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The Metropolitan Museum of Art unveils its new American Wing
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The Engelhard Court at the Met's new American Wing
Before they were closed for renovation two years ago, the American period rooms at the Metropolitan Museum of Art were one of its best kept secrets. While crowds of tourists surged through the Met’s Great Hall and lined up three-deep to see certain heavily-promoted exhibits, it was always easy to wander through the period rooms in peace and quiet.
Over the years, I’ve stood undisturbed in the harmoniously-decorated 1765 Powel Room, imagining tea time in old Philadelphia; loitered beneath the chrystal chandelier in the lovely, neo-classical Benkard Room from Petersburg, Virginia (1811); and drifted around the 1793 Alexandria Ballroom, imagining myself decked out in green, watered silk, dancing a minuet with George Washington. In each of these rooms, at one time or another, I found myself gloriously alone, free to commune—uninterrupted—with the beauty of another place and time.
That was before Michelle Obama came to town yesterday to herald the redesign and reopening of parts of the American Wing—and announce the Obamas’ support for arts education. “The president and I want to ensure that all children have access to great works of art,” she told an audience at the Met that included many public school children. “This is your place too!”
I couldn’t agree with the Obamas more. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of our great treasures. It belongs to every New Yorker—young or old, whether they live on Park Avenue, in the Bronx or deepest Brooklyn. Beyond that, the Met belongs to all Americans and to all mankind. That’s because it’s the repository of so many incredible pieces of the world’s cultural heritage—not just in the American Wing but throughout the museum. And that’s why it’s so important that everyone be welcomed into the Met and made to feel at home.
The redesign of the American Wing is part of an effort to make that happen. Curators have filled the glass-enclosed Engelhard Court--through which visitors enter the wing--with marble and bronze sculptures. Inside, the architects rearranged the sequence of the 19 period rooms to put them in chronological order, added a glass elevator and punched out extra doors to draw visitors from one historical period to another. They also installed touch screen computers, filled with information about the objects in each room.
Whether the redesign succeeds in drawing a larger and more diverse group remains to be seen. Clearly the Met will need more than architectural modifications and computer screens to reach all those kids of every race and income bracket that the Obamas have in mind. And that’s not to mention the many grown-ups who’ve never stepped inside the Met or any museum and would probably be amazed if they did. To connect with all these people, the Met will need a massive outreach campaign. That’s something that’s long overdue and I’m rooting for them.
But I wouldn’t be honest if I didn’t admit there’s a part of me that will be sorry to see these rooms—some of the last tranquil, public sanctuaries left in Manhattan—overrun with people, no matter what their ages or origins. I’d like to keep the little, oak-timberd, early colonial Hart Room, with its cozy bed, hung with red curtains, all to myself…at least on occasion.
If I were president, I’d mandate that every American be allowed to have their very own private museum, an oasis of art and beauty, far from the stress of life in 2009—a place to go to contemplate the past and dream about the future. Surely this would be a more worthy use of the bailout money. Only kidding! But wouldn’t it be lovely?
The newly refurbished parts of the American Wing are now open to the public. In addition to the regular schedule, they and other selected parts of the museum will be open this Monday for Memorial Day. Visit the Met's website for details.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art - 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street – New York, NY. Information: 212-535-7710
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