Refreshed. Reimagined. Revealed.
Visit our reinstalled collection galleries for a new experience at the High Museum of Art. With old favorites, new acquisitions, and previously stored artworks now on view, the redesigned collections embrace growth and diversity while creating dynamic and engaging experiences for our visitors.
“We are thrilled to complete this project and debut the reimagined galleries. We cannot wait for our audiences to experience the High in a whole new way. As the Atlanta community and the Southeast have grown and changed in the years since the Museum’s expansion, so has our collection. Our new galleries recognize and reflect those changes and celebrate the diverse artistic achievements represented in our holdings, drawn from across the region and well beyond.” –Rand Suffolk, Nancy and Holcombe T. Green, Jr. Director, High Museum of Art
The reinstallation covers all seven of the High’s curatorial departments and highlights the collection’s growth since 2005 and key strengths while enhancing the visitor experience and improving accessibility throughout the High’s facilities. The Museum worked with internationally renowned architectural firm Selldorf Architects to complete all aspects of collection gallery design and renovation. Concurrent with the collection reinstallation, the Museum is doubling the footprint and completing a total redesign of the Greene Family Learning Gallery in collaboration with Roto design firm.
What to Expect
New Collection Galleries
Since the Museum’s expansion opened in 2005, the High has added more than 6,500 artworks to its collection, which now totals more than 17,000 objects. In an effort to feature the continual expansion of holdings across the Museum’s curatorial departments, we have not only allocated new galleries but also significantly reconfigured all curatorial departments and gallery spaces. Our renovated and redesigned galleries create new adjacencies and meaningful cross-departmental juxtapositions.
The reinstallation features iconic masterworks and presents recent acquisitions across departments, including artworks never on view before at the High, such as Kara Walker’s monumental cut-paper installation “The Jubilant Martyrs of Obsolescence and Ruin” and paintings and sculptures from the 2017 Souls Grown Deep Foundation acquisition of folk and self-taught art.
- Refreshed. Over the course of the last thirteen years, the High has acquired thousands of new artworks. Pulling from both recent acquisitions and prior holdings, the newly reinstalled galleries will showcase our strengths across all seven collecting areas.
- Reimagined. Working with new artworks and different spaces, curators were invited to take a fresh approach to how their collections relate to their gallery spaces. They also worked together to create connections across collecting areas, enriching the overall experience of the High’s permanent collection.
- Diversified. The presentation of the collection, guided by the Museum’s dedication to diversity and inclusivity, showcases artworks relevant to communities from Atlanta and beyond. In addition to featuring key holdings by artists of color and women artists, the galleries incorporate selections from the High’s unparalleled holdings of works related to the southeastern United States, from historical decorative arts and folk and self-taught art to civil rights photography.
- Optimized. Architects worked with the High’s staff to improve wayfinding, flow, and accessibility. To further enhance the visitor experience, the new galleries also provide more spots with seating to rest and reflect.
- Protected for Posterity. As stewards of artworks for the community, Museum staff members take their jobs seriously. The reinstallation allowed Museum staff to address conservation needs, including restoring artworks, mitigating light levels, performing maintenance and repairs, and improving art storage and rotation. This work ensures the preservation of our collection for future generations.
New Greene Family Learning Gallery
In October 1968, the High introduced its first dedicated space for families to learn, play and explore. Since then, our family spaces have incited the curiosity of millions of young visitors. To mark the 50th anniversary of the High’s commitment to family spaces, we are debuting a total redesign of the Greene Family Learning Gallery with all-new interactive environments created in collaboration with Roto design firm.
Located adjacent to the Robinson Atrium in the Stent Family Wing, the Greene Family Learning Gallery has expanded to include a 2,000-square-foot space across the hall from its previous footprint.
- Expanded and Enhanced. The totally redesigned Greene Family Learning Gallery features two distinct spaces designed based on a set of guiding goals informed by years of visitor observation, community expert input and research. The first space, “CREATE,” is a bright and open studio devoted to developing young visitors’ art-making abilities and centered on the creative process. The newly created second space, “EXPERIENCE,” is a deeply immersive gallery that enables visitors to explore what art means, how it feels and where it can take us.
- Fun and Engaging. Each space is a welcoming, safe and fun environment that is child-centered and child-directed with age-appropriate activities for infants through age 8. Each gallery space features a “quiet room” with activities designed for reflection as well as an area specifically for toddlers.
- High Tech and Hands On. The open-ended, intuitive, multi-sensory elements of the spaces were designed to be inclusive and combine cutting-edge technology with hands-on activities.
