Making the List

(photos courtesy of Bing.com)

As Sunday brought a close to the magnificent Dali exhibition at Atlanta's High Museum, along with the worst weather system we have seen here in decades, it is time to look ahead at what is next for the institution. At number 8 this month on Town & Country's list of "The Culture Top 10: What to do, see, hear, and read this month," is the upcoming Toulouse-Lautrec exhibition which can be found, "down South" at the High. T&C points out that the show opens on January 29 and features a selection of the artist's prints and drawings. Fortunately for the High, Dali closed as the first paralyzing snowflakes fell on Atlanta, and now there is ample time for the ice to melt before "Toulouse-Lautrec and Friends: The Stein Collection" goes on view.

The "friends" to be shown alongside the famous French artist are three other Frenchmen - Bonnard, Degas and Gauguin, sure to be a nice complement to his style. One reason for Lautrec's acclaim stems from the culture in which he lived. France during his lifetime, Paris more specifically, was experiencing growth and change, and Lautrec was deeply involved in a vibrant and eclectic social scene. The subjects of his works included the personalities he met in and around places such as the Moulin Rouge during the late 19th century. A favorite dancer of his whom he frequently depicted was Jane Avril, pictured in the first image found above. A few of the highlights that will be on view are Lautrec's lithographs which are very rare. Lithography, a printing technique which involves a flat stone or metal surface, became very popular during Lautrec's lifetime, mostly thanks to the artist himself and his contemporaries. Almost fifty of the works included in the show, which runs through May 1, were a gift of Irene and Howard Stein. A must-see for sure!