High Museum of Art — Attraction in Atlanta

#FirstFridays Review: More than just a night at the museum, First Fridays is a cultural explosion of art, entertainment, community, and positivity. An experience that is crafted to satisfy any craving, the First Friday in 2023 provided an experience that sets the tone for the rest of the year.

HIGH Frequency Friday brought together Atlanta’s favorite DJs presenting a cultural experience designed to raise the vibration. This month’s performances featured Ree de la Vega & Divoli S’vere, and VLSC. Truly a time!

Upon walking up, the line was longer than usual. Come to find out, the scanners were down, however, the wait wasn’t long as the museum had a manual process in place and ample staff coverage which kept the line moving. As I was in line I was able to experience the natural vibrations of the night. The line presented a multi-generational demographic brought together by the love for a good time.

Once inside it was time to pick your fun and flavor!

The Drink: The Drink of the Month was a White Juniper Mule: chardonnay, gin, peach schnapps, and ginger beer.

The Patio: The patio had more of a house vibe. It was a high energy environment of house music ranging from the 80’s, 90’s, and early 2000’s. With this there was more of a “Happy Hour” vibe to the crowd. People were mixing and mingling with each other as well as grouping with those they already know. This setting was perfect for those who wanted to mingle while partying.

Main Room: The main room presented a blended party environment. As musical selections of House, R&B, and blended sounds filled the air, the room displayed a dimmer lighting which embodied more of a “lounge” aesthetic. The room was a mix of singles and date-nighters who were ready to vibe in a way that was far from just a normal night out.

As you partied in the main room you were able to look up and see the walkways of the different exhibit halls. This added a layer of ambiance that allowed you to add a narrative to the night as you smiled and waved at the patrons on the different levels.

No Drinks allowed in the gallery area

The Gallery: As always, the exhibit areas of the High are filled with beautiful visuals, history, and an abundance of conversation starters. The art presents a variety of artistic pleasure which allows you to get lost in the experience.

No matter your level of experience as it relates to art, High is a compounded experience that always satisfies one’s artistic craving.

**including Stephen Burks: Shelter in Place, Deana Lawson, Rodin in the United States: Confronting the Modern, and Monir Farmanfarmaian: A Mirror Garden.

The Drink and Draw: This was awesome. Outside of the normal area in one of the open rooms, 2 models posed as the patrons were provided paper and pencil and the time to draw while sipping. This was a full night of fun all by itself. The vibe was low-key, the lighting was positioned on the models along with just enough light throughout the room so you could draw. The energy was high yet warm at the same time. The host of this particular experience was amazing. He presented a smile that captured you and fashion that blew you away. Furthermore, there was an air of focus in the room that aided in the appreciation of the models and the artistic visual they provided for our viewing and drawing pleasure.

From the High: “Rodin’s The Thinker comes to life at this month’s Drink and Draw! Guided by our teaching artist Larkin Ford, learn how to capture the essence of our models through line and gesture drawing. Special guests Mo Stringer and Mr. Elle Aye.”

Overall, this was an amazing experience. The night is nothing short of fun and engaging. The ability to network, mingle, and engage is unmeasurable. Furthermore, the feeling of community is one of a kind.

If you haven’t been to a First Friday at the High yet, please add it to your To-Do-List asap. If you see me there make sure to tap me and let’s...

So I’ve been chasing the Yayoi Kasuma Infinity Mirrors exhibit since I missed it in DC. Originally I wanted to go on opening day as it was my birthday but has sold out. The exhibit actually opened 3 days earlier and I got tickets for Friday the 16th. Super glad I did.

The infinity mirrors exhibit was great. It was well worth the wait although some of the rules had change since at the Hirshorn (no sitting in the dot room and no pictures in the pumpkins exhibit).

After the exhibit I visited the museum. Ok, so most of the 4th floor, a good 80% is designated to African American artist. They had Kara Walker and I was immediately excited. I later ventured into a room that I wasn’t going to enter and it had s Basquiat bad Kehinde Wiley Painting. Both of which I had never seen.

They had an entire section on civil rights with a video that intertwined our culture and the oppression that we face by our oppressors. When walking into the area all you could here was chance the rapper and Kanye west blaring from the short video. The video made me cry and it was very emotional.

In the Stent which is a 4 floor staircase leading to the lobby. The top level called the penthouse was dedicated to African art. They featured a lot of art from the Kuba tribe from the DR of Congo. The Baltimore museum currently has an exhibition or Kuba textiles as well.

On Friday nights the museum stays open til 10 pm as they do jazz in the museum. That’s what made my visit so special. I got yo enjoy jazz while looking at art and sipping wine.

I had dinner in the restaurant at the museum. My food was great. I had Salmon and asparagus. The only downfall was they give you 3 asparagus. 🗣 Three asparagus’s. The bartender was really nice and brought out a free side of and additional 3 lol.

Ok so my favorite part of the entire trip was the Tommie Smith exhibit in the special gallery section. Google him if you don’t know who he is or look at my pictures. Being from DC I don’t like paying for museums and if I wasn’t going to the infinity mirrors exhibit I may have never came. I can’t really say that because I love museums. This was definitely...

Looking for a FREE family or date event!!! Well this is one of my favorites. I have enjoyed it so much that I took my daughter when she was still about 10 and she is 26 and my son since he was six months and now 8.

The High Museum of Atlanta offers FREE 3rd Saturdays of each month AND some Sundays (check their website for more details).

But this is DEFINITELY worth driving in circles on Peachtree waiting to get a FREE parking ( yes , I don’t like paying for lots of things lol)!! Luck 🍀 would have it, I have not paid for parking here, Ever ( knocking on good ol Georgia wood 🪵).

They have a handicap ramp for those taking strollers or elders.

There is a restaurant on the property and now food truck outside. Some things are expensive so normally I feed us before heading out and pack fruits and snacks. There are seatings outside the museum to take a break and eat. Don’t worry while sitting you will enjoy the various murals outside and off course some old school fun of people watching. And people are hilarious so you won’t be bored or think you’re missing anything by sitting inside. Don’t be in a hurry here!!

Kids can sign up for FREE to get a SMARTBOX (that blue box in all the pictures… we call it “his briefcase) that includes a notebook, pencil, coloring, and a small gift. We have many and now use it to store books, writing items etc in the backseat of my car and another we use to store in my son bathroom and it holds his lotions and sprays and even given some away. Very multi functional!!

They used to have more activities for the kiddos but they still had a section for hands on creatives and it served it’s purpose.

What I love most is the diversity of this museum, when we visited, the Samurai exhibit was displayed, but there were so many others like African, Europe, Spanish, etc…

I love this museum because it helps build a diverse dialogue that...