I only know this because it’s today’s (April 13 2021) Google Doodle. I certainly didn’t hear anything about the 150th anniversary last year. But then again, I’m up here in Boston.
I grew up going to the MMA* If you turned right after you walked in the main entrance you saw the Mastaba of Per-Neb and if you turned left you saw Greek and Roman Art (with an entire room from Pompeii just out of view). They’re all still there. They have a massive collection of Egyptian Art and
Greek and Roman and Mesopotamian art. Islamic Art and Indian and Asian art. When I was a bit older they added wings with Oceanic Art and brought in the entire Egyptian Temple of Dendur in a special air- and light-filled wing to the north. And all that’s before you get to the European paintings – the Bosch and Brueghel and Rembrandt and Velasquez (the painting Portrait of Juan de Pareja by him was the first painting to sell for more than a million pounds. It was a Big Deal when they bought it in 1970) and Picasso and Van Gogh and Sargent and … well, everybody.
great place. Haven’t been back in quite a while.
*and the American Museum of Natural History. They’re directly across Central Park from each other. A lot of times I’d hit 'em both in one day.
I’m amazed you hit both in the same day. I don’t think I ever walked through the entirety of either museum in a single day. I use to be able to just finish the Museum of Natural History in a day but never The Met.
Fun thing with the Met, it is the only museum actually in Central Park. Several sit across a street from The Park, but The Met is in the park itself. It is the largest Art museum in the US. The Cloisters is part of it and also wonderful.
The Met’s collection is so large that it has travelling collections going throughout the country and the world.
My BIL worked there for a little while and I got a partial behind the scenes tour. That was amazing. The Met is like an iceberg, you only see about 10% of what they actually have. Thus all the roadshows and loans.
I didn’t try to go all the way through the either museum in one day, but I’d visit parts of both.
It was a lot easier years ago when the crowds were smaller and they either didn’t charge or asked you to “pay what you will”. The last times I’ve been to both they were pretty pricey and crowded. But as a kid I used to just breeze through their halls.
That makes sense, on most days I had to spend almost 3 hours just getting to either museum and back. On the best days, still over 2 hours and I would want to avoid rush hour with the tunnels.
If you’re around and can go now, it’s a joy. My wife was there yesterday morning, and said it was almost completely empty. I’ll be going early next week. This is the time to go, before the tourists come back (no offense if you’re a tourist! )
Both the Met and the AMNH are still “pay what you wish,” if you’re a NYS resident at the Met, or NY, NJ or CT at the AMNH.
Sadly, no – I’m up here in Boston. we’ve got the Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabella Stewart Gardner and lots of very good little art museums (like the excellent Peabody-Essex), but nothing like the Monster that is the MMA. It’s a measure of how spoiled I was by the MMA that when I first came to Boston I was disappointed by the MFA (which is a pretty huge museum in its own right. But nowhere near as big as the MMA)
I’ve never been a resident of NYC, so I’ve had to pay the listed admission price.
As good as the Met is, sometimes the little museums are even better. And the MFA may be smaller than the Met, but I still love it. You’re OK in Boston!
One of the great things about the Met is just wandering and getting lost. Intentionally always taking the path with the smallest crowd is one of my favorite navigation techniques. The serendipity is great.
For those planning to come to NYC, when you can, please come out to Brooklyn and check out the Brooklyn Museum. It’s not as big as the Met (although it was originally planned to be even bigger), but it’s still quite big and has some real amazing jewels. It’s one of those “OMG I never knew this was here and it’s amazing” moments for people who haven’t seen it before. And it’s pay-what-you-wish for everyone. (and next door, if it’s a nice day, is the gorgeous Brooklyn Botanical Garden. And Prospect Park, which Olmsted and Vaux considered superior to Central Park.). You can tell I’m a Brooklyn partisan.