Look Down The Atrium

This was the view down the central atrium of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). I was standing on the 6th floor looking down on the furniture exhibition on the 2nd floor (left) and 1st floor (bottom right).

So how is the weather in your city. It has been drizzling non-stop since Sunday.

MoMA:Up in the Sky

This photo, taken while standing outside at the Sculpture Garden at MoMA, shows three distinct structures in the area. The triangle on the left is the Intersection II by Richard Serra and the triangle on the right is the roof of MoMA that extends out into the garden. The building in the middle of the photo is the highrise that abuts the museum.

This is a photo of the skylight on the 6th and top floor of the museum where special exhibitions are usually held. As you see, the MoMA is sandwiched between two highrise buildings. The building on the left is the same building in the first photo above.

MoMA: Richard Serra at the Sculpture Garden

This is a macro shot of Intersection II (1992-3), a gigantic structure by Richard Serra at the MoMA sculpture garden. It is made up of four identical bands of steel, each weighing 30 tons and measuring 13' high x 53' long and 2 1/8' thick. The structure is arranged in two parentheses formation like this: (( )).

Here is another shot of the Intersection II (below right) taken from inside the MoMA building. The other structure on the upper left is also by Richard Serra called, Torqued Ellipse IV.


Here is a link to more photos of the Intersection II on flickr.com by different photographers. They did a better job of capturing the image of the structure than I did.

MoMA: Monet & Pollock

Reflections of Clouds on the Water Lily Pond by Claude Monet (1840-1926) is one of the most spectacular works of art at the MoMA, not just for its sheer size (6' 6 3/4" x 41' 10 3/8" or 200 x 1276 cm) but its beauty and colors. The painting from the Impressionist movement, occupies the entire length of a gallery has three leather benches in front of it for admirers to sit down, relax and enjoy the scenery.

This painting by Jackson Pollock entitled, One: Number 31, 1950 is a perfect example of his drip and pour technique, which he popularized during the Abstract Expressionist era. The painting is 8' 10" x 17' 5 5/8" (269.5 x 530.8 cm) and is one of many Pollocks exhibited in the permanent collection at the MoMA.

When taking these photos, I was torn between simply taking a perfectly aligned photo of the art work only OR do I want to include museum goers in the picture. What do you think? Do you usually include strangers in your photo or do you make every effort to exclude them?

MoMA: Looking Up, Looking Down

I had a day off yesterday (Thursday) so I went to my favorite museum in the city, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) on 53rd Street between 5th and 6th Avenue. The reasons I love MoMA best are because: (1) it is small enough to see all the exhibitions in an afternoon but big enough to have a diverse collection of art; (2) the new building, designed by Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi, is simply spectacular; (3) it is very easy to get to from my apartment; and (4) there is a wonderful fruit and vegetable juice cart right outside the museum for some post-museum refreshments.

The photos above show the views of the 5-floor corridors from the mezzanine (left) and the mezzanine from the 5th floor corridor. For the rest of the week, I will be doing a series of photos from my visit to the MoMA.

Do you have a favorite museum or place near your home where you can visit on your day off?