Pop Art with Andy Warhol at the Center for the Arts at Bonita Springs

What do you think of when you hear the name "Andy Warhol"?   Most likely, it's a silkscreen painting of Marilyn or Campbell's soup cans.  But there's more to the art of Andy Warhol than these iconic images.  The Warhol exhibit that's on through January 5th at the Bonita Springs Center for the Arts, while small, is a great introduction to the world of Warhol's work and has some cool photos to boot.

One of my favorite parts of the exhibit features Warhol's faux cookbook, "Wild Raspberries," that he self-published in 1959 with socialite Suzie Frankfurt.  Frankfurt had seen Warhol's whimsical paintings on display at Serendipity and sought him out to make his acquaintance.  They became buddies, and when Suzie suggested that they put together a cookbook for people who don't cook, Warhol was all for it.  A mere 34 copies of "Wild Raspberries" were put together, with Warhol doing the illustrations, Frankfurt creating the recipes, Mrs. Warhola (Andy's mom, whom he still lived with in a fourth floor walk-up) penning the recipes, and a variety of people coloring in the illustrations.  The recipe for Piglet reads, "Contact Trader Vic's and order a 40 pound suckling pig to serve 15.  Have Hanley take the Carey Cadillac to the side entrance to receive the pig at exactly 6:45.  Rush home immediately and place on the open spit for 50 minutes.  Remove and garnish with fresh crab apples."  Voila!  The cookbook was mass produced in the late '90s (which I'm sure Warhol would have endorsed wholeheartedly), and the exhibit has both a copy of the book to peruse and a couple of the original illustrations on display.  As an aside, some of these illustrations came up for auction a few years back and, for a nanosecond, I was one of the bidders.    At $17.50, the book is much more in my price range than the illustrations were.

The exhibit has narratives along the way that cover the varied phases of Warhol's career, from Andy & His Dreams to Matinee Idols to Toy Paintings to the Silver Factory to Polaroids & Portraits.  The Factory was Andy's name for his  New York studio for over two decades, and he envisioned it as a "salon in which everyone had their fifteen minutes."  (Valerie Solanas, a radical feminist who was one of the Factory regulars, got her fifteen minutes when she shot Warhol because she thought that he was in cahoots with a publisher to steal her SCUM Manifesto.  "SCUM" is reported to have been an acronym for the Society for Cutting Up Men. )  Artists and musicians of all sorts hung out there, including Lou Reed, and  the people mentioned in Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side" were all part of the Factory scene.  Once Warhol began making his silkscreen paintings, his studio became a true factory where his works were mass produced in the same way that corporate America mass produces its wares.

All in all, the exhibit was well worth the trip to Bonita Springs.  Not only is it great fun, but it also was a perfect prelude to my visit to New York next week where one of my stops will be the Met to see "Regarding Warhol:  Sixty Artists, Fifty Years."  The exhibit is a juxtaposition of 45 Warhol works with 100 works by 60 artists who were inspired by those works and promises to be quite interesting.   Watch this space for my report.

Being Thankful

I generally don't write about multiple outings to the same place or event.  There's way too much going on here for that!  But the Yoga Sanctuary's annual Being Thankful event at Worden Farm is just too special not to share.  And really, can we ever be too thankful for the abundance in our lives?

Yoga Sanctuary folks

The gang from the Yoga Sanctuary greeted Stephanie, Susan, and me as we pulled our mats from the car and got ourselves situated on the field.  It was a beautiful day after a morning that threatened some rain, and as we laid on our mats waiting for the class to start, the wind blew beautiful clouds across the sky.  I was in the zone before I uttered my first "om"!

I know I've said it before, but there's really nothing like doing yoga in the great outdoors.  Jen led us through a practice that left me feeling one with the world.  Her exhortation to root our feet took on a different meaning with the soil beneath them rather than a classroom floor.  The breeze came up on cue as we assumed tree pose, prompting her to tell us to experience the wind flowing through the branches of our trees.

Steph and I enjoying our tomatoes

After the practice, Eva Worden took us on an incredible tour of the farm, which is situated on 85 acres of land.  She talked about their vision of the farm as part of an ecosystem that includes the community of people who enjoy its harvest.  We picked cherry tomatoes off the vine and popped them into our mouths.  They were as sweet as candy.

