Dear there’s not enough art museums in Iceland so here’s NYC,
Going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is like entering one of those old candy stores where you can chose your poison by the fistfuls and only at the end understand the damage you’ve brought upon yourself. Now, this is not to say the museum is to be avoided, not at all! It is to be cherished and appreciated, but with intentionality and understanding. Sure, you can enter not knowing anything and get a general idea of what it has to offer, but it is best to enter knowing what you want out of it.
I can’t say I always make a conscious choice when I enter the entrance hall and start floating up the central staircase only to realize I wanted to see the Medieval section or maybe what updates they’ve brought into the Ancient Greek section. But this is not to mourn over any of that, this is to bring to light a section which truly touched me when I last had a chance to visit. The art by a selection of artists within The Hudson River School.
Tucked away in the American Wing (specifically rooms 761 and 759), past all the large portraiture and paintings, sits the 2 rooms filled with charming and alluring landscapes of the great American outdoors. Well, I should clarify and say they’re not real outdoor images, but things the artists wanted the audience to see. And boy, I feel so drawn to these whimsical pieces. They feel magnetic, like windows into places that aren’t but you wish were.
I spent a good half hour at least with my friend wandering around these two rooms making comments as if we had anything good to say about art history and interpreting what all of the pieces could mean. I know how much you love the ocean, and there were some really good ocean pieces there. Here’s one, Stage Fort across Gloucester Harbor by Fitz Henry Lane (formerly Fitz Hugh Lane).
I think the main thing I love about this image is how tranquil it all seems, and you can’t tell if its the sunrise or the sunset but everything seems to be held in suspense, waiting for something…
I’m trying to find another painting that I thought you’ve love but you’ll have to visit to come see it for yourself.
Here’s some stuff to read if you want to know more about the Hudson River School:
American Paradise: The World of the Hudson River School by MET
Good luck out there~
Ur pal, Lucia