We've all had over a year to adjust to the initial announcement that Philippe de Montebello was retiring as as Director and Chief Executive Officer of The Metropolitan Museum of Art after more than three decades of leadership. Between January, 2008 and now the MMA has named Thomas P. Campbell as its new Director and also curated an ambitious exhibition entitled The Philippe de Montebello Years: Curators Celebrate Three Decades of Acquisition. Which leads us to Beth Gersh-Nesic's review of the latter.
I have to admit, when this exhibition was added to the schedule I wondered how the Museum's curators could possibly (1) narrow down 30-years' worth of acquisitions and (2) decide how to hang them. Beth reports that the outcome was mixed: the selected objects were as delightful as the chronological, heavily cross-referenced display was mind-numbing. Overall result, though? " ... a lovable jumble that yielded memories of more successful exhibitions brought to you by the PDM administration." Read the review, think about which memories of the de Montebello years are conjured up for you and, please, share your personal favorites in the comments below if the mood strikes you.
Image Credit:
Johannes Vermeer (Dutch, 1632-1675)
Study of a Young Woman, probably ca. 1665-67
Oil on canvas
17 1/2 x 15 3/4 in. (44.5 x 40 cm)
Signed (upper left): IVMeer. [IVM in monogram]
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman, in memory
of Theodore Rousseau Jr., 1979 (1979.396.1)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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