Bloomfield Hills, Michigan—In the middle of the lush suburban academic oasis of the Cranbrook educational community sits the Cranbrook Museum of Art. (The Cranbrook educational community (319 acres) consists of the Cranbrook Schools (private P-K—12), the Cranbrook Academy of Arts (graduate school), the Cranbrook Institute of Science, and the Cranbrook House and Gardens – it is a community that inspires the highest scholarship in the arts and sciences.) In line with its edifying surroundings, the Cranbrook Museum of Art re-opened with an encyclopedic review of its vast collection through a thought-provoking exhibit titled, No Object is an Island: New Dialogues with the Cranbrook Collection. The title is a head nod to the Sixteenth Century metaphysical poet John Donne (no man is an island) – a poet that demands deep study to appreciate.

This head nod does not foreshadow an academic exercise where the Director and Curators create a show that is only accessible to a few highly educated art historians. Rather, the Director and Curators did all the deep thinking to present artists juxtaposed in a way that engages art experts and art novices alike. The exhibit and the improved space offer a fun, intellectually stimulating, and extensive lesson in art’s ability to rouse the spirit.

This past Friday (11/11/11), the Museum re-opened after a two-year, $22 Million, expansion and renovation. For its first 11 days (11/11/11 through 11/21/11), the Museum is open daily for 11 hours starting at 10 a.m., and it offers an 11-day membership for $11. Below are my pictures from the grand re-opening.