The Metropolitan Museum of Art Trip Report – Scarlette

I want to start off by saying that the Metropolitan Museum of Art is absolutely enormous. I didn’t know much about the museum, and I still don’t, but when I chose it as my trip destination, I hadn’t grasped the feat that it would actually be. I think a big reason as to why I wanted to visit it was because of the Met Gala. Exhibitions about fashion are some of my favorites and I was very excited to visit the Costume Institute at the Met. However, at this time it didn’t seem as if they had an exhibition, as they may be preparing for the Met Gala.

I didn’t get the chance to really appreciate the museum for its entirety because the enormity of it. The little time that I had spent there, I was lost for half of it. I remember having to ask for the exit at least four times, without realizing that I was near it the entire time. The exhibits that I did get to see were absolutely fabulous. Since I was lost for a while, I stumbled into the Met’s medieval art exhibit. Most of the first floor seemed to be dedicated to medieval art as well as interiors of Roman and Spanish castles. I remember thinking that I felt as if I was inside an actual castle during medieval times. The actual layout of the exhibit as well as the Met is very reminiscent of one, and I was completely in love with it. The Mary and Michael Jaharis Gallery was a space that I absolutely adored because it made me feel as if I was in the basement of one of those medieval castles. There were little rooms hidden everywhere that led you to even more exhibits.

One of my favorite parts were that of the armor that soldiers had to wear during the war. I had always seen the armor on television but never in person. I was absolutely enamored by it because it gave me a glimpse to the attire of men during war. It made me realize how hard it must have been to have been in the middle of a war having to wear attire that looked incredibly heavy.

The life-size statues of Roman emperors and gods were a bit creepy sometimes. I felt as if some of the eyes of the statues were actually following me. However, since I hadn’t seen sculptures of that size in person, it was absolutely flooring to see them. It made me appreciate the talent of these artists a lot more because of how real the statues seemed. Not real in the sense that they might come alive after everyone in the museum has left, but real as in the planes of their chests and the actual position of their body parts seemed very life-like. Another favorite part of mine, regarding this particular exhibition was that of the rooms on display. The layout of the rooms was taken from actual houses and hotels during this time. I loved seeing how people had their rooms decorated back then, what they thought was most important to have in one’s own room. The layout of these houses and hotels also included layouts of churches. I think most of them were Christian churches, though I can’t be sure. However, the were absolutely spectacular to look at. The overall layout of them made me feel as if I was actually transported back in time and I was just aimlessly walking around to what was actually the place I lived in. It was very majestic.

After walking around trying to find the exit for, like, the fifteenth time, I stumbled upon the contemporary and modern art gallery. This is usually the art that I tend to like the most, and I was not disappointed with the exhibit that was in the Met. A great deal of the paintings and sculptures were life-size, and I loved every single one of them. This particular piece is by Ranjani Shettar. It’s titled “Seven Ponds and a Few Raindrops” and was one of my favorite pieces of art. The artist is mostly focused on the now threatened environment of her native India. The work is supposed to represent different transformations as well as something akin to a hidden oasis.

I definitely want to visit again and see the Costume Institute’s new exhibit, which relates to the medieval art exhibit, as well. This was a very nice visit and I want to go back again to see the rest of exhibits I didn’t get a chance to look at.