Guggenheim Museum

I recently visited the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, which is renowned for its impressive collection of art, including works by Picasso and other famous artists.

While the museum is relatively small with just four levels, it's packed with remarkable pieces. However, there's a section dedicated to modern art, which I personally didn't enjoy as much since I'm not a big fan of that genre. Despite this, the Guggenheim is a must-visit for its iconic status and diverse art collection.

Long before we arrived in New York City, I'd been quite excited to check out the Guggenheim Museum. It's seriously impressive looking from the outside, so I was curious to see what kind of art was on the inside.

Very little, it turned out.

I've never been in a museum or art gallery with so much wasted space. You spend a lot of time walking up that infamous spiral ramp, and there's occasionally something to look at on the way up, but mostly it's just long stretches of white wall.

Having said that, there are some interesting exhibits along the way. There was one room that contained traditional art and we definitely spent quite a bit of time in there. Mostly, however, the place is dominated by oddball modern art that left me completely cold.

(There were a few exceptions, of course, including an unexpectedly stirring piece by Mark Bradford.)

Aside from its undeniably impressive aesthetic qualities, the Guggenheim is an all-style-no-substance venue that marked a low point of our New York City trip.

First, how can you go wrong with the architecture design of Frank Lloyd Wright?! Check rates for discounts for students, seniors, etc.

The number of permanent displays allow you to enjoy some of the old masters and some really out of the box contemporary artwork.

The current temporary exhibit is by poet / artist, Jenny Holzer offering a current affair political perspective in art form. Definitely need to view with your mind open.

Located just off 5th Avenue at about 88th St., Central Park East, the Guggenheim is truly one of a kind.

I really enjoyed the Guggenheim. Although certain pieces say to me "this should've been a diary entry, not an art piece", not all art has to be transformational to be enjoyed. Sometimes a metaphor that is easy to pick up on that lacks multiple layers of meaning, or a colorful, Instagrammable installation can be equally as powerful.

I think that for too long, art has been commodified by the uber wealthy, whether it be the Medici or your local, turtleneck-wearing, gallery-owning, black-coffee-drinking contrarian at the helm of said exclusion. Public art, like graffiti or murals, is looked down upon simply because it is not locked behind gold-plated gates. The beauty of art is that it should be representative of ALL human experience, and consumed by ALL humans, no matter the medium or whether there is a paywall acting as a barrier to enjoying said art.

That being said, I think the Guggenheim accomplishes this goal: sure, it has a fair amount of "S[he] be[lie]ve[d]" energy, but not every experience at an art museum should be the catalyst for an existential crisis. There are classic, Impressionist paintings, but mainly, a lot of fun, socially relevant pieces that don't require a ton of reading or an attention span for their meaning to be discerned.

The design of the museum, which guides visitors in an upward spiral to the top and back down, makes it easy to not dwell too long on one exhibit and to keep the flow of traffic moving. Perfect for a hot day, if you ask me.

This is a museum I do not go to often. They don't have many exhibits like other museums in the area. The museum itself is a spiral. You walk up ramps and it goes around and around. It can and has made me a little dizzy in the past. The staff I have encountered here are for the most part helpful or try to be atleast.

Was looking forward to visiting the Guggenheim because I had seen some gorgeous exhibits on social media.

Sadly when I visited those installations were no longer there and the rooms were blocked off as they were setting up new ones.

The actual museum is designed in a spiral shape that at certain points breaks off into small exhibits. I was pretty underwhelmed by what was on display when I went and since two rooms were closed off, we got through the whole exhibit pretty quickly.

If you're looking for something more grand with plenty of exhibits then you'll want to check out the MET instead.

The Guggenheim is a classic architectural wonder in New York City, and it's worth visiting just for the way the light hits the atrium during the day. I come every few months when exhibits rotate, and it's always exciting to see how the curators (or the artists themselves) will consider and utilize the space to make the art come alive with a narrative flow. Some of my favorite exhibits in the past few years have been the blockbuster Hilma af Klimt and Sarah Sze's multi-medium works spanning the whole interior (the current show on view, Barbara Kruger's works, left me a little cold).
My best advice is to take the elevator up to the top when you arrive and make your way down; this is how the museum was designed to be viewed. Don't miss the galleries to the side of the spiral; there are some very strong works in the permanent collections there and some fascinating limited exhibitions. And of course, you'll exit through the gift shop, which I'd rate a 3.5/5 in itself among other NYC museum shops.

"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."
Maya Angelou

I think that a determined mindfulness to further develop our thought processes is a worthy endeavor and I've found that visiting a museum can be assistive in increasing one's perspective.

While my typical reaction has been appreciation for the vision and skill the artists demonstrate when creating their pieces, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum brought an entirely different response: it was thought provoking.

My favorite piece was the shattered stone tablet laid strewn across the floor with several inscriptions including, "WORDS TEND TO BE INADEQUATE." While the interpretation can (and should) be debated, I found the symbolism to be profound. The seeming power of our words (written in stone no less) are inadequate without some accompanying action on our part!

I also found the simple plaque with the words, "They are ready for you when you are" extremely compelling. My interpretation was that this was meant to instruct us that we all too often establish and nurture self-imposed boundaries for ourselves, while those around us can often times see more clearly our true potential. Sometimes we just need to get out of our own way, challenge ourselves by "putting ourselves out there", and see what happens!

To be clear, these interpretations are my own (and may be in conflict with the intent of the Artists), but isn't that the beauty of Art? It encourages not only appreciation, but also creative (and often divergent) thought.

The building (designed by Frank Lloyd Wright) is a work of Art in itself (inside and out), the exhibitions rotate periodically, exploring the museum can be accomplished in a few hours, their "Cafe Rebay" is an excellent place to take a break, and purchasing tickets in advance is highly recommended.

While the rotunda gradually rises to the oculus at its apex, those with mobility issues shouldn't be discouraged from visiting as elevators provide access to each floor and many of the adjoining exhibition rooms are flat.

And that's...Henry's Take.

#guggenheim

I visited the Guggenheim, the Met, and the MoMA. Of these, the Guggenheim by far had the least amount of art. I'd only suggest coming here if you're a Frank Lloyd Wright fan and are interested in seeing the building. The museum did have some impressionist art which I love; however, you can see more impressionist art at the Met. The other sparse art was mostly political modern art or sayings with F-bombs. The electronic art added to the spiral of the building took away from the architecture.

This is a waste of time and money. So overrated! There is so much empty space and it is just a total flop!