The Met (General Museum Visit - 2 pts.) - Alyssa Amaker

 

On Saturday, September 14th, I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. It was my first time visitng the museum, so I perused its exhibits and collections aimlessly in hopes of seeing some art I liked.

I really enjoyed the Italian paintings of the life of Jesus Christ in its various stages, specifically "The Adoration of the Magi" by Giotto di Bondone. I was exposed to a variety of mediums, and my favorite paintings were either tempura on wood or oil on copper. 

(Photo from the Afro-Futurist Period Room)

However, I did notice that a large majority of this museum depicts European people and their cultures— only a small "Afrofuturist Period Room" detailing the history of the African American community that once stood in Central Park's place before its demolition, and an African exhibit that includes artifacts from Cameroonian, Igbo, Yoruba peoples and various other African populations. I was glad to see that in the description of some of the European paintings, however, acknowledgements of the artists' omissions of enslaved people. I found these omissions intriguing and unsettling, but what's new?

I feel as though I need to go back to the Met to fully appreciate it, but next time, I definitely won't enter its doors expecting to see diasporic people represented in their fullness.

Lastly, here is a piece I really enjoyed: