Fauxology: Studying the Visual Magic of Faux Finishing and Interior Design (brought to you by Garay Artisans)

Although I was raised by a Hispanic single mother, I didn’t grow up with salsa or other Spanish music. We listened to Billy Joel, Abba, The Eagles (Los Eagles, to her), Chicago, Stevie Wonder, The Carpenters — and throw in some Motown soul, the Ramones and a bit of disco and you get the picture.  So when we listened to Gladys Knight and the Pips’ “Midnight Train to Georgia”, I often thought what a great place Georgia must be to have someone willing to travel at night to get there.  (When you’re young, you take things literally.  I didn’t understand that it was about the tough loss of a dream and the strength of love.)  All I knew is that Georgia was a special place that I wanted to visit.

I’ve only gotten to Atlanta (though I’d love to visit Savannah and other GA locations) but I love the city.  Not only does it have a fantastic entertainment industry, but it also has great cultural locations and amazing restaurants. Some of the best faux schools are also there: School of Italian Plasters, The Finishing Source and Paintin’ the Town Faux.  My husband and I were there recently since I’ve been wanting to visit The High (Atlanta’s art museum) ever since they announced their three-year collaboration with the Louvre in Paris: Louvre Atlanta.  For three years (with a different exhibit each year), priceless artworks and masterpieces will travel to the United States and find a temporary home here.  We are in Year Two of the collaboration and the theme, so to speak, for this year is The Louvre and the Ancient World.  To wander around looking at huge sculptures and artifacts that belonged to Egyptian pharaohs and Napoleon himself is mind-boggling (at least to me).  Then, as you meander around you come upon the Impressionism exhibit wherein you come face to face with Renoir, Monet, Degas, Cezanne and Cassatt masterpieces, to name a few.  My husband, Chris, and I also discovered the Women In Art exhibit, which featured the Eleanor photographs by Harry Callahan. Mr. Callahan photographed his wife, both clothed and in the nude (although very few of them are erotic in nature), for most of his life.  Chris didn’t really like them (”she’s never smiling and the photos make her look so cold and distant”) but I liked them precisely for that reason — the fact that she wasn’t the point of the photograph but a part of its composition as a whole.  My hubby is a great companion to wander around with since he brings his own unique ideas on how art is perceived and he makes me aware of details that I would otherwise never notice. The High was packed when we got there early in the morning (you can see the crowd starting around The Tiber sculpture below) but was absolutely a mob scene by the time we left in the early afternoon…the Louvre exhibit is really popular.  If you get a chance to visit, please consider it.

In retrospect, I should have known that taking photographs would not be permitted inside the museum but it worked out because I took pics of something else instead. While staying at the The Peach House, we noticed that the architecture of the neighbohood was really beautiful.  (According to my Google research, it is a mix of Victorian Anne and Victorian Colonial.)  The owners are really proud of their homes and are not afraid to paint their exteriors with great color schemes. The effect is really enjoyable and quite different from some of the home communities here in Florida (same look: boxy, same colors: neutral). Here are some examples:

Hope you’ve enjoyed the pics…”talk” to you soon!