ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — With its curving colonnade stretching along downtown's Beach Drive, the Museum of Fine Arts St. Petersburg has always been a strikingly beautiful building.
But after a host of aesthetic and artistic changes inside, the MFA is even prettier every which way.
"We really wanted to be more user-friendly," said senior curator Stanton Thomas. "We put a lot of thought into how the collection fits together."
After tearing down walls and obstacles, the suddenly clear sightlines inside the main gallery offer dramatic approaches to the museum's most stunning artwork.
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There are new floors and new signage explaining your journey.
The museum still displays a host of fan-favorite classics — Claude Monet, Norman Rockwell, Auguste Rodin.
But now, curators pair the masters with captivating modern artists, including stunning work by Mickalene Thomas and Kehinde Wiley, connecting the past to the present, and opening up a refreshing dialogue.
Current exhibitions also nod to the MFA's recommitment to diversity and inclusion.
Bahamian artist Gio Swaby creates portraits of black women out of fabric, thread and canvas; the result is both playful and moving.
A retrospective of history's greatest female photographers features Diane Arbus and Sally Mann among their talented peers.
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