Art Colony Parlor

Although used throughout the day, the parlor was especially active during the evenings. The artists moved into the parlor after dinner to continue their boisterous conversations. Here they entertained themselves with spelling bees, card games (primarily poker and bridge), and impromptu theatrics. On occasion, they tested each other’s artistic skills by playing the wiggle game, an artful competition to see who could best incorporate three “wiggles” on a piece of paper into a complete and often humorous drawing.

“The parlor is over-crowded with curios and antiques and the walls in the hall, as well as in the parlor, are hung with pictures—the work of these painters who regularly, each year, make Lyme a habit.” 

~ Travel Writer Clara Walker Whiteside, 1926

Homespun musicales with Miss Florence at the piano and boarders playing the organ, flute, and mandolin were common. Miss Florence’s harp, a treasure brought back from London by her father, was unfortunately silent by 1910, accidentally damaged and stringless. Nevertheless it recalled the elegance and grace of an earlier time.

Piano niche in Art Colony Parlor, 2006
Photograph by Joseph Standart

Learn more about the inside of the Griswold boardinghouse by clicking the choices below:

• Overview
• Bedroom
• Center Hall
• Colony Parlor
• Miss Florence's Bedroom
• Pantry / Back Hall
• Dining Room