Exploring The Metroplitan Museum of Art

During my spring break, I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where Robert Lehman Wing had a special exhibition called Seurat’s Circus Slideshow. Some themes presented in his exhibition demonstrated nighttime circus scenes and performers where the audience gets to a taste from artists such as Daumier in the mid-19^th century to Picasso. In Robert Lehman’s regular gallery, which was a floor above, demonstrated remarkable art pieces in which the majority had a religious theme. Another major part of his exhibition illuminated women as the central subject of the art piece, most of which were nude. In the gallery there was also a piece where a female artist let herself be painted by other artists including herself. Two pieces of art that I found very interesting, and later had to connect, was Georges Seurat Study of “Models” in 1886-87 which was displayed in the special exhibition; and also Suzanne Valadon piece the Reclining Nude made in 1928.

            In the first piece I chose, Georges Seurat Study of “Models,” he drew the lady using conte crayon on paper. As shown in the above painting on the left, the lady seemed to be a little stiff and in an upright position with her head slightly tilted, her hands properly held together, one top of the other, with her weight being on top of her back foot for balance to maintain that position. It was one of the most “naturalistic” and “reminiscent” pieces of work due to the fact that Seurat’s study for the central figure was aiming for a stuff, frontal pose that was similar to the trombonist in Circus Sideshow and the “mannequin-like parkgoers” parading which is in the background. The artist addressed identity through the model in this art piece giving a demonstration of how some of the people who were presently there at the time were seen. If that was the case, I was a bit confused on why she had to be nude, if all the artist wanted to display was the position in which people were shown.

            As for the second piece of art, Suzanne Valadon’s Reclining Nude, was lined by oil on canvas and signed by the artist herself in the upper right in 1928. As mentioned in her label, Suzanne posed as a model for other artists before she began painting herself in 1893. She favored still lifes and portraits that she was best well-known for her paintings of female nudes. Paintings of female nudes was a subject rarely chosen by female artists. Similar to other women nude paintings, her gaze played a major role in the piece of art however it also shows how she covers her body by crossing her legs and covering her breasts which evokes gestures of modesty with Greek and Roman sculpture. The identity addressed in this portrait was of the artist herself who chose to become the model and subject within her self work. This painting connects both identity and self in one. She used her own body as the subject and yet was being part of the identity of most women. If some people may point out, most of the art work in this time period demonstrate women in full or partly nude that demonstrate the “ideal” body type, which is a skinny women with a nice body and butt. This portrait demonstrates the artist true body, in which at the time having an ideal body was not a major theme or subject. She was in her natural human state. This why her portrait struck out, because of her own self being displayed to the public with no problem.

            The artists and curators are telling the gallery audience that from years ago women were the chosen ones to pose or are used as subjects the majority of the time when expressing an idea. The first project I chose was labeled “The Study of Models” while portraying a woman to be the model. The natural beauty of them in their human nature physique is what impressed most painters. Similarly to the second portrait I chose, whom the painter chose her own self as the model to represent the central piece in her work. Nudity at the time was not a major theme to address back then especially with one’s own body.as shown with Suzanne. I believe for the first one, self is involved only when using her own body as the subject whereas self-portrait was rarely addressed due to the fact that her face was blurred out. In this painting, she was only the subject. Whereas the second painting, Suzanne became both the subject and made it a self-portrait of herself in her natural state. Most women at the time did not want to be part of this nudity because of the erotic comments given by the public. 

My selfie showed my reaction when visiting the museum which was mind-blowing. One painting that really gave this reaction was Saint Christopher and the Infant Child. This piece of art was very religious and it hit me when I saw the man holding Christ as a child on his shoulders while helping him cross the water. You can see the boats and villages on hills in the background. This struck me because of the fact that I saw it more in the perspective of Saint Christopher holding the world on his shoulders since, in my religion, Christ was a part of God.