Okra on the vine

 As we walked around some of the 20 fields, we learned that each bed has two to three cycles of crops each season.  We saw the greenhouses where little broccoli seeds are nurtured for about six weeks until they are hearty enough to be transplanted into the field.  We learned that okra is a high maintenance crop that has to be picked every two to three days.  We met one of the goats whose milk is made into cheese products that farm members have the opportunity to purchase. (Worden Farm is a co-op of sorts and its members can either go to the farm each week to select their produce or have a box of vegetables delivered to a central location and pick it up there.  Sadly, Worden Farm will not be operating its farmers' market at Fisherman's Village this year so Punta Gorda residents who want to enjoy the Farm's produce will have to become members.)

The event was a benefit for the Good Samaritans of Charlotte County, and I'd be remiss not to say a little bit about their mission.  The Good Samaritans provide emergency assistance to residents of Charlotte County who find themselves struggling as a result of a lay-off, an illness, or the high cost of prescription drugs.  The organization operates a food pantry five days a week (which, during the season, includes fresh vegetables from Worden Farm) and offers financial assistance with utilities.  Thanks to a new partnership with Kay's Kloset, the program now also provides clothing to those in need.  It's yet another example of the good work that people are doing in this community.

We left the Farm feeling good inside and out.  It was a great way to prepare ourselves not only for Thanksgiving but for the holiday season.  It's all too easy to get caught up in the parties and the presents and forget that what makes the holidays special is spending time with friends and family (even if there aren't any chestnuts roasting over an open fire).    May your holidays be merry and bright.    

Butterflies are Free

Emila, Dorrit and Maggie

 Going to a butterfly conservatory has never been high on my "to do" list.  (In fact, I think it would be accurate to say that I never knew such a thing existed!)  But an incredibly inexpensive opportunity landed in my in-box (compliments of Groupon) so with a little prodding from Dorrit we were off on an adventure to Butterfly Estates in Fort Myers. 

We all probably vaguely remember learning about the metamorphosis that a butterfly goes through before it gets to its winged adult state.   At Butterfly Estates we got to see all phases of the butterfly's life.   We saw a zebra butterfly lighting on a bush to lay its yellow eggs that are no bigger than a pinpoint.  (We learned that when a butterfly is selecting where it wants to lay its eggs, it first tastes the host plant with its feet.)  From the eggs come the caterpillars, which are quite striking.  (Did you know that a caterpillar is actually considered an adult butterfly?  The technical distinction is between a butterfly and a winged butterfly.)  After shedding its skin numerous times, the butterfly spins its chrysalis.  Each butterfly's chrysalis is quite different and you often have to look carefully to find them.  We saw one chrysalis that looked exactly like a little three pronged leaf that was tucked away in the middle of a bush; another was a green oblong shape hanging on a defoliated tree that looked alot like a delicate Christmas tree ornament.

Monarch butterfly

When it's time for the butterfly to emerge from its chrysalis, its legs pop out first.  Then its body comes out, which is filled with fluid.  Last but not least are its wings.  The butterfly pumps its wings for a few seconds in order to dry them off and then it sets about the task of finding another butterfly to mate with.  (Since most butterflies live only about two weeks, they are very mission driven.)   Butterfly Estates maintains a few "butterfly castles" (basically aerated see-through bags similar to what you might store your clothes in under the bed) where caterpillars have spun their chyrsalides.  Each Friday afternoon they host a butterfly release at which the newly emerged butterflies are liberated into the conservatory.  During the release on our visit, two of the butterflies had already gotten down to business and were not the least bit disturbed by our docent moving them out of their castle onto the soil. Apparently butterflies tend to stay together for a few hours once they have mated, flying around and checking out their environment.  In butterfly years, this constitutes a major commitment.

Zebra butterfly

Butterfly Estates hosts only local species of butterflies. The zebra is the state butterfly of Florida, and we saw lots of them on our outing.  Perhaps one reason Florida selected the zebra for this designation is that it can live up to a full year.  This is because the zebra nectars differently than other butterflies.  (Yes, I just used "nectar" as a verb.  You learn something every day.)   

Nathaniel Hawthorne said, "Happiness is a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp but which, if you sit down quietly, may alight upon you."   As the season heats up in Southwest Florida, it's a nice reminder to take time out for simple pleasures. 

