High Museum

For Valentine's day, I finally visited the High Museum in Atlanta. We were fortunate enough to visit when they were hosting both a collection from the Louvre, and Terracotta soldiers from the famous site in Shaanxi Province of China.

The current Louvre exhibit that was being show was en exercise in learning what makes a masterpiece. There were several fine pieces, and in some instances, interesting comparisons. It wasn't quite as interesting, surprisingly, as a similarly themed exhibit of Tiffany stained glass that I once saw at the Frist in Nashville. Still, I enjoy art of all but a some of the modern kind, and found it very interesting. The exhibit continues through September of 2009.

The Terracotta army was fascinating to me. Not only are these life sized soldiers part of one of the most impressive archaeological finds ever made, not only are they ancient pieces of art from one of the world's great civilizations, but they are part of an army of individuals. Through the interpretive displays, this exhibit explains both the different roles represented by the statues, and the way in which they were each built, much like cabbage patch dolls, such that, from a limited set of faces, hairstyles, etc, each piece was a different combination, and in the final details, are unique. Visiting displays like this are always a Catch-22 of sorts. Everyone wants to see them, but they want to see them alone. The site these soldiers originated from now has a solid place on my list of places to see, and I can only hope that in the most populous country in the world, the exhibit won't be as crowded. But despite the crowds, don't miss this. The exhibit closes April 19th.