Ruth Leon recommends… Treasures of New York: The Frick Collection
Ruth Leon recommendsTreasures of New York: The Frick Collection
The Frick Museum in New York is my favourite museum in the world. I’ve often shared with you short videos from the curators about specific works of art, which are always worth watching. The series, Cocktails with a Curator, is a model of its kind and many of these videos, made during the pandemic, are still available on the Frick website and highly recommended.
This is different. It’s a sort of travelogue, made for PBS, which takes you on an intimate, behind-the-scenes tour of this Gilded Age house museum dedicated to Old Master paintings, notable bronzes, sculpture, and the decorative arts. The film explores the excellence in taste and preservation of these works, the family behind the collection, and the institution’s history and dedication to art scholarship. There are some interesting insights from the curators and others associated with the Museum and, of course, a glimpse of many of the artworks themselves.
Now, while the Frick mansion is being renovated, the museum has taken over another building, known as Frick Madison, to dislay its art. Those who have seen it and are familiar with the original collection have talked about how different it looks in another setting. That’s one of the treats I’m looking forward to on my next NY visit.
For anyone who’s not aware, the “Frick Madison” is the old Whitney Museum building, designed by Marcel Breuer and considered a landmark of Brutalism.