Archived - Shows And Events

December 13, 2014 to July 3, 2016 - Despite centuries of outside influence, the Native People of New York State are culturally and governmentally distinct and today remain deeply proud of this designation. While language, values, ceremony, and physical territory unite and define these communities, their most accessible expressions are found in the fine and traditional arts. Recent acquisitions to ...

Epic Mbembe Art - The figures created by Mbembe master carvers from southeastern Nigeria are among the earliest and most visually dramatic wood sculptures preserved from sub-Saharan Africa. Created between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries, and striking for their synthesis of intense rawness and poetry, these representations of seated figures—mothers nurturing their offspring and aggressive...

Earthquakes. Volcanoes. Tornadoes. Hurricanes. Awesome in their destructive power, these natural events remind us that we are small and vulnerable—and that living on this dynamic planet will always entail risk. Find out how nature’s forces shape our dynamic planet—and how scientists are helping to make better predictions and prepare for future events. Location: American Museum of Natural History -...

The permanent collection of the Department of Arms and Armor is one of the most encyclopedic in the world. To highlight the ongoing development of the collection's multicultural and interdisciplinary nature, this exhibition focuses on approximately forty works from Europe, the United States, Japan, India, and Tibet acquired between 2003 and 2014. Friday and Saturday: 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m.* Closed T...

This special display of instruments made by three generations of the Sax family marks the bicentenary of the birth of Adolphe Sax. Rare saxophones, brass instruments, and an exquisite ivory clarinet are among the twenty-six instruments selected to showcase the inventions and innovations of this important family. There are few instrument makers who have become a household name. The eponymous instru...

East Asian Lacquer, 14th–20th Century - For more than two millennia, lacquer has been a primary medium in the arts of East Asia. This installation explores the many ways in which this material has been manipulated to create designs by painting, carving, or inlaying precious materials such as gold or mother-of-pearl. Drawn entirely from the permanent collection, this display celebrates the artistry...

Chinese Tapestry and Embroidery, 12th–19th Century - The thinness and strength of silk make it the ideal material for weaving or embroidering elegant, painting-like images characterized by fluid outlines, rich colors, and even the addition of calligraphic inscriptions and seals. Drawn from the Metropolitan's superb holdings of Chinese tapestries and embroideries, this installation, which features ...

A 1943 portrait by the renowned modern American painter Milton Avery (1885–1965) of his friend Dikran Kelekian—a noted collector of modern paintings, Coptic, and Islamic art, and an influential dealer in Middle Eastern art of all periods—is the centerpiece of this installation. The presentation presents one example of Kelekian's success in encouraging contemporary artists to become interested in a...

The exhibition and national tour are made possible by generous funding from the Henry Luce Foundation, as part of its 75th anniversary initiative. Asa Ames, New Discoveries, by Stacy C. Hollander. Yield of Total Elation, The Life & Art of A.G. Rizzoli. Closed Monday

Gilded New York explores the city’s visual culture at the end of the 19th century, when its elite class flaunted their money as never before. The exhibition presents a lavish display of some 100 works, including costumes, jewelry, portraits, and decorative objects, all created between the mid-1870s and the early 20th century. The dazzling works in the exhibition will illuminate an era when members...