The Met!

Among the exhibits we visited was the hall of medieval art. One of the major themes was of course pious humility. Most pieces featured the Madonna. This makes sense because at the time, most everything in the world was explained in terms of religious perspective and was defined be relationship to God. Therefore, it also makes sense that people of the time would feature the Madonna on their walls, entryways, and fireplaces. If religion was the most important aspect of their lives, and it certainly played a large part, it is only natural that the likeness of Jesus and His mother be prominent in their daily lives.
Another of the exhibits that we had time to visit was the American wing. Mostly in this section were furniture (which looked comfortable and appealing after running around New York all day) and portraits. Something that I thought a lot about while walking through the exhibit was why these two forms of art might be so prominent in early American culture as opposed to something like clay working or architecture or statues like one might find in Europe. My answer to myself is primarily that people create art with the supplies to which they have access. Based on the fact that the nation was merely trying to establish itself, consider the idea that people are also trying to establish a social hierarchy, and one way of doing that is by possessing art pieces. Coming to a new continent, while not completely equalizing, certainly leveled the playing field a bit. At the same time, people needed furniture. Maybe the two needs collided, and suddenly having ornamental furniture filled that purpose. That is not to say that having elaborate furniture did not fill that purpose before, but it possibly became the primary means to identify someone’s status within those high-flying circles.
Finally, we ended our tour of the museum with the suits of armor. There is little to say about them except that it is surprising how much ornament and effort was put into something that had a lot of potential to be beaten in.
Overall, I wish we had had more time to spend in the Met. As it was, we only got to spend a few measly hours. One could certainly spend days exploring without seeing everything.