Millet to Matisse - Speed Museum, Louisville, Kentucky - Feb. 5, 2003 - 3 stars

A joy if you love art history, miserable if you need to visit the two-seater lavatory. Millet to Matisse is fantastic but not the blockbuster exhibit touted. Pioneers of 20th century painting, Van Gogh, Monet and Matisse were used as marketing candy to seduce an audience for a brilliant tutorial. This collection from the Kelvingrove Art Gallery in Glasgow, Scotland, is rich with examples by artists who are sometimes overlooked, like Alfred Sisley and Adolphe Hervier. Paintings by Rouault, Corot, Cezanne and even a piece by Utrillo expertly walk you through a revolution in artistic technique and perception. The Speed was not equipped to handle the car traffic, or the pedestrians awaiting entrance into the show, The limited audio tours were sold out and the line for the WC was longer than for the exhib7it. This show travels to the Frick (Pittsburgh) next and is well worth a visit. –Mary Lee Pappas