High Museum of Art

High Museum of Art is at 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. (MARTA: Arts Center station) on The Woodruff Arts Center campus. Richard Meier's stark white, porcelain-enameled building—together with three expansion buildings by renowned Italian architect Renzo Piano—is the Woodruff Arts Center's stunning focal point and a suitably dramatic showcase for more than 17,000 rotating works of art. The High complex is particularly noted for the integration of natural light into the overall design. The Meier Building's soaring four-level atrium is something you’ll surely notice upon entering, but your attention will soon be drawn to the museum's outstanding permanent collection, noted for African, European and 19th- and 20th-century American art, civil rights photography, folk and self-taught art, decorative arts, and modern and contemporary works. The contemporary galleries display paintings by such artists as Max Ernst, Robert Rauschenberg and Frank Stella. Georgia O'Keeffe, John Singer Sargent and Childe Hassam are some of the artists spotlighted in the American art collection, which also includes Hudson River School landscape paintings. Artists from Albrecht Dürer to Claude Monet to Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec form the core of the European collection, where you'll see masterworks like Giovanni Bellini's “Madonna and Child.” Another highlight is a recycled chest of drawers; Dutch artist Tejo Remy assembled that piece for a live audience in 2008. One of the High's most popular gatherings is Friday Jazz on the third Friday of the month. Museum galleries are open extended hours, with live evening musical performances taking place in the atrium. Guided tours are available. Food is available. Time: Allow 2 hours minimum.