When the celebrated art historian Lyn Bolen Warren founded Les Yeux du Monde in 1995, it was one of just four public Charlottesville venues for viewing art—including the University of Virginia’s Fralin Museum of Art. For 25 years, Warren used Les Yeux to help transform the city into an artistic haven that now boasts more than 30 museums and showrooms.
Photos courtesy of Jen Fariello
“Lyn was not an art historian, she was an art history maker,” said UVA emeritus professor of art, Dean Dass, in a statement. “What she accomplished here is almost unbelievable.” Sadly, Warren died in 2021.
Warren’s legacy at Les Yeux is carried forward by daughter, Hagan Tampellini, and still shines bright. The gallery now occupies an elegantly modern corten steel and glass block structure designed by renowned architect W.G. Clark in 2009. It sits on a forested hillside overlooking the city and focuses on showing “visually exciting and meaningful art with an emphasis on art historical significance,” says Tampellini. LYDM.com
This article originally appeared in the Best of Virginia 2024 issue.
