cleaning staff to begin with.
Once you have made your way through the original house and into the maw of the display buildings, the gloom only increases. This allows items that would be cute and colorful in more brightly lit display situation to appear incongruously sinister. Case in point:
Shudder!
Of course, the Streets of Yesteryear are "gaslit" and, of course, very dark. All the better to highlight the somber moving tableaux that beckon for your tokens throughout.
The Drunkard's Death
The Death of the Miser
I don't recall what this one is called--something to do with a magician, I think--but it's creepy, don't you agree?
Then there's the overwhelming Heritage of the Seas display with its huge sea monsters battling to the death in the past-twilight darkness, surrounded by ever-mounting catwalks.
But even so the nautical displays, which consist of ship models of all sorts and lots of scrimshaw and memorabilia, can't escape the subtle (or not so subtle) creepitude that permeates the place:
Nothing enhances a detailed scale model of a battleship better than a hovering sailor's torso!
This theme recurs throughout the attraction. Even in the nostalgic 40s-era cafe in the Spirit of Aviation exhibit, we encounter the disembodied:
What's with that guy peering out from the kitchen?
Then there are the creepy dolls just about EVERYWHERE.
Not to mention that the place has not one, but TWO whole carousels of dead-eyed, staring DOLLS.
Penny arcade attractions such as this one abound throughout:
Note the disembodied arm atop this treasure...
Don't get me wrong--I LOVE this aspect of the House on the Rock. I love it that in among the opulent (if, yes, dark)
the nostalgic
and the oddly fanciful
there are also things such this seemingly abandoned tzotchke-mobile
and this
and THIS
All of which makes a sign like this one
make me wonder: Do they actually realize where this guy's true genius lay?
Labels: creepy dolls, House on the Rock, roadside attractions, skeery marionettes, Wisconsin
posted by Cathy VanPatten at 12:42 PM
3 Comments:
This post made me laugh out loud - thank you, I needed that.
Have you ever been there? What a crazy place!
Glad I could lighten your mood--hang in there. Something will turn up!
I'm sure they DON'T know where his true genius lay!! They are probably too close to it to see the grander scale of the glorious insanity or are just afraid to look and admit it's there. 'Cause THEN what?!
GREAT photos, Cathy!! Must...go...back...
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