BIRMINGHAM, UK.-The Barber Institute of Fine Arts presents Classicism: Art above Life, on view through January 21, 2007. Classicism is the major tradition in Western art from the Renaissance to the nineteenth century — and beyond. Its aim was to perfect nature by creating an ideal world of order, harmony and beauty attainable only in art. Initially based on the admiration and imitation of ancient Greek and Roman art, it has constantly renewed itself through the ages. Artists as diverse as Raphael, Poussin, Cézanne and Picasso may all be counted amongst its greatest masters. This display, drawn entirely from the Barber Institute’s collection, explores the changing faces of classicism from the art of the ancients to that of the twentieth century. Composition, colour, figure painting and landscape are all examined in works ranging from Dürer and Claude to Monet and Léger.