The Masters Converge on Manhattan
- Details
- Category: Art, Museums, Galleries
- Published on Friday, 26 July 2013 10:01
- Written by Janet Walker
New York City is often thought of as the cultural capital of the world and it couldn’t be truer as summer 2013 has brought master artists, from Impressionists to Pop to Punk, into Manhattan’s museums.
The Museum of Modern Art houses the hottest exhibit of the summer. Random International’s Rain Room, located on W.53rd Street, which has drawn record crowds for its U.S. premiere. More than 65,000 visitors have braved the heat, wind, rain and pestilence, for up to ten hours to walk through the unusual installation.
Showing through July 28, the MOMA has extended hours to accommodate the huge demand for the Rain Room experience which allows visitors to experience the rain without getting wet. Motion detector sensors create a dry path within the installation as each visitor experiences the “immersive environment.”
The Museum of Modern Art will also feature an upcoming exhibition “American Modern: Hopper to O’Keeffe” from August 17 through December 31, 2013. The collection will highlight the work of great American painters from 1915 to 1950.
The Whitney Museum of American Art, located at 945 Madison Avenue, is showing a collection of Edward Hopper sketches. Running from May 23 through October 6, 2013, the showing reveals the early work of the 20th century artist who often used Manhattan as his backdrop capturing the loneliness of the life even in a crowded city and the solitude of nature.
The renderings are the early phases in Hopper’s creative process. Bringing life to an empty canvass was captured first through the pencil sketch and then as it evolved into a finished work transferred onto the canvass. Hopper, who never intended the sketches to be any more than his first draft, is considered one of the greatest American artists of the 20th century.
The American Museum of Natural History, located at Central Park West and 81st Street on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, is more than an exhibition trip. Each wing, room and collection holds the attention and imagination.
With traveling exhibits displayed in additions to the permanent exhibits the American Museum of Natural History is a must see for visitors and locals alike. The full size replica of the Trannysaurus Rex, that greets visitors upon entry or the room devoted to periods of species evolution including the life-sized Elephants, Lions, Tigers and yes, bears but also a true to life 94ft blue whale.
A special exhibit, running through January 5, 2014, Whales: Giants of the Deep walks visitors through the evolution of the mammoth species and is clearly a colossal collection.
The American Museum of Natural History is not to be missed. More than the evolution of animals the museum houses treasures from ancient civilizations including the Egyptian Room, complete with hieroglyphics transports visitors to a time long lost and still captured in exactness.
The Rose Center for Earth and Space and Hayden Planetarium allows visitors the chance to discover the universe displaying stars, constellations and galaxies.
“Journey to the Stars,” which premiered at July 4th 2009 is winding down and due to close October 4, 2013. Hayden Planetarium also is home to an IMAX auditorium which celebrates the worlds love for Penguins with an extended show of the IMAX title of the same name through January 9, 2014.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, located at 82nd and Fifth Avenue on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, offers locals and visitors alike the opportunity to become immersed in the world’s foremost collection of artistic expressions.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a maze of historical periods from the Impressionist showcasing works of Monet, Van Gough and Renoir to the work of Surrealist painter Salvator Dali, Max Ernst and Joan Miro.
With something for everyone, The Metropolitan Museum of Art is currently showcasing four special exhibitions. “Punk: Chaos to Couture” which runs through August 14, 2013. “The Roof Garden Commission: Imran Qureshi” ending November 3, 2013. “Balthus: Cats and Girls – Paintings and Provocations” runs through December 31 and “Photography and the American Civil War” ends September 2, 2013.
Museum Mile, as Fifth Avenue from East 82nd to East 104th Street is known, offers something for every culture, ethnicity and people. The Frick Collection, The Guggenheim, Cooper-Hewitt National design Museum, Museum of the City of New York, are just a few of the reasons New York is considered the world’s cultural Mecca.
For more information:
