As the daughter of an artist, I spent my childhood around pots of gouache and turpentine, and in various museums. We used to go to the art museum or to the museum of nature (to sketch) on Sundays, and I attended countless launch parties for exhibitions (as a kid, I loved the free food and the cheap orange juice served there!).

I don’t go to museums as much as I used to, except when I travel. In New York City, we had to make a choice: to visit either the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). The latter was high on my to-do list because I was hoping to see some modern Western masterpieces such as The Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon by Pablo Picasso, and work by artists I admire such as Frida Kahlo, Louise Bourgeois, Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Francis Bacon and Roy Lichtenstein.

We were lucky, we visited the museum on Target Free Friday Nights, after 4 p.m., when admission was free. No small savings, considering the ticket is $25!

The lineup on the sidewalk to pick up the free tickets was quick, but we then queued for quite a while to check our daypack. The museum was busy, which I found oddly comforting—yes, people still appreciate art!

The MoMA is huge but very visitor-friendly, and we quickly found our way to the two “painting and sculpture” floors where most of the work we wanted to see was. I loved watching the people react to the art, and I enjoyed seeing the masterpieces with my own eyes. The MoMA felt very friendly and not intimidating, which I appreciated. I just wish we had had more time and more energy—much like in the Musée du Louvre you can easily spend an entire day or more in the museum. After a couple of hours, we decided to call it a day and headed out for dinner.

But the MoMA is definitely a must see in NYC!

What’s your favourite museum, anywhere in the world?

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)

Free Tickets!
Art at the MoMA
Map of the World, Alighiero Boetti
Visitors and Exhibition
Visitors and Exhibition
Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, Pablo Picasso
Girl before a Mirror, Pablo Picasso
Three Musicians, Pablo Picasso
The Starry Night, Vincent van Gogh
Art at the MoMA
Art at the MoMA
Reflections of Clouds on the Water-Lily Pond, Claude Monet
Gold Marilyn Monroe, Andy Warhol
Flag, Jasper Johns
MoMA’s Architecture

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13 Comments

  1. Isa July 13, 2012 at 8:03 am

    My favourite museum might be the Victoria and Albert Museum in London… Le Musée d’Orsay is gorgeous too. But, unfortunately, I don’t have much time to go to museums… 🙁 When I visit a new city, though, the first one I’m going is ALWAYS the Natural History Museum. Go figure!

    Reply
    1. Zhu July 14, 2012 at 11:17 am

      I don’t think I have ever been to the Musée d’Orsay–shame on me! I find museums very expensive in Paris, and when we visit we have to make a choice. London had great museums though.

      Reply
  2. Raj July 14, 2012 at 12:11 am

    Hi,

    We guys had a well deserved break n the trip to NY is really gr8.

    Louvre museum is in top to c list once i settle in canada. Will make a special trip to france for it 🙂

    Reply
    1. Raj July 14, 2012 at 12:13 am

      * U guys

      Reply
    2. Zhu July 14, 2012 at 11:22 am

      The Louvre is great… but remember it’s huge and it takes time to cover everything!

      Reply
  3. Jeruen July 14, 2012 at 9:16 pm

    Oh I love modern art museums. I guess one of my favorite art museums is the Hirschhorn Museum in Washington DC, part of the Smithsonian Institution. It is free admission, and the modern art pieces are very innovative and entertaining. I have to say though, that the museum that creeped me out was another modern art museum, the Museum Moderner Kunst in Vienna. The lowest level was accompanied by a warning, as it contained disturbing images. The MuMoK is a bastion of Viennese Actionism, which involved cutting up animals and spraying their blood on blankets and bed sheets. It was gross.

    Reply
    1. Zhu July 15, 2012 at 12:51 pm

      Okay, I’d probably skip the “gross museum” (although maybe not… I’d be curious!) but I’d visit the other ones. I haven’t been to a lot of museums in the U.S. so far, mostly because we often end up in smaller towns.

      Reply
  4. Gaston July 14, 2012 at 10:49 pm

    You Must go to the Met Museum. I was really impressed when I visited it. You won’t regret it.

    Reply
    1. Zhu July 15, 2012 at 12:51 pm

      Next time, next time! Thank you for the advice. 🙂

      Reply
  5. barbara July 16, 2012 at 4:08 am

    Interesting experience!
    I don’t know very much about modern art but I imagine that it doesn’t matter a lot. The only thing that seems to matter is your appreciation of what touches you.

    I always enjoyed Andy Warhol’s work, but not as much Picasso.
    I didn’t know that the “Starry night” was at the MOMA.

    Happy Monday!

    Reply
    1. Zhu July 17, 2012 at 11:47 am

      I love Andy Warhol! I discovered him through Loud Reed when I was a teen.

      Reply
  6. Cynthia July 19, 2012 at 5:49 am

    Your dad’s last name is the same as my grandma’s who has recent Breton origins, funny eh?

    I find 25 USD to be a steep price for locals, they have to be working on Wall Street to visit museums like this every week 😉

    Reply
    1. Zhu July 19, 2012 at 11:06 pm

      That’s funny! It’s a fairly common name in France though, which is why I often use my mother’s name, which is unique to our family.

      Reply

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