Charlotte Symphony Orchestra Plays the Dating Game

Long before "The Bachelor" became a prime time staple, TV audiences enjoyed watching "The Dating Game."  A young woman had the chance to ask three prospective dates probing questions to determine which one would be the lucky fellow who got to have dinner with her.  This analogy came to mind as I was thinking about this year's Charlotte Symphony Orchestra season with its three guest conductors vying for the position as the CSO's new maestro.  The analogy is more apt than you might think.   Katherine Caldwell, who has hosted pre-concert lectures for the past nine years, is using her forum this season to interview the guest conductor for that evening's performance.  Each candidate will answer the same questions, giving the audience an opportunity to learn more about him, his vision, and the approach that he would bring to the role of maestro of the CSO.   (The questions have been sent to the candidates in advance so they will have had the opportunity to consider their responses.)

Roderick MacDonald is the season's first guest conductor, so he was the first one on Katherine's hot seat.  "What attracted you to this position and why would you want to come here?"  "What would your short-term plan and long-term vision be for the CSO?  What strategies would you use to implement those plans and vision?" "How would you juggle the position as maestro of the CSO with your other responsibilities?"  And, of course, "What can you tell us about tonight's music?"

MacDonald had clearly given substantial thought to the questions that he'd be asked, and his responses were quite interesting.  His plan and vision for the CSO would be to continue to build its audience through the development of interesting programming.  His goal would be for the CSO to be recognized nationally both for its programming and as a model for orchestras in this size community.  His vision also includes educating the audience of tomorrow, and he would like to introduce the symphony to that audience by bringing performances (perhaps in the form of a chamber orchestra) into the schools.  MacDonald spoke a fair bit about the role of the maestro in fundraising, a reality in today's world.  He has some experience in this arena.  Each year since 2000, MacDonald has worked with the Leipziger Philharmoniker in Germany to raise funds for a local children's cancer clinic.  These concerts have raised more than $1MM to purchase equipment for the clinic and to provide financial support for the families of sick children, and MacDonald's passion for this project was apparent.

When talking about the evening's music, MacDonald was upfront about the fact that he chose pieces that he thought would both excite the audience and provide him with the opportunity to showcase his leadership as a conductor.  MacDonald is a musician himself--he serves now as Associate Professor of Trumpet at SUNY-Fredonia--and brings that perspective to his conducting.  When he puts down his trumpet and picks up his baton, he views the orchestra as his instrument.   He talked about the challenges of conducting Brahms' Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra in A Minor, Op. 102 (also known as the Double Concerto), as he has to follow the soloists while leading the rest of the orchestra.  MacDonald promised that the evening's music would show off the CSO's musicians and "present their instruments on a platter." And with that, it was showtime!

Without doubt, the high point of the evening was the Brahms' Double Concerto featuring concertmaster Stewart Kitts on violin and Lyle Lamboley on cello.  The first notes uttered by Lamboley's cello were haunting and exciting with their foreshadowing of the music to come.  Kitts stood throughout the piece, which suited him well as he nearly levitates from his seat when he performs.  Both musicians gave top notch performances, and the audience couldn't resist the urge to clap at the end of the first movement despite admonitions to wait until the Concerto was complete.   Throughout the Concerto, the conversation between the violin and the cello was quite compelling, with the orchestra itself playing an important role in the dialogue.  Brahms is perhaps best known for his lullabies, but there was no way any audience member was sleeping through this performance, and at the end of the Concerto, the crowd rose for a standing ovation. 

MacDonald's selection for the second half of the show was Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade Op. 35.  This piece would have benefited from an introduction and an explanation of the narration between movements (given by CSO's incoming Executive Director Regina Buckley).  Scheherazade was the narrator of "One Thousand and One Nights" (known more informally as the "Arabian Nights"), a collection of stories she wove for her husband the king in order to forestall her execution.  The legends of Sinbad the Sailor, Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves, and Aladdin and his magic lamp all come from Scheherazade's tales, and each movement was a musical counterpart to one of these stories.  The Sea and Sinbad's Ship brought to mind images of crashing waves with periodic moments of sunshine and calm. The exotic Story of the Kalendar Prince yielded solos for a number of wind players.  The romantic Young Prince and Princess provided an opportunity for the harpist to perform.  And Festival at Baghdad.  The Sea.  The Ship Breaks Against a Cliff Surmounted by a Bronze Horseman once again showcased Stewart Kitts and his violin.  (As a side note, two of Kitts' daughters also played the violin in the concert.)  Despite some nice moments, the Opus felt a bit disjointed, and it would have been helpful if the narrator's stories introduced the relevant movement rather than closing the movement out.

