The Brooklyn Museum of Art, A Great Place to Visit
Written: Mar 17 '01 (Updated Mar 18 '01)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Hidden gem of a museum, like a sister to the Met.
Cons: Might be out of the way (from Manhattan), but it is Brooklyn's own.
The Bottom Line: BMA has a little of everything one.goes to a museum for. It.has great American paintings, Rodin, photographs. By far the best thing is First Saturday, a free program of art.music.dancing.film.
|
|
|
| soothsayer's Full Review: New York City Museums |
The Brooklyn Museum of Art, or BMA is a grand old museum located at Prospect Park right near the Brooklyn Central Library near Grand Army Plaza. Inside is a treasure trove of American Art, paintings, Rodin Sculptures, and historic artifacts. BMA has some of the same stuff as the Met, housed in a beaux-arts building like the Met, overlooking a park like the Met, but she is less well-financed, and less visited. Ok, enough with the comparisons, the Met is a nice place, but BMA stands in its own spotlight.
For one thing, BMA has the finest collection of American paintings in the United States. Well represented are artists like Cole, Church, and Audubon, as well 20th century artists like Georgia O'Keefe, and others. Among the European and Old Master collections are 58 works by Rodin, 12 of them relating to The Burghers of Calais in the Rodin Sculpture Court. On the third floor is a small section of Egypt replete with sarcophagi and mummies. On the first floor there is the Hall of the Americas sort of like the American Museum of Natural History with many anthropological artifacts and art, as well as a section devoted to African, and Pacific Arts. The museum's Near East section houses a great collection about Japan, and Iran, as well as a strong representation of Chinese furniture and art. On the fourth floor, the museum has devoted the entire floor to the decorative arts, furniture, textiles and costumes. There is even a full-scale wooden house, which one can enter and use.
Of course, a museum wouldn't be making so much money if it did not have special exhibits and controversy. Most of the time, the exhibits are well done, sometimes, however, they are not. I cannot fault the curators for being all encompassing and comprehensive, but usually they make an exhibit more confusing when they do that. Take for example one of the current exhibits, "Family Album: Brooklyn Collects" (until July 1, 2001). This exhibit features a sampling of the art being collected by people living in Brooklyn. I think most of the Brooklynites being honored in this exhibit must all be museum patrons, because all the names seem to be business owners and socialites. Anyway, it is an interesting exhibit; most of the art happens to be contemporary, although there are a lot of older stuff, antiques and other objects d'art.
The exhibit reminds me of a flea market where there are tables of stuff out in the open, and people are trying to sell it. The only difference is that the people are not there; their proxies in the form of short biographies affixed to the wall. But yeah, yeah, I know... the theme is about the people who collect the art, not really about the art itself. It is an interesting look-see.
I should mention that there is another exhibit currently being shown by the museum, and it is the source of another controversy. This time the controversy centers on a picture of a nude black woman as Jesus. The exhibit, entitled "Committed to the Image: Contemporary Black Photographs" (until April 29, 2001) seems to be all encompassing look at photographs by black photographers, and/or subjects who are black. However, all I can say is the exhibit did not seem too cohesive, but nevertheless, a good exhibit.
By far the best thing about the Brooklyn Museum is First Saturdays, which occur in the evening of the first Saturday of the month. Admission is free, and the place comes alive and crowded. There is a full themed program of music, film, and art all outlined on a thin bright yellow card. Usually there is a concert on the first floor while upstairs in the 3rd floor theater is either a dance performance, or a film. Later on, at 8-11pm, more music happens at the Beaux-Arts Court on the 3rd floor (picture the restaurant inside the "Breakers" Hotel of Palm Beach, FL. Well, it's not really that elegant, but you get the idea…). The space turns into a gigantic dance party where a lot of people are either dancing, or watching from the sidelines. If dancing is not your cup of tea, you may instead go see the film being shown at 9pm in the theater, or just be content in visiting the many galleries the BMA has to offer.
Hours are Wed-Fri from 10am-5pm; Sat-Sun from 11am-6pm. During First Saturdays, hours are 11am-11pm. Take the 2, 3 train to "Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum", exit and the museum is right there (hint: look behind you). By bus, take B71 to the museum doorstep; B41 and B69 to the Grand Army Plaza and walk over; or B48 to Franklin Avenue and Eastern Parkway. The museum, if you arriving by foot, or car, is on Eastern Parkway and Washington Avenue. Cost is $6.00 contribution, students and seniors $3.00. Free for under 12 with an adult.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Friends
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
|
|
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.