[click on picture to enlarge - taken via iPhone]
The Metropolitan Museum attracts more visitors than any other attraction in New York City. About 5 million per year! But where to start? There is so much to see! It is impossible to see the entire collection in one day, or even in a few days, so I recommend you choose an area or two of interest, or take the Museum Highlights Tour which occurs throughout the day, starting around 10:15 a.m. Tours are free with the museum ticket. Most of them are given by (friendly) volunteers trained by the museum. Some of them may be even Belgian... imagine that! And they are all different, as each tour is a selection of artworks chosen by the guide giving it.
I'll let you in a little less-known fact to non New Yorkers: admission prices are recommended: any donation will gain you access to the Museum. Indeed the Met does not require you to pay an admission fee: you can donate a dollar or a few coins (or nothing at all) and you will still get in. Art should be accessible to all, shouldn't it? On the other hand, if you come often, why not becoming a member? A $50 membership will give you access to the museum, whenever you want. Your donation is tax deductible and you can call yourself a patron of the arts. And that is very cool, she says waiving her membership card. ;)
Check out this link for a list of museums with suggested donations policy and museums with free hours.
7 comments:
Good advice. I think we pay something like that for our MFA annual membership.
I think the Times did a story on museum "donations" not too long ago, but it always bears repeating. I guess there is hope for our civilization if the Met attracts more visitors than every other venue in NYC. Art should be available for everyone and it isn't art if it doesn't make at least one person uncomfortable:)
It is overwhelming if you go for the first time. I've been to the Met half a dozen times already and I don't think I have seen it all.
Je ne connaissais pas le système de TOURS. Intéressant pour mon prochain voyage !
•fénix: probably. I wouldn't know. I enter for free (museum staff) :) Hey, they have some great programs like indie films (I saw a French on the schedule) and discussions with personalities (author, artist, directors, ...). Plus I read it's the place to mingle on Friday (or is it Thursday) nights for hip singles.
•clueless: couldn't agree more with you. I have a few objects in my tour that are a bit original (actually they all are, but some more than others). I always love to see the expressions on the faces before I tell them what it is about. Then you see when it changes. Priceless. :)
•ming: It's huge, encyclopedic. The building is approx 2mio.sq.feet. It contains about 3 mio.works of art. I am there every other weekend and i still get lost and can't figure out where certain things are. I know some people who came every w.e. since childhood and they still discover tons of stuff. Amazing, uh?
•claudine: absolument. il faut utiliser les petits trucs quans il y en a. Si vous cliquez sur le lien que j'ai ajouté, vous trouverez une liste de musées qui sont gratuits à certaines heures, ainsi que ceux qui pratiquent les "recommended donation" (i.e. on peut payer ce que bon nous semble, le prix affiché est une suggestion. On peut le payer aussi). Le Met offre aussi des tours en Français (uniquement en semaine). Les horaires sont disponibles sur le website. Il suffit de sélectionner une date au choix pour voir les tours ou gallery talks offerts ce jour là.
Elaine, this is such great information. I will tuck it away in my memory for when I visit NYC someday. You are a great tour guide to your city! So are you the Belgian docent you mention? ;^) If so, I'd want to book a tour with you!
-Kim
Seattle Daily Photo
•kim: good guess... ;) Wave when you're in NYC, ok?
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