The recently restored and newly reframed iconic painting Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Leutze and a newly acquired bronze statuette Abraham Lincoln: The Man by the renowned sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens are among the highlights that will be on view in the New American Wing Galleries for Paintings, Sculpture, and Decorative Arts at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on February 20 (Presidents’ Day), the next in the series of Met Holiday Mondays.
(Met Holiday Mondays are extra public viewing days that take place on the Mondays of major holiday weekends, when historically the Museum has been closed.)
Also available for viewing on that day will be: The Renaissance Portrait from Donatello to Bellini, a landmark presentation of some 160 works that celebrate the Italian contribution to the rediscovery of the individual in art (on view through March 18); Infinite Jest: Caricature and Satire from Leonardo to Levine, humorous imagery from the Renaissance to the present (through March 4); The Coe Collection of American Indian Art, 30 outstanding works by Native American artists, primarily from the 19th to early 20th century, representing numerous distinct peoples (through October 14); and Duncan Phyfe: Master Cabinetmaker in New York, the first major retrospective in 90 years on America’s best-known cabinetmaker (through May 6).
“We are delighted to offer a particularly diverse selection of new galleries and special exhibitions for our visitors on Presidents’ Day—a holiday for schoolchildren and many others,” commented Emily K. Rafferty, President of the Metropolitan Museum. “Individuals who come to the Met on that day can be certain that they will have the opportunity to be informed, inspired, and entertained by art.”
Charles H. Tally Holiday Monday Family Programs specially organized for Presidents’ Day include discussion and sketching activities that will be available for families with children ages 5 through 12 at 11 a.m., noon, 1:15 and 2:30 p.m. These programs are free with Museum admission. Cafés and gift shops will be open in the main building.
A different selection of galleries and exhibitions will be open each Holiday Monday.
The next Met Holiday Monday—which is also a Holiday Monday at The Cloisters museum and gardens—is “Spring Break” Holiday Monday (April 9).
Credits: The Renaissance Portrait: Made possible by the William Randolph Hearst Foundation, the Diane W. and James E. Burke Fund, the Gail and Parker Gilbert Fund, and The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation. Organized by Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Gemäldegalerie and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities. Infinite Jest: Made possible by The Schiff Foundation. The Coe Collection: Made possible by the Friends of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. Duncan Phyfe: Made possible by Karen H. Bechtel. Additional support provided by The Henry Luce Foundation, Dr. and Mrs. Paul Cushman, the Americana Foundation, Mr. Robert L. Froelich, and Mr. Philip Holzer. Organized by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
# # #
February 14, 2012
Press resources