An icon of the art world during the 1920s and '30s, Maxfield Parrish was the Andy Warhol of his day, achieving acclaim both critically and commercially. Calendars and posters with his dreamy landscapes―often showing sylphs poised on rocks―were tacked up in kitchens and shops across America.
Now a major retrospective of his work, Maxfield Parrish: Master of Make-Believe, makes its West Coast premiere at Reno's Nevada Museum of Art on April 30 and runs through June 26. The exhibit of 87 works―from Parrish's early children's illustrations to his signature paintings―includes two huge panels done for the Vanderbilt estate and never before shown to the public.
Enjoy lunch at the Café Musée ($; lunch Tue-Sat, brunch Sun). From your patio table, you'll get a good perspective on the two-year-old museum's dark exterior, inspired by Nevada's Black Rock Desert.
Parrish planner
Nevada Museum of Art (10-5 Tue-Wed and Fri-Sun, 10-8 Thu; $10; 160 W. Liberty St., Reno; www.nevadaart.org or 775/329-3333)