As the applause was dying down and people were starting to rise from their seats, MacDonald and the CSO treated the audience to a surprise encore in the form of Brahms' Hungarian Dance No. 1.  It was an upbeat ending to the evening's performance by, as Maestro Wada always says, "OUR symphony orchestra." 

Note:  This article was published in Florida Weekly.  

Monet: Impressionism on Trial by Larry Stewart

Playwright Larry Stewart

Once again, I'm struck by the amount of talent there is in our little community.  When Larry Stewart heard that this year's Fine Arts Festival was featuring the works of Monet, he asked the Visual Arts Center if he could write a play to be performed as part of the Festival.  Of course!  Larry started doing a bit of research and decided to build his play around the controversy over whether to include Monet's work in the Official Salon of Paris.  The issue received a lot of media coverage at the time, so Larry decided to use a media mogul and his family as his protagonists.   When we meet our characters, the media mogul's son is buying a painting from Monet to give his father on the occasion of his 70th birthday.   Chaos and controversy ensue, and at the end of the day, Monet's work is granted admission to the Salon.   (The Official Salon of 1865 did in fact exhibit two seascapes of the Seine estuary painted by Monet.)

The evening was fun from start to finish.  Narrator Jerry O'Halloran warmed up the audience with lots of bad puns using artists' names.  (There was a piggy bank with a ribbon on his podium, and he somehow missed the opportunity to include a joke about "counting the Monet.")   He held up signs encouraging the audience to boo and hiss and clap along the way, and we were all too happy to comply.   

Bob Sween as Monet

Larry is a member of the Isles Yacht Club, and the cast and crew for the play were by and large folks from the Club.  Knowing the actors added another layer of fun to the show.  Bob Sween did a great job as Monet (and the audience got a good laugh when the set was changed during scenes and we saw his lines written on the easel).  Jim Nuzzo was a natural as the earnest reporter son of the media mogul (played by Ford Cooper).  Blaire Lovejoy (who has legitimate theater experience with the Charlotte Players) played the mogul's trophy wife, and entertained the crowd with her take on Marilyn Monroe's infamous "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" when it was time to sing happy birthday to her husband.  And Avice Sunter and Jay Stuart were terrific as Parisian newsboys tasked with reading some reviews from La Monde about Monet's work.  (There seems to have been a contingent that thought that Monet's painting was done by a child and that Monet was trying to pull a fast one.)

Avice Sunter and Jay Stuart

The play was both educational and entertaining.  Did you know that Monet served in the military in Algiers in 1861?   Ever the artist, Monet managed to paint during his conscription, engaging in an early study of light.  The press clippings that were read throughout the evening gave us a glimpse into the passion on both sides of the debate as to whether Monet was a legitimate artist or not.  Louis Leroy, one of the art critics of the day, is quoted as having said, "Wallpaper in its embryonic state is more finished that [Monet's] seascape."  Tell us how you really feel, Louie!

Larry peppered the dialogue with local references that had the crowd alternately laughing and groaning.  He managed to work in the SlipKnot, the Perfect Caper and the ubiquitous "It's huge, Caroline, huge" ads.  (If I never see another one of those, it will be too soon.)

All in all, it was a fun evening.  Who cares that the actors stumbled a bit over their lines?  It added to the frivolity of the evening.  I, for one, give everyone who was involved enormous credit for putting on a great show. 

Learning with Liz: Monet and his Life

Liz Hutchinson's Summer in Giverny

It's hard to imagine a better person than Liz Hutchinson to give a talk about Monet.  For ten years, Liz was the Assistant Instructor at ArtStudy/Giverny, a program designed to give artists and photographers the opportunity to work daily in Monet's gardens and the surrounding village and countryside.   Having spent an afternoon in Giverny many years ago, I still remember its beauty and the excitement I felt at seeing Monet's home and the waterlilies and the Japanese bridge that grace so many of his paintings. I can only imagine what a special experience it would be for an artist to have the chance to work there on an extended basis.  What better way to get a sense of the role light plays in Monet's art than to live in his world 24/7?

