museums-galleries

The motto of the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art is "Knowledge Through Beauty," and over the years this small but impassioned Atlanta museum has featured artworks of the highest quality from around the world.

A recent exhibition Rodin: In His Own Words is no exception. If you missed the exhibit, which included thirty-five bronzes and a selection of original letters by the great sculptor, then you’re in for a treat.

Oglethorpe University Museum of Art

Over 100 soldiers from Georgia have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the number keeps climbing. The families of these soldiers are also casualties of war, and in 2005 a group of Atlanta artists decided to help in the best way they knew how – through their art. Portrait painters Lisa Gleim, Leah Hopkins Henry and Geri Zaki are the founders of the project which became known as “Art from the Heart.” Enlisting the aid of dozens of other artists, they formed an organization called the Atlanta Fine Arts League, which has donated hundreds of hours to paint the portraits of Georgia’s fallen soldiers.

The paintings were initially exhibited at the National Museum of Patriotism in Atlanta in September 2007 and then were given free of charge to the soldiers’ families across Georgia. State of the Arts followed Lisa, Leah and Geri through the process of contacting the families of Army Specialist Jamaal Addison of Lithonia, Army Specialist Justin Johnson of Rome, and First Lieutenant Tyler Brown of Atlanta. In each case the artists formed a bond not only with family members, but also with the soldiers, whom they came to care about in the process of creating their lifelike portraits.

As long as Georgia soldiers continue to die in Iraq and Afghanistan, the artists of the Atlanta Fine Arts League are committed to continue their project, “Art from the Heart.” To learn more, visit the Atlanta Fine Arts League website.

Everybody knows about the popularity of PBS’s “Antiques Roadshow,” so the Georgia Museum of Art decided to bring the concept closer to home. Folks from the Athens area were invited to bring their antique treasures and works of fine art to the museum, where top-of-the-line appraisers from the international firm Bonhams and Butterfields promised to take a look at them.

A lot of people showed up, including kids bearing original Salvador Dali prints and a grandmother-grandson duo sporting a Russian painting which may be the find of the year. Visit the Georgia Museum of Art for more information on their current exhibit and happenings at their website.

For some, quilts suggest family and comfort. To others, their visual imagery is considered a folk art form. Our story about quilts is almost as old as the history of America and stitched with mystery and controversy.

In 1994, African-American quilter Ozella McDaniel Williams revealed to historians Jacqueline Tobin and Raymond Dubard a quilt code used by enslaved men and women for navigating the Underground Railroad. Tobin and Dubard tell Ozella's account in the book Hidden in Plain View: A Secret Story of Quilts and the Underground Railroad. The code has been passed on to Ozella's niece, Serena Wilson, and Wilson's daughter, Teresa R. Kemp, who is director of the Underground Railroad Quilt Code Museum and Cultural Center at Underground Atlanta.

Each quilt contained a specific code that conveyed important information to fugitive slaves in their flight to the next safe house on the Underground Railroad. The monkey wrench denoted it was time to gather tools required for the journey, the drunkard's path pattern served to remind freedom seekers to move in a zigzag to avoid capture, and the bear paw pattern indicated food and water sources.

Since the publication of Hidden in Plain View, historians and Underground Railroad experts have questioned the quilt code theory for its lack of corroborating evidence in either recorded historical documents or oral history.

Fact or fiction? You decide.

Visit their website here.

Portals to Shangri-La

The Olgethorpe University Museum of Art in Atlanta has long specialized in exhibiting art from around the world. So when China prevented Tibet from participating in Atlanta's 1996 Olympic Games, the Dalai Lama sent his private art collection to Oglethorpe instead, for a groundbreaking exhibit called The Mystical Arts of Tibet.

This year the Museum decided to honor the 800th anniversary of the founding of Mongolia by exhibiting sacred Buddhist masterpieces from the Zanabazar Mongolia National Fine Arts Museum. The exhibit's legendary Buddhist curator, Glenn H. Mullin, and the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art's director, Lloyd Nick, worked for more than a year to put the exhibit together.

But just days before it was to be shipped to Atlanta, the Mongolian government collapsed and the shipment was stopped. In a story filled with obstacles at every turn, the intrepid team of Glenn Mullin and Lloyd Nick call upon generous American collectors, who save the day, allowing great Mongolian art to come to Georgia right on schedule!

Visit the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art's website.

The City of Savannah contains the nation's largest historic preservation district. Its Telfair Museum of Art is the oldest in the Southeast, and the museum's two original buildings – the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Owens-Thomas House – are Savannah landmarks dating from the early 19th century.

A decade ago, the Telfair Museum committed to a new building to house its growing collection of contemporary art. But no one could have predicted that the building's modern design would generate years of controversy and delay the opening several times. Our show takes you to Opening Day of the Jepson Center for the Arts on March 10, 2006, where we meet its architect, Moshe Safdie, its namesake, Robert S. Jepson, and its director, Diane Lesko. We also take you inside to see the atrium's massive glass walls and commanding staircase, as well as the dramatic curving lines found throughout the building. And finally, we show you the cutting edge art currently on display in the Telfair, a ground-breaking contribution to Savannah cultural history.

