The MET Museum Review
Being a fan of Modern Art the Met isn’t usually my go too museum to occupy my free time and now for more reasons than one. When I arrived, there was a huge line of people flowing and meandering all the way around the building, almost hitting Central Park. After my 25 minute wait, I was finally at the front where they checked for vaccines and ids. Having had bought a time slot ticket a few days in advance made very little difference as I had to wait in the line either way. I assume they do not have a max capacity as most people in the line seemed to be just winging it assuming they would just get in, to which they were right. After having had the security check and being asked if I had brought my knives with me instead of checking I hadn’t and taking my word for it, I then went to purchase my ticket and luckily managed to skip that line and headed for one of the very few ticket machines. Which was easy and quick to use. Although they could definitely do with a few more of those other than the 3 I saw. A good student price of $12. The ticket was a 2 part sticker which is smart, meaning if you lose one half you luckily have the other to rely on. The bathrooms were hard to find and the only ones I saw during my time at the Met. Unsurprisingly there was a line, it didn’t seem particularly clean and didn’t smell anything close to fresh roses. Unlike the gender-neutral bathrooms at the Moma, the Met seemed a bit behind with singular gendered bathrooms and no disabled bathroom. Luckily there was hand sanitizer outside to save the day.
I mainly went to the permanent collections. Starting off with Ancient Egypt and The American Wing. Very dark lighting, all the walls, and cases were of the same green / beige color. A similar color to all the pieces, therefore making them all blend in together. This also meant that none of the pieces or art stood out to catch my eye, honestly a rather dull display. The directions to get around these galleries weren’t great and would definitely not be too helpful if you were looking for something specific. The American wing had a brighter yellow light than Ancient Egypt which helped to see the pieces and their details better. I then was led out to the large extension room that held a pond and created a far more calming atmosphere than the hectic dark gallery spaces. This area also held 2 rebuilt temples. You could close up see all the beautiful hand engraved carvings in the stones. These were from the Ptolemaic Period. These two rebuilt temples were also an eye-catcher for the many tourists in the Met, as many of them were having their photographs taken in front of them.
The Israel Slack Gallery was a very innovative way to display all the antique furniture as the outside of it was built to look like a beautiful house and the inside was arranged to also make it look like someone’s home as opposed to displaying the pieces in just a simple gallery space. It helped to amplify the realistic necessity and use of the pieces during the era they originated. One of the rooms in this gallery was a 360 panorama landscape painting demonstrating the lush gardens and beautiful architecture of The Palace of Versailles. Unfortunately, the lighting in this room wasn’t taken into account with the use of plastic information signs because the light reflected straight off it making it very hard to read. I did notice that throughout the Met most of the information signs for the pieces on display were very small and with small font making it very difficult to read. It also creates a lot of crowding which becomes extremely stressful in these such spaces. Not all the information signs had numbers for the headphone sets. I only really noticed it a few times, not ideal if you have eyesight issues and are relying on the headsets.
I then found myself in the sculpture room with the cafe, which had many skylights but still seemed confusingly very dark. The cafe was thriving with people and seemed very popular a good halfway breakpoint. Other than the seating in the cafe, There weren’t many benches around which was surprising as they seem like a museum necessity. Especially for a Museum like the Met which appeals to an older demographic that is far more in need of rest breaks and a place to sit. Although I noticed an area in the cloakroom in which you could get a wheelchair if needed, the cloakroom was actually closed but I’m sure there would be a way of receiving a wheelchair if needed. I then sat down and did some sketches of Ancient Greek statues which was hugely therapeutic (See Sketches below). Trying to leave the museum was almost as hard as getting in, it was a game-like maze trying to figure out where to go with no directions, arrows, or exit signs. Quite the hazard and not a place you want to be lost if a fire breaks out.
The Met has a long-standing reputation but in my opinion, they are holding on to it tightly for customers, as opposed to rethinking and revising certain aspects of the museum to better it. It seems to me very little has been done to modernize or make the museum more accessible and adaptable. The curation of the galleries seem a little outdated and could use a revamp to attract a larger demographic of people whilst creating more intrigue to the pieces on display.
