The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the most popular museums not just in New York, but in the world. It welcomes about seven million visitors. It is also said to be the most visited museum in New York City for both domestic and international crowd (metmuseum.org). I found out about this museum through my auntie. I still remember the first that I went here, my aunt was touring me around Central Park until we get to this museum. We went inside and were about to buy tickets, but we thought that the tickets that cost $25 for general admissions were too expensive. My aunt thought that it was free, but she was unsure. We decided to just stay in the lobby for a little bit and left. Based on the museum’s website, the general admission fee for adults is $25. For seniors, it is $17. For students, it is $12 (Penn, 2016). Since I was not a student during my first visit, I have to pay $25. I thought it was ridiculously high, and just rather spend that amount of money to food. When I found out that the $25 admission fee was just a suggested price, so I told my friend to come visit it with me. I get to visit the museum for the second time, and this time I get to go inside and not just in the lobby. However, I did not get to enjoy it that much because it was only less than an hour till the museum closes. The museum usually opens at 10 am to 5:30 pm on Sundays to Thursdays. For Fridays and Saturdays, it opens until 9 pm (metmuseum.org). I found this information through the museum’s website, which I find very user-friendly.
The class had field trip in the Metropolitan Museum of Art last June 19th. It was my third time to visit the museum. I arrived a bit late because I had a class that ended at 11 am on that day. The closest subways to the museum are 4, 5, and 6 (Penn, 2016). I took the 4 train from Borough Hall station and it took me about 50 minutes to an hour to arrive in the museum. I also have to walk for about 12-15 minutes. Good thing GPS was invented. Without it, I would definitely get lost. As usual, there were a lot of people touring inside the museum. Just like my first and second visit, I noticed that some staffs were a bit impolite to some visitors. The staffs in the information desk were very helpful though. However, the employees who were working in the register were showing lack of interests towards the guests. Since the Met is a very popular tourist attraction in NYC, I think that the employees should be friendlier and patient to the visitors.
Since I only get to explore a little part of the museum on my last visit, I did not expect how big the place is. Because the museum showcases over 5,000 years of art from around the world. The museum did not just focus in one collection, but many—including Asian art, European paintings, American history and many more (metmuseum.org). My perspective has changed since my first visit to the museum. As we tour around the museum, I realized that the admission price was worth the visit.
I get to see the Slit Gong or the Atingting kon, which I found out that it was the biggest gong. I also get see Vincent Van Gogh’s paintings that I only saw online. The tour guide also mentioned Van Gogh’s painting technique “impasto” that has a thick texture that leaves visible brush strokes. Bronzino’s “Portrait of a Young Man” is the opposite to Van Gogh’s technique. In Bronzino’s painting, there is no visible brush stroke compared to Van Gogh’s “impasto” painting style. The tour guide pointed out the gargoyles in Bronzino’s painting. She said that these gargoyles may represent masks.
After the tour, I walked around the museum. I will definitely come back to this place again. I feel like I went time traveling as I look at the sculptures, paintings, and historical objects in the museum.
Work Cited
Penn, A. (2016). Guide to the Met Fifth Avenue. Nycgo.org. Retrieved from https://www.nycgo.com/articles/guide-to-the-met-fifth-avenue
Metmuseum.org. Retrieved from https://www.metmuseum.org
the Slit Gong
Mural
Wheatfield
Portrait of a Young Man
