The Arts in New York City

When I was younger, I used to take ballet classes in this small red building located in Chinatown. Other than dancing, I didn’t know that there was anything else to this place. It wasn’t until when my mother decided to visit the director of the dance program that I discovered the hidden museum in the back. The Museum of Chinese in the Americas (MoCA) was tucked away in a limited section of the second floor of the same building I have been dancing in for a few years. Read the rest of this entry »

When I was ten years old, I went with mother to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was an informative experience but, at such a young age, I could only say that it looked pretty. This past Friday, after about an eight-year hiatus, I returned to the Met. On this occasion, I was to view the art as a student rather than as a spectator.

Read the rest of this entry »

In America, Halloween is seen as a day of mischief, fright, and fun. Children, teens, and adults alike take part in this scary tradition on October 31. We all have an urge to behave badly whether it be pulling silly pranks or dressing more provocatively than usual because we are free from ourselves under the guise of a costume. We are allowed to be someone else for a day, a welcome relief from our everyday lives. Most of all we associate Halloween with terror and fright (not to mention candy). The MF Gallery’s Fiftth Annual Halloween Art show on the Lowest East Side was an attempt to articulate the essence of Halloween through art. My visit to the Halloween Art Show was the quintessential Halloween experience: full of terror, and fun (unfortunately minus the candy). Read the rest of this entry »

If you are into all that is gory, freaky, and downright frightening, be sure to visit the annual Halloween art exhibition at the MF Gallery in the Lower East Side. As I entered the tiny shop, with its loud rock music blaring in the background, I realized that this was no ordinary store. Sure, there was a display case full of funky toys and a rack of stylish print T-shirts on sale, but what was most appealing was definitely the paintings, drawings, and figurines mounted on the walls. Admiring these creepy pieces was almost like taking an exciting tour around a museum, except this exhibition was certainly not suitable for children. Read the rest of this entry »

Like an oasis in the desert lies the Bronx Museum of the Arts. This relatively small structure, a worthwhile hike up to 165th St. E Grand Concourse, currently houses an exhibition by Quisqueya Henriquez. The Cuban-Dominican artist embodies variety and creativity. Her pieces, ranging from installations to drawings, capture our attention and allow us to partake in her vision. From the moment we enter the museum, the experience begins. Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone enjoys going to a concert…right? After all, it is always better when you get to see your favorite artists perform live in a big-time venue like Radio City Music Hall. Unfortunately, this was not the case for me at the Boost Mobile RockCorps concert on October 6th at Radio City in New York City. The RockCorps concert, contrary to the name, was not a rock concert at all; it was a rap concert. I have never had much tolerance for rap, mostly because of the obscene antics and the x-rated lyrics that the artists feel necessary to put in to their songs to enhance their work. Yet, this proved to be the perfect opportunity for me to put aside my bias, explore, and try to create a new perspective on this musical genre.
Read the rest of this entry »

This is my second time visiting Moma. The first time, like most of the visitors there, my eyes were glued to the masterpieces by those renowned first-class artists like Van Gogh, Monet or Picasso. Nevertheless, coming here again, I found it more interesting to compare those classic arts with the ones created by people from this new age. The comparison reshapes my definition of art: Today’s art has transformed its focus from skills to ideas. Read the rest of this entry »

As a student in New York City, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is far from being an unfamiliar place. The iconic institution is an A-Class favorite for students, teachers, and art fans from around the world. However, as strong as the desire to survey the entire museum may be, it is unlikely that even the most devoted art connoisseur could manage the Met’s gigantic and highly impressive collection. Which are why, after a trek and a picnic in the neighboring Central Park, the two attractions that I wandered upon stood out to me as almost opposites in the Met collection spectrum. On one hand, the Met holds classics like the pieces found in the Robert Lehman Collection, a popular gallery with gallery talks led by eccentric old ladies nearly three times a day, and on the other hand, there are more contemporary gems like Depth of Field gallery featuring a much smaller, but equally as significant, collection of modern photography. This eclectic clash is really what makes the Met a unique place and while I can say I have my votes for what I consider art, both collections offered me a new insight to the subject.

Read the rest of this entry »

I have learned a big lesson today: I should not ever go to free museums. While looking up for a list of free museums, I came across the Whitney Museum of American Art at Altria, so I then decided to give it a try. Well, it was not a smart choice. Read the rest of this entry »

Gallery Talk: Across the Mediterranean: Renaissance Sculpture in Spain
Location: Metropolitan Museum

I went to Metropolitan Museum of Art for a gallery talk on Renaissance sculpture in Spain on September 21, 2007. I learned a lot about Spanish sculpture during the Renaissance period from Vivian Gordon, my tour leader. There was lots of information to be absorbed in a gallery talk that only lasted for less an hour. We covered many Spanish art works, such as Orpheus, Saint John The Baptist, and The Holy Family with Saints Anne and Joachim. The Spanish sculpture was a microscope of European’s art history. Sculptors from Italy, Netherlands and other European countries all had come to Spain to work, and had influenced the Spanish sculpture’s style more or less. I noticed trace of the Italian style in several Spanish sculptures as Gordon indicated. Just as I expected and noticed in the title of this gallery talk, Renaissance sculpture in Spain resembles characteristics of art works across the Mediterranean. Read the rest of this entry »