The visit to the Rubin Museum was a Macaulay seminar trip that I’ll cherish. Located in the magnificent Chelsea neighborhood, the outside view of the museum was very unique. It didn’t look like a traditional museum, which basically is a big building with Greek or some form of traditional architecture. It’s different, modern exterior already made me realize that this was going to something unexpected. The inside was a whole different world. Our first was the gift shop. There was such mix of cultures in just the gift shop that I felt as if I was standing in some international airport. The gift shop actually reminded me of a gift shop I went to in the Delhi International Airport. I even found a book on Sikh art, which is so rare to find! Our museum guide was also very well versed in the subject and very passionate about it as well. Her passion made the tour much more lively and enjoyable. The spiral staircase was also a grand feature of the building. The staircase was left intact from the original Barneys building and it fits in with the museum perfectly. The idea behind the staircase, ascending up the Himalayas, just says how thought out and unique an attempt the Rubins have made to represent South Asia. My favorite part of the tour was the ‘om’ room. It was really peaceful to just sit down there and listen to the meditation. The part where we put our hands on the wall and listen to the chants was also a great feature. During an orientation dinner at Brooklyn College a neonatologist gave a presentation talking about the connection between meditation and recovery from surgery. He focused on the Rubin Museum and talked about how it shows the meditative culture of the Himalayan people. He even takes his medical students to the Rubin Museum because he himself is a volunteer there! Because of this prior history, it was even more satisfying to visit the museum. Overall, it was refreshing and assuring to see that such an unique culture from a different part of the world is preserved, respected and revered in this land.
