On a free Saturday, I decided to visit the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. I am not a museum goer because visual art is usually boring to me. I don’t usually spend the time to really look at each piece. I just glance and see if something is pretty or not and move on. Nonetheless, after the Guggenheim presentation, I thought the museum might be worth visiting.
Even after the presentation, nothing could have prepared me for the experience of just walking into the building. As soon as you walk in, you look up and see the beautiful spirals. Then you notice how loud but simultaneous muffled everyone sounds. It’s truly a unique experience. Even though the Guggenheim representative told us this was the usual reaction, I didn’t expect it to happen exactly how she described. I have never been to a museum with even an atrium that’s memorable.
My favorite exhibit displayed was the artwork by Rashid Johnson. One of the pieces was familiar to me because someone in class presented on it. But I remember staying in that exhibit for a very long time. A lot of Johnson’s artwork looks weird, abstract, or plain. That is until you sit down with the piece and read what it’s about. That’s when you see the intricacies or the weight of the story behind the piece and see the beauty in it. One of Johnson’s piece that I especially liked was “Stay Black and Die”. Looking at it, its just a black sheet with brown letters with some orange patches that read, “Stay Black and Die” but the story behind it was truly touching. He created that piece and the others (which are apart of the “Things I need to do” series) as a representation of the anxieties that are created by the racism and violence faced by black men.
My time at the Guggenheim was truly a special one. Usually after leaving a museum there is nothing that I deem memorable enough for me to visit again. But, after visiting the Guggenheim I would definitely go there again with my family or friends. It was a unique experience that was worth having. I learned art isn’t boring, I just hadn’t found a museum I loved yet, until now.
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