It was fun to sit in on her talk and pretend that I was back in school in an art history class.  Liz started off with a brief explanation of her tie and shoes (which are both works of Impressionism in their own right).  When Liz completed the mural for the Festival, she had some paint left over.  Why not use it to create some works of wearable art???  Talk about having joie de vivre!!!

Ed Kosiewiez' Petit Pantheon Theatral

Liz shared some tidbits about Monet that I don't remember ever hearing before.  Did you know that some of his first works of art were caricatures?  I was quite curious when I saw this drawing in the exhibit since it doesn't exactly cry out "Monet."  It was created by Monet when he was a mere 20 years old.  Even at this early stage in his career, Monet couldn't quite bring himself to work in the genre of realism that ruled the day.

Liz also shared that Monet was quite the control freak.  (Her words were a bit more gentle than that, but that's what I came away with.)  Once he moved to Giverny (with his mistress, two children and six stepchildren), Monet painstakingly developed the vision of his gardens and was heavily involved in their planting and maintenance.   I have the image of him physically building the Japanese bridge and setting the waterlilies just so in the pond.  While this characteristic might not have made him much fun to live with, I can't complain about its results. 

Jo Moorer's Impressions Sunrise

The work that gave rise to the term "Impressionism" was a painting that Monet named on the spot when asked about it. I envision the conversation as something like, "What do you call that?  You can't even tell what it is!" "I don't know--Impressions Sunrise?"   The name stuck and jokes abounded that Monet couldn't paint the real thing so he painted impressions instead.  We all know who got the last laugh.  

Celebrating Monet at the Visual Arts Center

Sylvia Foy's Regatta at Argenteuil

When I went away to college, it was the first chance I had to decorate my room to reflect my own style and personality.  (Sure, I had that poster of Bette Midler in "The Rose" in my room at home, but that was just my admittedly lame attempt at being cool.)  Mount Holyoke had a fair at the student union before classes started where. among other things, you could purchase posters to adorn your dorm walls.  I proudly selected a print of a Monet painting for my room--one of the Argenteuil series if my memory serves.  It made me happy and I felt one step closer to seeing some of the art in person that I had fallen in love with in my high school humanities class.   So Monet has always held a special place in my heart.  Needless to say, I was excited to find out that this year's Fine Arts Festival at the Visual Arts Center is a celebration of Monet's life and work.  If the response to the Festival so far is any indication, I'm in good company. 

Liz Hutchinson's Festival Mural

The Festival started with a ribbon cutting ceremony at which Liz Hutchinson's mural featuring Monet and his beloved waterlilies was unveiled.  Champagne flowed (really!) and people shared notes about the events they were planning to attend.  I am particularly sorry that I won't be able to go to the French bistro-style cooking class, which sold out almost as soon as it was announced.

Lena Dallas' Chemin dans les Bles a Pourville

It was fun to walk around the gallery and take a look at the 140 "Monets" that our local artists have created.  I give these artists a lot of credit as I can't imagine how intimidating it would be to replicate the work of one of the world's favorite artists.  They were up to the task, though, and the exhibit is a pleasure.  As I was circling the room, I noticed some little girls running up to one of the paintings with a bit of extra excitement.   What was causing this stir?  It turns out that the painting was done not by one of their parents or a family friend but by their ten year old sister, Lena Dallas.  Let me just reiterate--a ten year old budding artist painted this work.  Lena was a student at the VAC's summer camp and it took her about 2 1/2 weeks to do.  I asked her how she chose this picture to replicate and she told me that she just looked at a bunch of Monet paintings on the internet and picked this one because it was bright and happy.   You go, girl! 

Andrea Piedmonte's Windmill at Zaandam

 The Festival was off to a great start.  I've already had the chance to attend a couple of the 15 events that are being held this month--Liz Hutchinson's lecture about Monet and Larry Stewart's original play "Monet: Impressionism on Trial"--and will share those experiences separately.   Take a peek at the schedule (http://www.visualartcenter.org/special-events) to see what piques your interest.  There's something for everyone.  Hats (or should I say berets?) off to Carolyn and Tom Hamilton and the Visual Arts Center for bringing this fun Festival to our community. 

