I must say, I quite enjoyed reading Jonathan Lerner’s review of Piedmont Park’s recent expansion on ArtsCriticATL.com, partly because he explained that “the expansion also adds a kind of environment — and a sense of escape into nature — that’s been missing until now.”   However, I also enjoyed it also he used his review to readdress the whole Piedmont Park parking deck debate.  Here’s a quote…

…the parking deck is a fait accompli. If you are still steamed about it, a visit to the new extension — which makes the park big enough, meandering enough and woodsy enough to let you imagine getting safely and therapeutically lost — should go a long way toward calming you down. The expansion is a work in progress and will remain one for some time to come. But it’s already obvious that it’s a wonderful thing. This intown citizen’s opinion? Yes in Our Back Yard.

But I was left wanting more hi-res photos.  Fortunately, great Atlanta photographer Josh D. Weiss took a stroll through the expansion over the weekend and came back with a photo series that made all my fleeting online wishes come true!

Photo above used with permission

The final film in the Decatur Docs first series, “Boxing Gym” screens tomorrow night at the Decatur High School auditorium at 8pm.  ArtsCriticATL reviewed the film a couple days back and does a great job of giving a feel for this “Cannes Film Festival highlight”.

[Director 81-year-old Frederick] Wiseman’s portrait of gym-as-laboratory-for-human-interaction makes a fleabag sweat palace feel like the most vital, meaningful place on the planet. There is great tenderness and reflection in his approach, whether he’s observing a gruff-looking palooka socking away at a punching bag and then turning around to coo to his little daughter in a baby carrier behind him, or the simple, pure acts of fraternity offered in the conversations and shared training exercises of the gym regulars.

…As in all the films he has made over the past 30 years, Wiseman provides a record; he gives us access to a place we wouldn’t ordinarily go and allows us to settle into it as if it was a long, relaxing soak in the bath. He has delved into the world of the Neiman Marcus department store in “The Store” (1983), a mental institution in his still-shocking debut, “Titicut Follies” (1967), and a string of self-explanatory explorations in “High School” (1968), “Blind” (1987) and “Ballet” (1995).

After the film, Xavier Biggs and Terri Moss of the Decatur Boxing Club will be on-hand for a post-movie discussion.

Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online or at the door. (There’s also an online-only deal of 2 tickets for $10 each)

Looks and sounds great!