For many museum-goers, it can be quite tiring when you feel as though you have to compete with tourists to see writing on papyrus in the Egyptian gallery at the Met or even trying to catch a glimpse of the newest contemporary exhibit at the MoMa. Although these museums are popular and quite prestigious within good reason, it is no doubt exhausting to appreciate artistic pieces when it can be impossible to even view the piece up close. If you’re seeking to experience some interesting, off the beaten path galleries at a few underground museums, here are some of New York City’s slightly eccentric, engaging museums that you can’t really afford to miss out on.
Robert Ryman
Dia Chelsea
Robert Ryman’s quiet, white abstraction based art highlights minimalism at its finest, while also shedding light on the technique for the viewer to “see less to experience more.” Ryman’s rarely exhibited works reveal him as a an artist who is capable of manipulating both light and color as means to change the image the viewer sees. This in turn creates sort of an opaque colored layer between the various shades of his pieces which date from 1958-1985. Through his pieces, we can experience his exploration of fiberglass and enamel as seen by how his artistic style changes with various textures that add depth to each piece in a different, particular manner.
Superheroes in Gotham’
New-York Historical Society
Perfectly designed and essentially made for every individual who is passionate about comic book art, this museum showcases original art from Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Captain America and Iron Man. Pieces include a wide range of art from Gotham-based caped crusaders and campy products that would please any avid lover of marvel comics. One interesting relic that the New York Historical Society is displaying is the George Reeves’s Superman costume from the ’50s, which is absolutely incredible.
‘Ebony G. Patterson: Dead Treez’
Museum of Arts & Design
Ebony Patterson’s show can best be explained through works that focus on jewels, gems and other very shiny stones that are specific to her artistic style. Her flashy sculptural installations highlight the role of adornment in populations that produce an invisible wall because of poverty and other ways people to try block out what actually affects them in their day to day lives. She cleverly uses the jewels in order to point out the fact the materialism can often create an emotional, social or mental barrier that forbids us to face reality.
John Partilla, CEO of Screenvision, is a marketing industry executive with more than thirty years of experience. He’s held executive positions at numerous institutions after graduating from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, as well as earning an MBA from Columbia Business School. Please visit http://JohnPartilla.net, http://JohnPartillaNYC.com, and http://JohnPartillaMedia.com to learn more. Also, find him on LinkedIn.