Visit the Museum's website.

Photo: Richard Leo Johnson, Atlantic Archives

Shadow puppets, marionettes, sock puppets and many other versatile characters have enthralled audiences throughout the rich history of puppetry. Whether they’re made of wood, fabric or paper, puppets capture the imagination, and The Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta offers visitors an opportunity to learn more about the art and enjoy puppet shows from all over the world. The Center for Puppetry Arts is the largest organization in America dedicated entirely to the art of puppet theater. The organization also houses a puppet museum that presents the history of puppetry in various cultures and illustrates the impact of the art form as a tool for teaching, healing and communication. The collection boasts over one thousand puppets and posters of historical and cultural significance.

The newest original production at The Center for Puppetry Arts is a highly creative and wickedly funny show for adults called Avanti Da Vinci. The story revolves around Leonardo Da Vinci as an inventor and superhero, Renaissance Man. With Mona Lisa as the damsel in distress, Da Vinci must rescue the fair maiden from the evil Borgias. Full of historical facts and fiction, the play offers an evening of laughter and fun for grownup audiences. The play garnered great acclaim, and has even been performed at a festival in Slovakia. To learn more about the Center's productions and museum look them up on the web.

The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum came about after a 1983 exhibit Jews and Georgians: A Meeting of Cultures 1733-1983, created a need for a space dedicated to the interpretation and preservation of the Jewish experience. The Museum became a permanent resident of Spring Street in downtown Atlanta in 1992. Its two permanent collections are Creating Community: The Jews of Atlanta from 1845 to The Present and Absence of Humanity: The Holocaust Years. Along with its two permanent collections the Breman Museum also houses the Ida Pearl and Joseph Cuba Community Archives and Genealogy Center, the Weinberg Center for Holocaust Education Center, the Discovery Center for kids, and a Library housing archival and genealogical research for both scholars and students.

The Breman Museum's newest exhibit, Zap! Pow! Bam! The superhero: The Golden Age of Comic Books, 1938-1950, gives visitors a chance to browse through an exhibit featuring original comic book art, objects belonging to the creators and publishers and rare interviews from the 1940's with the artists and writers. To learn more about the Breman Museum visit their website.

Educators: Jewish Heritage Museum

For information on The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum:

The Breman

For information on the William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum, Georgia Museums and Galleries, and Atlanta:

Georgia Museums, Art Galleries and Art Centers

Georgia Association of Museums & Galleries

Georgia Museums on the Web

Georgia Tourism

New Georgia Encyclopedia

Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau

Albany, Georgia, founded in 1831 is a southern city rich in history. Located next to the Flint River, Albany was originally inhabited by the Creek Indians. When the Creeks were forced to move, Albany became a cotton producing city utilizing the railroad because the river was too shallow for steam boats to navigate.

Today, Albany is restoring its downtown area with the addition of the Flint Riverquarium and moving the Albany Museum of Art to a downtown location. Along the Flint River, visitors will find the new Riverquarium exhibiting aquatic life native to the river. Next to the Riverquarium in the newly refurbished riverfront and downtown, people can browse a collection of larger than life decorated turtles. The Albany Museum of Art, the only fully accredited art museum in southwest Georgia, offers a mixture of African, American and European Art. Visitors can browse their permanent collection or walk through their many galleries. To learn more about the Albany Museum look them up on the web, or to find out more about the Riverquarium visit their website.

Educators: Albany Museum of Art

For information on the Albany Museum of Art:

Website for the Albany Museum of Art

For information on the Albany Museum of Art, Georgia Museum and Galleries, and Albany:

Georgia Museums, Art Galleries and Art Centers

Georgia Association of Museums & Galleries

Georgia Museums on the Web

Georgia Tourism

New Georgia Encyclopedia

Albany Convention & Visitors Bureau

The Mark of the Potter, Georgia's oldest craft gallery, is located in the stunning Blue Ridge Mountains and occupies one of three mills that have inhabited the site since the time of the Cherokee Indians. For over 30 years, the Mark of the Potter has provided a selection of handmade crafts in wood, metal, hand blown glass and pottery from over 25 artists.

The pottery crafted in Mark of the Potter is not only beautiful artwork but functions as everyday dishware. Whether it is a pitcher or a plate, Mark of the Potter pottery takes pride in their useful artwork. To learn more about Mark of the Potter visit their website.

Segment Producer/writer: Hamilton Northcutt

Videographer: Mitch Zastrow

Editor: Charlene Fisk

Educators: Mark of the Potter

Information for the Georgia Folklife:

Southern Highland Craft Guild

Resources that integrate the science of ceramics and pottery:

A glossary of pottery terms

Colorants in pottery

The Physics of Color

For information on Georgia pottery

New Georgia Encyclopedia: Pottery

Contributor: Jeff White, Georgia Public Broadcasting Education