Like 1824 France, but Today: The Salon

One of the more fascinating aspects of my Art History education was 19th C. art, particularly The Salon – the paintings exhibited, who attended, the controversies and drama. Great Stuff. In popular culture today we see the “Salon Style” quite a bit in terms of your at-home framing and hanging ideas, made popular by IKEA and better demonstrated in this picture.

An at-home Salon, Buckingham Style

But the Walker Art Center has brought back this wonderful (well, controversial to Westerners I think in that things are cramped and not given lots of Wild West space) practice of Salon Style Hanging at their exhibition Benches & Binoculars. Exhibiting pieces from the permanent collection, it is sure to impress and bring back memories for those who grew up with the permanent collection, or those who desire to feel the strain on their neck, looking up at a barely visible Matisse:

Walker Art Center, "Benches & Binoculars"