Blown Away by the Barnes

Visiting the Barnes Foundation is the equivalent for art lovers of being a kid in a candy shop.  When I stepped into the first room, my jaw literally dropped as my mind attempted to take in all of the masterworks before me.  There's Matisse's mural Dance of Life that was commissioned by Dr. Barnes for his collection.  There's Picasso's pre-Cubist painting Peasants that shows El Greco's influence on his early work.  There's Manet's The Card Players (a painting that some estimate is worth over $500MM) and Seurat's The Poseurs (models) with a portion of Sunday Afternoon on the Island of Grande Jatte in the background.   Much to my surprise, there was a painting by Glackens called The Bathing Hour, Chester, Nova Scotia.  (Althea actually noticed it first and remembered her kids swimming there when they came to visit.)  These are just a few of the 334 objects in the room. 

I use the term "objects" rather than "works of art" because Dr. Barnes carefully crafted the way his paintings are displayed, surrounding them with metal works, furniture, and ceramics that mimic the lines or feeling of the paintings.  Each of the 20+ rooms contains several "ensembles" of works that have been faithfully replicated from the Barnes Foundation's prior home in Merion, Pennsylvania where Barnes organized his collection.  Rather than displaying works in the traditional manner of museums, Barnes saw his art in terms of light, line, color, and space, and these themes are played out throughout the Foundation.  With the help of the descriptions on the audio tape, Althea and I began to understand some of the connections among the objects.

There were not any signs saying photography was not permitted but there also weren't any people taking pictures. I furtively took a couple of shots in order to share some of Dr. Barnes' collection and vision.  This picture shows a portion of an ensemble built around Renoir's Leaving the Conservatory.  (This is one of the 181 Renoirs in Barnes' collection!) Although Barnes primarily collected post-Impressionistic and early modern art, he also purchased African masks, Native American jewelry, and other works like these medieval religious paintings that don't immediately seem to fit in.  On closer inspection, though, you can see that the compositions of the paintings to each side of the Renoir mimic the composition of the subjects leaving the concert.  The three arches in the Pennsylvania Dutch chest are consistent with the composition as well, and the scrolls in the metal works cap the ensemble off nicely.

One of our favorite ensembles features Gauguin's Haere Pape as its centerpiece.  (You can take a peek at any of the works by going to the Foundation's website and scrolling through the works by artist.  Just go to http://www.barnesfoundation.org/collections/art-collection/artists-a-z/.)  Gaugin's painting features a half naked Tahitian woman on a beach of coral sand.  Each end of the ensemble features one of Renoir's fleshy nudes whose pink tones are on a continuum of the coral in the Gauguin painting.  Below each Renoir is an antique chair just waiting for the nude to take a load off and sit her lush behind down.  And above each Renoir is a scalloped metal work with lines that echo those of the nudes.

It is truly impossible to describe what an amazing--and exhausting--experience it is to be in the midst of such an incredible amount of masterpieces.  You could easily spend hours in each room enjoying the art and the nuances of the ensembles.  By the time we climbed the stairs to the second floor, our eyes had glazed over a bit, and we both would like to start the tour in the upstairs rooms on our next visit.   Among other things, the upstairs rooms had a number of works by Modigliani (one of my favorite artists), including Reclining Nude from the Back and Matisse's Joy of Life.

When you have a collection that is as important and valuable as that of the Barnes Foundation, there is bound to be some controversy.  Dr. Barnes grew up on the wrong side of the tracks in Philadelphia and never embraced the Main Line mentality despite the vast wealth that he amassed.  (Barnes invented Argyrol, an eye drop that all infants were given upon birth to ward off venereal disease.)  He envisioned his art as an educational tool for the every man instead of a collection to be housed in a museum where only the elite would view it.  His will specifically stated that none of the works were ever to be lent or sold; if you wanted to see them, you had to visit them within his established parameters.  If you're interested in the story of how the Barnes Foundation ended up in downtown Philadelphia (just a stone's throw from the Philadelphia Museum of Art that Barnes despised), check out "The Art of the Steal" on Netflix.  This enthralling documentary tells about the legal shenanigans that were involved in the move, as well as Barnes' anathema towards the Annenberg family (of publishing fame) that made me shake my head when I saw the Annenberg wing at the Foundation's new home. 

A trip to the Barnes should be on every art lover's  bucket list.  Advance tickets are a must (as are comfortable shoes!)   Once you've made your pilgrimage, I am willing to bet that you, like me, will want to return time and time again.