Events: Lifelong Learning Celebration

Event Description

Mark your calendar for a celebration of Lifelong Learning at the High!

Join us for a day of free admission for all visitors ages fifty and over, with guided tours of Joseph Stella: Visionary Nature and Monir Farmanfarmaian: A Mirror Garden, in-gallery conversations featuring works from the collection, drop-in art-making workshops, pop-up performances featuring the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and more! See details on the day’s events below.

Through its Creative Aging and Lifelong Learning initiative, the High invites curious adults to come together to explore art and ideas, exercise their creativity, make new friends, find joy and inspiration, and continue to learn and grow.

Visitors ages 50+ can reserve up to 4 tickets using the red ticket button above. Limited pre-paid parking is available and can be added to your chart during check-out.

For all other visitors, please visit our general ticketing page to purchase a ticket to the Museum. For general information on visiting the Museum, please our plan your visit page.

Questions? Please email lifelonglearning@high.org or call 404-733-5034.

For Groups:

There is limited capacity for lifelong-learning, aging-services, and/or other community-based organizations that serve individuals fifty and over to book a free docent-led tour or self-guided visit during the celebration.

Docent-led tours are informal discussions that highlight a selection of artworks from the High Museum’s collection. They typically last 60 minutes and explore 4-5 artworks through interactive conversation. To submit a request for a docent-led tour, please complete the Docent-Led Tour Request Form.

Self-guided visits allow groups from community-based organizations to register as a single entity, check in together and move through the museum at their own pace. Museum staff will assist with travel logistics, greet you upon arrival, and share more information about the drop-in programming happening throughout the day. In order to qualify for a self-guided visit, your group must have 8 or more people. To submit a request for a self-guided visit, please complete the Self-Guided Visit Request Form.

Programs and Events

Art Conversations

Join Museum staff in exploring the High’s collection and special exhibitions. Sign up for a guided tour or pop in for a quick conversation. There is something for everyone!

Conversation Pieces

Look closely with museum educators: one artwork, thirty minutes, deep conversations and discoveries. No prior experience is necessary, and all curious learners are welcome! Each program lasts thirty minutes and begins in front of the work of art. See artworks and locations below. No sign-up required.

• 10:15 a.m.: Il Guercino, Christ and the Samaritan Woman, ca. 1650 (Stent Family Wing, Second Level, Gallery 204), with Julia Forbes, Head of Museum Interpretation
• 11 a.m.: Yacouba Bondé, Nwantantay Mask, ca. 1986 (Stent Family Wing, Skyway Level, Gallery 403), with Julia Forbes, Head of Museum Interpretation
• 11:45 a.m.: Winfred Rembert, The Dirty Spoon Cafe, 2002 (Stent Family Wing, Skyway Level, Gallery 407), with Kenny Oaster, Coordinator of School Programs
• 12:30 p.m.: Doris Derby, Quilting Cooperative, Beaufort, South Carolina, 1972, printed later (Stent Family Wing, Skyway Level, Gallery 404), with Kate McLeod, Head of School and Teacher Services
• 2 p.m.: Studio Drift, Fragile Future 3.13, 2013 (Wieland Pavilion, Skyway Level, Gallery 402), with Kate McLeod, Head of School and Teacher Services
• 2:45 p.m.: Dominique Fung, 鄭氏 (Ching Shih) Piracy, 2022 (Wieland Pavilion, Skyway Level, Gallery 412), with Evelyn Newsome, Coordinator of Lifelong Learning Programs
• 3:30 p.m.: Adolph Gottlieb, Duet, 1962 (Stent Family Wing, Third Level, Gallery 301), with Laurel Humble, Head of Creative Aging and Lifelong Learning

Exhibition Tours

Get an in-depth look at two of the High’s major special exhibitions, guided by the Museum’s curatorial research associates. Each tour will meet at the exhibition entrance and will last sixty minutes. See below for exhibition descriptions and times. Exhibition tour capacity is limited. Sign up for a tour during the celebration at the welcome table located in the Taylor Lobby!

Joseph Stella: Visionary Nature

Exhibition tours offered at 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

Wieland Pavilion, Second Level

Joseph Stella: Visionary Nature is the first major museum exhibition to exclusively examine the nature-based works of pioneering American modernist Joseph Stella. Though Stella is primarily recognized for his dynamic Futurist-inspired paintings of New York, he was also compelled to express the powerful connection he felt to the natural world, a subject he pursued persistently throughout his career. Join Kyle Mancuso, Curatorial Research Associate, on a tour to learn more!

Monir Farmanfarmaian: A Mirror Garden

Exhibition tours offered at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Anne Cox Chambers Wing, Second Level

Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian is one of Iran’s most celebrated and revered visual artists, known internationally for her geometric mirror sculptures that combine mathematics and ancient Persian architectural motifs with hard-edged, postwar abstraction. Monir Farmanfarmaian: A Mirror Garden presents a selection of the artist’s sculptures, drawings, textiles, and collages spanning four decades. Join Caroline Giddis, Curatorial Research Associate, on a tour to learn more!

Creative Workshops

Explore your creative side and learn new art-making skills!  Join one or all of these drop-in studio workshops, facilitated by our teaching artists. All materials are provided, and no experience is necessary! No sign-up required.

Family Dynamics: Collage Workshop

10 a.m.–3 p.m., Anne Cox Chambers Wing Lobby

Experiment with abstraction, repetition, and composition! Inspired by the Family Series on view in Monir Farmanfarmaian: A Mirror Garden, create your own drawing series by drafting, layering, and repeating geometric shapes. Craft intricate and individualized artworks that reflect your personal aesthetics. 

Leave Your Mark: Collaborative Ink Drawing

10 a.m.–2:30 p.m., Robinson Atrium, Stent Family Wing

Let your creativity flow during this collaborative art-making experience. Use ink and sharpies to explore various types of mark making; connect with one another artistically through group discussion and reflection.

 Meeting Place: Drawing from Life

10:30 a.m.–12 noon and 1–2:30 p.m., Carroll Slater Sifly Piazza, in front of Roy Lichtenstein’s House III

Slow down and look closely at the world around you, including the architecture and plant life across the Woodruff Arts Center campus. Follow guided drawing prompts to create multifaceted artworks that reflect the life and beauty around us. In case of inclement weather, this workshop will take place in the Stent Family Wing, Third Level.

Picture This: Smartphone Photography in the Museum

10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. in Evelyn Hofer: Eyes on the City special exhibition, Wieland Pavilion, Lower Level

Learn how to take striking photographs using the High as your studio! Explore principles of photography such as leading lines, the rule of thirds, and other compositional elements to enhance your smartphone camera skills. Take home eye-catching images of your visit. No prior experience is necessary! Participants must have their own smartphone.

Picture This workshops take place at 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. Capacity is limited. Sign up for a workshop during the celebration at the welcome table located in the Taylor Lobby.

Performances

Enjoy a free concert and guided experience with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra musicians!

Performances will take place throughout the day. Check back for more details.

Advances in science and public health mean that Americans are living longer, healthier lives, and Atlanta is one of the most rapidly aging cities in the United States. Through our Lifelong Learning initiative, we aim to serve as a catalyst for lifelong learners to explore their creativity, find new social connections, and continue to learn and grow. With support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the High is working to pilot new programs for older adults and aging-services organizations, build institutional capacity to better serve older visitors, further our audience research and share our findings, and spearhead the formation of a professional network of arts and health professionals to advance this work locally and nationally. 

These programs are made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.