atlanta, georgia.

Well, here we go: first travel post! I’ve been pondering my blog format, and one of those elements is how to frame trips I take. There are already plenty of bloggers and websites that create excellent, comprehensive city guides (see Design*Sponge, Apartment Therapy, etc.). And there are people with more free time and larger budgets to dive deeper and try all the things. I’m going to keep my travel guides true to my way of adventuring, which usually is a healthy ratio of budget-friendly art and food to introvert-friendly downtime.

So, let’s kick things off with Atlanta! I bought tickets (along with about a million other people) months ago to see the Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors exhibition at the High Museum of Art. Apparently, people are arriving at 3:00 a.m. to have a chance to buy same-day tickets, so yeah, I’m glad I bought ahead. I love art, but I’m not at the wait-for-hours-outside-in-winter level of love.

I’m really glad I visited. The exhibition is one of those blends of art experience and cultural phenomena that I would have been disappointed to miss. I watched the documentary about Kusama’s life last fall – it gave me valuable context into her background and artistic practice and philosophy. I recommend it even if (especially if) you never see her work in person.

Before my trip, I knew how much attention (on social media in particular) this travelling show had received at every stop. Colleagues wondered how many people who visited this exhibition would ever set foot in a museum again. Would this experience make a difference in their future art consumption? Were they just there for the selfie?

I thought about this a lot during my experience. Many of my favorite works of art are accessible (like street art or public art) or participatory/interactive (e.g. Felix Gonzalez-Torres). Granted, I’m not an art historian or a curator – I’m coming from the perspective of more of a communicator/photographer/marketer type. Even so, I understand the value of limiting screen time and experiencing life beyond one’s phone. But I also believe that experiencing art is valuable, whatever the viewer’s original intent – we don’t know what fun or knowledge or new perspective they’ve taken away, how it will affect how they view the world, even subconsciously. Plus, taking photos and sharing experiences online creates an opening into a world for people who cannot visit themselves. And, finally, in regards to this artist in particular: Kusama wanted to be famous. Isn’t all of this social fandom playing into one of her own goals? At the end of this self-debate, I’ve decided that I’m an art-optimist with a populace preference (is that a thing?) and don’t mind the fanfare.

Final hot tip on Infinity Mirrors viewing: Two or three people go into each room at a time. Individuals aren’t allowed to go in alone. One attendant told me to ask if there are singles lines to queue into – it saved this solo viewer some time! Yes, I may have annoyed some couples, but that’s easy enough to do even if you aren’t in small, sparkly quarters together.

It had been about eight years since I visited the High, for this Salvador Dali exhibition. Of course, I had to wander other galleries – spending most of my time in the Modern and Contemporary Art and Contemporary Design level. I appreciated the marble sculptures as well, which are newer on my personal art-love radar. I always feel like I need to choose a few things I really want to see when I visit a museum; a kind of art fatigue sets in. I start hurrying and not paying attention if I try to do too much at once. Plus, to paraphrase my mother, if you see everything you want to see in one take, where’s the reason to go back?

Artist credits in image from front to back:
Chauncey Bradley Ives, Undine Rising from the Waters, after 1859, marble. Gift of the West Foundation in honor of Gudmund Vigtel and Michael E. Shapiro. 2010.67.
Chauncey Bradley Ives, Shepherd with a Kid, 1859, marble. Gift of the West Foundation in honor of Gudmund Vigtel and Michael E. Shapiro. 2010.66.
Thomas Ball, Love’s Memories, 1873, marble. Gift of the West Foundation in honor of Gudmund Vigtel and Michael E. Shapiro. 2010.55.

I hung out with a few favorite artists, including Frank Stella, Gerhard Richter, and Kara Walker. I discovered some new-to-me folks I want to learn more about, like Tejo Remy, Vernon Fisher, Florine Stettheimer, and Joseph Stella. I found out Robert Rauschenberg remade clay into the appearance of crushed cardboard, which serves as (I’m guessing) an inspiration point for a favorite ceramic artist of mine, Tim Kowalczyk. I also took photos of people and art together which is, you guessed it, another favorite thing to do. How many times can I use the word favorite in one paragraph? (Whispers favorite five times fast.)

Artist credits in image from left to right:
Robert Mangold, Four Color Frame Painting #1, 1983, acrylic and pencil on canvas, 111 x 105 inches. Purchase in honor of Karen Andrews, President of the Members Guild, 1994-1995, with funds from Alfred Austell Thornton in memory of Leila Austell Thornton and Albert Edward Thornton, Sr., and Sarah Miller Venable and William Hoyt Venable. 1994.141. © 2006 Robert Mangold/ Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Ellsworth Kelly, Red Curve VI, 1982, oil on canvas, 74 1/4 x 140 1/2 inches. Purchase with funds from Alfred Austell Thornton in memory of Leila Austell Thornton and Albert Edward Thornton, Sr., and Sarah Miller Venable and William Hoyt Venable and High Museum of Art Enhancement Fund. 2002.3. © Ellsworth Kelly Foundation.
Ellsworth Kelly, Green Curve, 1999, oil on canvas, 37 x 184 inches. Purchase with the Candler Bequest and High Museum of Art Enhancement Fund. 2001.12. © Ellsworth Kelly.
Michael Helzer, Eight Part Circle, 1976, wood, 13 x 44 1/2 x 12 1/4 inches. Gift in memory of Xavier Fourcade by exchange with the artist. 1994.14 a-h.

Okay. Enough art talk. What food I eat, you ask? I really enjoyed the matcha latte from Land of 1000 Hills. I did a juice grand slam (a baseball diamond of shots in order: wheatgrass, ginger, lemon, and cranberry) at Arden’s Garden. I was reunited with one of the great loves of my life, Jeni’s Ice Cream (where I went with Salty Caramel and Gooey Butter Cake). I resisted the croissant-as-big-as-my-face at Brash Coffee, but the coffee was great. I mean, I still had a pastry, just not a giant pastry. And finally, my hostess/friend Shelby (more on her in a minute), took me to one of her favorite Atlanta dinner spots: Tuk Tuk, where I could have eaten my weight in Roti and green curry.

What else did I do? Since Shelby is a fantastic photographer (proof here and here), we spent one afternoon with her graciously refreshing my manual photography knowledge and letting me try her lenses. Her cat served as model. We also visited all the cuties at the Atlanta Humane Society, and listened to a genius play the public piano outside of a movie theater, whom the ticket sales agent says comes once a week to practice and freestyle (see my saved Atlanta highlights on Instagram for that joy). Finally finally, I promise, we wandered shops for the aesthetics (East Fork Atlanta and Le Jardin Français – both so beautiful I could have melted into the ground and stayed forever) and samples (Savannah Bee Company honey, honey).

How’s that for a recap? Till next time, Atlanta!

All images © Lindsey Solomon; artwork credits listed.