Press Visits to Cloud City
There are two ways to experience the Cloud City structure—it can be viewed from the main level of the Metropolitan Museum’s Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden as well as from stairs and platforms elevated up to twenty feet above the Roof Garden. During the run of the exhibition, accredited press are welcome to visit, film, and photograph the installation from the main Roof Garden level. Press will also have the opportunity, weather and numbers permitting, to access the structure, escorted by Museum staff, following the guidelines and restrictions below.
Visiting Experience and Guidelines
All press visitors accessing the Cloud City structure will be escorted by Museum staff. Visitors will navigate stairs and platforms elevated up to twenty feet above the Roof Garden. The stairs are steep and each set of stairs can accommodate only two people at a time. Walking surfaces are metal and transparent acrylic, ranging from firm to flexible (i.e., some surfaces will move with the movement of visitors on the structure), and there are slight variations in grade and small obstructions in some areas of the walkways. There are several places with low head clearance. There will be handrails in most areas. Since the structure is outdoors and on view during the summer, visitors can expect high temperatures, and there will be no immediate access to water or shade. The structure itself may become hot to the touch, so caution must be used at all times. Some surfaces are very shiny and will reflect light in different directions, so sunglasses are highly recommended. Given safety concerns, in order to gain access to the structure, all visitors must:
• wear flat rubber-soled shoes. Visitors may not be barefoot or wear high heels or leather-soled shoes. Pants or long shorts are recommended, as many areas of the structure are transparent and therefore visible from below. Sunglasses are strongly recommended on sunny days;
• be able to walk without assistance. Unfortunately, wheelchairs and other mobility devices (e.g., crutches, canes, and walkers) cannot be accommodated, except for canes with wrist straps used by visitors with visual impairments. Visitors may be accompanied by their service animals;
• weigh less than 400 pounds (inclusive of any equipment members of the press take into the structure);
• not be under the influence of alcohol or another intoxicant.
The Museum strongly recommends that visitors not walk through the structure if they have a serious disability or a mental or physical condition that would impair their ability to participate. The Museum also recommends that visitors not walk through the structure if they have a heart or respiratory condition; are pregnant; have a history of epileptic or other seizures; have impaired mobility or back, limb, or joint injuries; have sensitivity to light or fluctuations in light, acrophobia (fear of heights), vertigo (dizziness), or claustrophobia (fear of confined spaces); or have balance problems or are uneasy walking on transparent or flexible surfaces. Instead, the Museum recommends that the structure be enjoyed from the Roof Garden level.
Equipment, Personal Items, and Lockers
Press visitors who wish to photograph or film the structure from within must limit to an absolute minimum the amount of equipment they carry into the structure. All such equipment must be secured with wrist, neck, or shoulder straps. Cell-phone use is not permitted, and all phones must be left in the lockers provided prior to entering the structure. Press visitors who do not wish to photograph or film the structure from within may obtain a timed-entry ticket for access to the structure and must store all personal items (including purses, backpacks and other bags, cell phones, cameras, food and beverage containers, umbrellas, personal entertainment devices, etc.) in the lockers provided, taking with them only glasses or sunglasses and necessary medications. The Museum will not be responsible for lost or stolen items.
Contacts
For questions about Cloud City and press access, please contact the Communications Department by calling 212-570-3951 or emailing communications@metmuseum.org. Accredited press may make appointments in advance to visit the installation during the run of the exhibition (May 15–November 4, weather permitting) through the Communications Department, and, should they wish to access the structure, may obtain a timed-entry ticket or request an appointment to film or photograph the structure from within, accompanied by a member of the Museum staff. The Museum will close the Roof Garden in the event of inclement weather or for other reasons determined in its sole discretion, in which case access to the structure will be unavailable.
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