An exceptional, once-in-a-lifetime, opportunity is being offered to Southwest residents and their friends to visit the world famous Barnes Foundation Art Museum for Free. The Barnes visit will be offered to those who attend a “Virtual Reality” (VR) workshop at the Kingsessing Library beginning at 5:15 on Tuesday, July 9.
Workshop attendees will then be invited to tour the Barnes Museum on the following Saturday morning, July 13. These workshop participants will be able to invite friends and family members to go with them – even though they have not taken the workshop).
Bus transportation from Kingsessing Library to the Barnes and back (free) will be provided.
The unique program has been arranged by the Free Library Division of Cultural and Civic Engagement in cooperation with the Barnes Foundation.
The Barnes collection includes hundreds of priceless paintings by 19th- and 20-century impressionists other modern artists like Jean Renoir, Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, and Vincent Van Gogh. Another unique feature of the Barnes is the collection of unique African sculpture and Native American ceramics. These works of art were collected by in the early 20th century by Philadelphia pharmaceutical manufacturer Albert C. Barnes.
The 2-part program – Tuesday evening workshop and Saturday Art collection visit – is open to all the public, and reservations are not required. At the workshop on Tuesday, art enthusiasts will look at photos of items from the Barnes collection through “Virtual Reality” (VR) viewers that bring the paintings and artifacts to life in an incredibly realistic way. Again, those taking the workshop will be eligible to bring other friends and family members with them to the Barnes Museum on Saturday, July 13.
The Barnes Foundation is located at 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
Kingsessing Branch Library is at 1201 South 51st Street (between Chester and Kingsessing Avenues). For more information, phone (215) 685-2690 or email remsenb@freelibrary.org
