Fall arts preview: Art

THE LOUVRE AND THE MASTERPIECE

Oct. 18-Jan. 10 at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts

On loan from France's premier art museum, 62 paintings, sculptures, drawings, decorative objects and antiquities reflect changing tastes and ideas of beauty spanning 4,000 years. This extraordinary show will include paintings by Vermeer, Boucher, Chardin, La Tour and Gericault; drawings by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo; ancient Greek vases, sculpture from Egypt and the Middle East, and lesser masterpieces -- including modern forgeries -- that illustrate the evolving definition of what a masterpiece is, explain questions of connoisseurship and authenticity, and show the evolution of taste and scholarship. A companion show will feature masterpieces from the museum's own collection.

Oct. 18-Jan. 10, 2400 3rd Av. S. Dated and timed tickets: $16 weekends, $14 weekdays. Reservations: 612-870-3000 or 888-642-2787 or www.artsmia.org

"Event Horizon" Promising highlights and hidden secrets from the Walker Art Center's collection, this installation takes its title from a term that describes the edge of observable space. The show will include avant-garde films from the 1960s, new environmental pieces, dance performances, photos, paintings and collection classics by Andy Warhol, Edward Hopper, Andreas Gursky and younger contemporaries such as Kara Walker. A special "Benches and Binoculars" feature will be a floor-to-ceiling showcase of paintings, drawings and other treasures from decades past.

Nov. 21-Aug. 5, 2012. 1750 Hennepin Av., Mpls. $10 adults. 612-375-7600 or www.walkerart.org

"Two by Two" Celebrating the art of two couples who happen to be longtime friends, this showcase features sculpture by Kinji Akagawa and quilts by Nancy Gipple, with recycled textile sculpture and wearable art by Nancy MacKenzie and pottery by Warren MacKenzie.

Oct. 10-Nov. 9. Grand Hand Gallery, 619 Grand Av., St. Paul. Free. 651-312-1122 or www.thegrandhand.com

"Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection" For more than 40 years the Vogels, a quiet, cat-loving New York couple -- she's a librarian and he works for the U.S. post office -- have collected contemporary American art. After their one-bedroom apartment was completely overstuffed, they gave their collection to the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., which kept the core and dispersed the rest: 50 works each to a museum in each of the 50 states. In Minnesota, the University of Minnesota's Weisman Art Museum drew the lucky straw and will show its 50 Vogel pieces this fall.

Oct. 23-Jan. 10. Weisman Art Museum, 333 E. River Rd., Mpls. Free. 612-625-9494 or www.weisman.umn.edu

"Excavations: The Prints of Julie Mehretu" In a coup for the Twin Cities, this Ethiopian-born abstractionist will be on hand for the opening of the first comprehensive survey of her prints. Internationally known for her delicate but forceful designs suggestive of blueprints and swirling air-traffic patterns, Mehretu has a long association with Walker Art Center and Highpoint, which has produced some of her most distinctive impressions. The show will feature 21 large-scale images from the country's leading print studios including Crown Point Press, Gemini G.E.L. and Highpoint.

Oct. 3-Nov. 21. Highpoint Center for Printmaking, 912 W. Lake St. Mpls. Free. 612-871-1326 or www.highpointprintmaking.org

THE Louvre and the masterpiece Oct. 18-Jan. 10 at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts On loan from France's premier art museum, 62 paintings, sculptures, drawings, decorative objects and antiquities reflect changing tastes and ideas of beauty spanning 4,000 years. This extraordinary show will include paintings by Vermeer, Boucher, Chardin, La Tour and Gericault; drawings by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo; ancient Greek vases, sculpture from Egypt and the Middle East, and lesser masterpieces -- including modern forgeries -- that illustrate the evolving definition of what a masterpiece is, explain questions of connoisseurship and authenticity, and show the evolution of taste and scholarship. A companion show will feature masterpieces from the museum's own collection. Oct. 18-Jan. 10, 2400 3rd Av. S. Dated and timed tickets: $16 weekends, $14 weekdays. Reservations: 612-870-3000 or 888-642-2787 or www.artsmia.org "Event Horizon" Promising highlights and hidden secrets from the Walker Art Center's collection, this installation takes its title from a term that describes the edge of observable space. The show will include avant-garde films from the 1960s, new environmental pieces, dance performances, photos, paintings and collection classics by Andy Warhol, Edward Hopper, Andreas Gursky and younger contemporaries such as Kara Walker. A special "Benches and Binoculars" feature will be a floor-to-ceiling showcase of paintings, drawings and other treasures from decades past. Nov. 21-Aug. 5, 2012 . 1750 Hennepin Av., Mpls. $10 adults. 612-375-7600 or www.walkerart.org "Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection" For more than 40 years the Vogels, a quiet, cat-loving New York couple -- she's a librarian and he works for the U.S. post office -- have collected contemporary American art. After their one-bedroom apartment was completely overstuffed, they gave their collection to the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., which kept the core and dispersed the rest: 50 works each to a museum in each of the 50 states. In Minnesota, the University of Minnesota's Weisman Art Museum drew the lucky straw and will show its 50 Vogel pieces this fall. Oct. 23-Jan. 10. Weisman Art Museum, 333 E. River Rd., Mpls. Free. 612-625-9494 or www.weisman.umn.edu "Excavations: The Prints of Julie Mehretu" In a coup for the Twin Cities, this Ethiopian-born abstractionist will be on hand for the opening of the first comprehensive survey of her prints. Internationally known for her delicate but forceful designs suggestive of blueprints and swirling air-traffic patterns, Mehretu has a long association with Walker Art Center and Highpoint, which has produced some of her most distinctive impressions. The show will feature 21 large-scale images from the country's leading print studios including Crown Point Press, Gemini G.E.L. and Highpoint. Oct. 3-Nov. 21. Highpoint Center for Printmaking, 912 W. Lake St. Mpls. Free. 612-871-1326 or www.highpointprintmaking.org "Two by Two" Celebrating the art of two couples who happen to be longtime friends, this showcase features sculpture by Kinji Akagawa and quilts by Nancy Gipple, with recycled textile sculpture and wearable art by Nancy MacKenzie and pottery by Warren MacKenzie. Oct. 10-Nov. 9. Grand Hand Gallery, 619 Grand Av., St. Paul. Free. 651-312-1122 or www.thegrandhand.com