Some things I liked in the Met this time

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It`s always a pleasure to visit the Met but why did they have to set the entry charge so high- at 25$ for non-New Yorkers- a charge prohibitive to those who are on a limited budget and so high as to discourage the repeat visits that are necessary to know this vast collection. Surely the benefactors did not intend that the works should only be accessible to the wealthy?

That caveat aside, here are some things that struck me especially this time-

Velázquez, Portrait of a man, ca. 1630–35

Velázquez, Cardinal Camillo Astalli-Pamphili, ca. 1650

Titian, Filippo Archinto, 1550s

Hans Memling, Portrait of an old Man, 1475

These renaissance portraits struck me with their combination of perceptiveness and gentleness.

Titian, Venus and the Lute Player, 1565-70

Rubens, A Forest at Dawn with a Deer Hunt, c. 1635

The falling tree is a visual metaphor for the prospects of the deer, I suppose. 

Conversation, Vuillard, 1897-8

I found the aspect of visual puzzle above enjoyable.

Still life with Ham, Philippe Rousseau, 1870s

The handling of paint and tonal control in this still life are so assured that this painting transfixes.

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I was very taken by these detailed and elegant designed woodblock prints by Kitagawa Utamaro  from the Picture Book of Crawling Creatures,1788,  26.7 x 18.4 cm

Cone-headed Grasshopper or Locust; Praying Mantis

Spider

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Ariadne, Giorgio de Chirico,1913

View of Collioure. Henri Matisse, 1907

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Ceremomial Banner (Roto), Toraja people

 Indonesia, Sulawesi, Ronkong, late 19th century

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Bis Pole. Wood, fibre paint, Indonesia, Papua Province
 Asmat People, 1950s


This tall, fantastical Indonisal sculptures are quite delightful. Their scale and effect aren`t conveyed in the photos I could find, alas. You have to visit...

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