End of an era for the Barnes Foundation
The Barnes Foundation in Merion, Pennsylvania, was a unique treasure house of Impressionist and early modernist painting and sculpture. The eccentric collector, Albert C. Barnes, not only amassed a huge collection of works by giants such as Renoir, Cezanne, Matisse, Picasso, Modigliani, and Seurat. He also intended these masterpieces to be seen in a particular way, so that viewers would learn from them how to look at and appreciate great art. So he arranged his collection so that the pieces would “speak” to each other, echoing colors and themes and shapes.
Sadly for the many art lovers who visited the Foundation over the years, its location in the suburbs of Philadelphia is now closed, and the collection will be moved to a new building in downtown Philadelphia. Though the works themselves will always reward the visitor, something of the magic of Barnes’s vision will certainly be lost in this move.
Click here to take a virtual tour of the collection in its original and intended home.
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