What's On At the Met (and beyond) This Summer

 

 

 

 

1. The Met: Van Gogh’s Cypresses

 

Vincent Van Gogh spent the final years of his life in Provence, in the south of France, where cypress trees are inescapable. They struck a chord with the Dutch artist and feature predominantly in many of his works from this period, including the famous Starry Night  (on loan from the neighboring Museum of Modern Art). Van Gogh’s Cypresses brings together roughly 40 works, painted between 1888 and 1890 to explore Van Gogh’s fascination with the trees. The addition of letters between Van Gogh and his brother allows visitors to see how the trees captured Van Gogh’s imagination. Sketches take visitors inside his artistic process and the finished pieces remain some of the most iconic and enduring artworks ever made.

 

Dates: May 22nd - August 27th, 2023

 

 

2. The Met: Juan de Pareja, Afro-Hispanic Painter

 

Juan de Pareja’s face has long been a feature at the Met. His portrait, painted by the man who enslaved him for over 20 years, has been part of the museum’s permanent collection since 1970. Juan de Pareja, Afro-Hispanic Painter, brings history and art together, exploring the historical context within which Pareja lived and painted. The exhibition is interwoven with the research, notes and photos of Harlem Renaissance scholar Arturo Schomburg. The final room of the exhibition showcases Pareja’s own work, including “The Calling of Saint Matthew” where you can see a depiction of Pareja himself, on the left-hand side, gazing out at the viewer.

 

Dates: April 3rd - July 16th

 

 

3. The Met: The Roof Garden Commission, Lauren Halsey

If you visit the Metropolitan Museum anytime soon, make some time to head up to the Roof Garden. Lauren Halsey’s installation is meant to be inhabited, bringing together influences and iconography from South Central Los Angeles and ancient Egypt. Reimagining the space with tags carved into the stone walls and columns that combine ancient Egyptian imagery with representations of Halsey’s family.

 

Dates: April 18th - October 22nd

 

 

4. MoMA: To See Takes Time

 

Best known for her flower studies, Georgia O’Keefe’s contribution to American modern art can’t be overstated. With a particular focus on her work from 1915-1918, To See Takes Time, takes visitors on a journey through her long, varied career. With flowing charcoal drawings, bright watercolors and initial sketches, you’ll get a sense of her process and her passions. The centerpiece of the exhibition is her ‘Evening Star’ series, painted in 1917. In this series of eight paintings O’Keefe’s ability to capture the rhythm and flow of natural landscapes is showcased through the depiction of one Texan sunset.

 

Dates: April 9th - August 12th

 

 

5. Guggenheim: Timelapse, Sarah Sze

 

Rulers, clocks, wires and ladders. These everyday items are the materials Sarah Sze uses to bring her installations to life. Time is, of course, a strong theme with digital clocks, pendulums and repeated motifs of the moon and sun. Explore scenes of carefully designed chaos that spill out of the walls and floors as you make your way between the installations interspersed with paintings. Timelapse weaves its way through the Guggenheim, leading visitors up to the top floor where the exhibition truly takes over with immersive sounds and visuals.

 

Dates: March 31st - September 10th

 

 

6. David Zwirner Gallery: I Spend Each Day Embracing Flowers, Yayoi Kusama

If you’ve been to Grand Central Station recently, you’ve already had the pleasure of seeing Yayoi Kusama’s bright, colorful style featured along the Madison Concourse. The 120-foot-long mosaic is just a taste of what Kusama has to offer. At her new exhibition at the David Zwirner gallery, you can see her sculptures, installations and paintings, many of which are being displayed for the first time. A psychedelic, dream-like quality pervades each room, with giant sculptures of patterned multi-colored flowers and bright yellow, twisting pumpkins.

 

Dates: May 11th - July 21st

 

 

Written by Katherine Dunn