Two Words, One Answer.
Metropolitan Museum
 Boston International Metropolitan Museum Of Art Boxed Correspondence Cards Pineapple $24.00 The pineapple embossed on this stationery is adapted from a late 18th-century French ormolu furniture mount. The term ormolu refers to a type of gilt-bronze ornamentation prominent in Rococo and Neoclassical furniture that was often culturally and symbolically significant. The pineapple, first introduced to Europe by Christopher Columbus after his voyage to the West Indies, is a traditional symbol of friendship and hospitality. Understated yet elegant correspondence cards printed on fine white stock. Makes a great gift for that hard to please man or woman. 25 cards and envelopes. Dimensions 4 7/8" x 6 1/4". Metropolitan Museum of Art Correspondence Cards.  Museum: Behind the Scenes at the Metropolitan Museum of Art $16.00 This is fabulous book, but then again there's a chapter about me, so perhaps you should ask someone else.  The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide Revised Edition $24.95 Like the Louvre in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum is a fabulously wealthy storehouse of incalculable value, "a living encyclopedia of world art. Every culture from every part of the world - from Florence to Thebes to Papua New Guinea - from the earliest times to the present and in every medium", "frequently at the highest levels of quality and invention", is represented. Also like the Louvre, its holdings are immense - "more than three million works of art, of which several hundred thousand are on view." The guide, organized in the same fashion as the museum, suffers only by its inability to represent the museum completely. Choices had to be made. How incredible is it that the museum holds thirty paintings by Monet and the editors of the guide were forced to choose only four? How many museums in the world could lay claim to having five paintings by an artist as illustrious as Vermeer and yet be limited to including only three in their guide? Having been fortunate enough to indulge in a recent visit to the museum, I can tell you that all five works by Vermeer and all thirty by Monet were as magnificent as one might imagine. The guide (a wonderful way to prepare in advance for any upcoming visit) will serve as a memorable souvenir and the descriptive text written by the curatorial staff of the museum will serve to elucidate the history and context of the individual pieces of art that were chosen to best represent the museum as a whole. Highly recommended as a way of enjoying the world's art even if you think you will never be in a position to enjoy the visit in person. Paul Weiss |
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