Hallelujah!

My third and final blog post concerning our recent visit to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, will focus primarily on their tremendous Folk Art collection.  But before I get to that, I want to highlight two other pieces from their permanent collection that literally took my breath away.

The first piece is this white marble sculpture of Rebekah (Isaac's wife from the Book of Genesis) titled: The Veiled Rebekah.  It’s gorgeous!  How anyone can carve a rock to look like a woman wearing a sheer veil is beyond me.  Phenomenal. 

The Veiled Rebekah by Giovanni Maria Benzoni

The second piece (also a sculpture) is a stainless steel, concave dish titled: Untitled, who’s surface is patterned with fractured triangular reliefs.  I loved walking past the dish and watching the reflection of the hardwood floor trickle over the surface of the metal.  It was kind of mesmerizing! 

Untitled by Anish Kapoor

Admittedly, I kind of hurried through the European and American Art collections so I could get up to the Folk Art collection and begin drooling on myself.  The High strongly supports folk and self-taught artists from the South and it’s the only general museum in North America which has a full-time curator dedicated to folk and self-taught art.  At nearly 800 pieces, it’s easy to see why!

My favorite piece was a carved wooden church door painted by Herbert Singleton to depict the events of a New Orleans jazz funeral.  Complete with mourners, gravediggers, angels and Jesus greeting the soul of the departed in his afterlife, as well as musicians, buck jumpers and line dancers, the celebration of life (as carried-out by the Cajun culture of New Orleanians) is clearly illustrated.

Hallelujah Door by Herbert Singleton

See more images after the jump!

The Kitchen to Campbell's Soup Cans

Although there were several remarkable works of art showcased in the Picasso to Warhol exhibit at the High Museum of Art, one of the most charming things I saw while there a couple of weeks ago, was this little boy sitting on the floor in front of a Picasso, sketching away on his pad of paper.  In a sea of giant art-goers, this kid blocked-out all of the commotion around him and focused on the task at hand – reproducing the intricate maze of lines on the painted canvas in front of him.  If that kind of concentration could be bottled, I’d accomplish a hell of a lot more!

Fixated on The Kitchen by Picasso.

But hands down, the most impressive installation was Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans.  32 canvases, each depicting a variety of Campbell’s soup offered at the time (1962) were hung neatly in two long rows.  The paintings are among Warhol’s first silkscreened productions and are easily some of the most recognizable works of pop art.  Mind you, I’m a sucker for repetition (and pop art) so this wall of soup cans truly took my breath away. 

Campbell's Soup Cans by Andy Warhol

If you’re going to be in or around Atlanta this weekend, the museum is partnering with the Atlanta Community Food Bank and the Campbell Soup Company and will be holding a canned food drive.  Canned Food Drive at the High will be running this Friday (Jan. 27) through Sunday (Jan 29).  For every can you donate, you’ll receive $1 off the price of admission, up to 10 cans!

It's "High" Time We See Some Art!

A couple of weeks ago, Josh and I finally ventured out of the suburbs and made it down to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta.  I really wanted to see the Picasso to Warhol exhibit, but I also hadn’t been to the High since the completion of the expansion designed by Renzo Piano in 2002.  Josh had never been there, so a visit to the museum was very much in order!  Over the next week, I’ll highlight a few of my favorite pieces...

One of the first works of art you encounter is House III, located prominently in the Museum’s outdoor sculpture garden.  House III is one in a series of House Sculptures created by American pop artists, Roy Lichtenstein, between the years of 1992 and 1997.  The fun thing about this piece is that upon your approach, the painted aluminum structure appears as though it’s protruding toward you.  But as you continue walking along the path towards the museum, you realize the corner of the house is actually inverted.  If I had been using my brain, I would have shot a video to share. 

House III by Roy Lichtenstein

In the museum’s piazza, you pass the monumental sculpture Companion, created by the Brooklyn-based artist, Brian Donnelly (aka KAWS), which represents just one of the many subjects he has distorted from familiar pop culture icons.  Part Mickey Mouse, part skull and cross bones, the cartoonish gray-scale sculpture is posed in a way reminiscent of Rodin’s The Thinker.

Companion by KAWS

If you’re into his work, be sure to check out the upcoming KAWS exhibition: Down Time (February 18 – May 20, 2012) at the High.