The Met is a wonderful collection of art in the United States, and having a full day to visit and explore allowed us to see as much as we wanted. After grabbing a quick bite from a food truck outside, I set off to see as much as I could, starting with a loop through European paintings and statues. I feel like I favor renaissance paintings and older artworks in general, so I usually find myself in these areas so that I can admire the skill on display, from colors blended so smoothly that it’s impossible to tell there was a shift at all, to statues that give the impression of life within stone. One of my favorite examples of this from the Met is Ugolino and His Sons, created by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. This sculpture captures not only the physical form with precise skill, but it also truly invokes the fear and anguish that each person in the sculpture is feeling, which I think is an amazing talent. I saw many other pieces that showed extreme talent, but poor Ugolino and his sons stick with me every time I visit.
Because we had plenty of free time in this museum, I also decided to branch out a bit and visit some exhibits that I wouldn’t usually have time to see. I particularly enjoyed the Asian arts wing, and I think the long and rich history in many modern Asian countries makes the art all the more compelling. I was somewhat surprised by how much I enjoyed the Chinese paintings, but I think I spent more time studying those than any other section of the museum. They were somewhat the opposite of the renaissance paintings that I love, seeming to only use black ink to achieve their goal, but in the end I loved the way the landscapes sprung off the page with the same liveliness as any realism painting.
Overall, visiting the Met is always a treat, and being able to see the culmination of thousands of years of history and art is a really great reminder that the arts have always been important and humans change very little but can create so much in the grand scheme of things.
Navigating the Metropolitan Museum
