"Inside the Met" (2021 release; 3 episodes of about 56 min. Each) is a documentary about the fabled New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. As Episode 1 "The Birthday Surprise" opens, it is "May, 2019, 10 Months Before the First Coronavirus Case in New York", and we are at a press conference where various executives of the Met are detailing plans for celebrating the museum's 150th anniversary in 2020. We then go back and get a big picture background sketch of the museum (the largest in the Americas), its humble origins, its staff (2,000+ employees), its popularity (7 million visitors a year), and the enormity of putting on exhibits. At this point we are 10 min. Into the opening episode.
Couple of comments: this is the latest TV documentary by veteran British director Ian Denyer. Here he seems to have been given unfettered access to the Met as it gears up for what promises to be an amazing year (2020), in which it celebrates 150 years (the Met opened in April, 1870). As it turns out, 2020 indeed was an amazing year, but not for the reasons anyone could've expected. Episode 1 documents the intricate details of what it takes to prepare various exhibits, while in the meantime reminding us regularly how much closer we are getting to the outbreak of the coronavirus in New York (in early March, 2020), and the eventual indefinite shutdown of the Met (March 12, the first major museum to do so, and quickly followed by all other cultural institutions in New York), and the challenges faces by Met executives and staff alike. There are no words for it. Episode 2 "All Things To All People?" examines the relevance of the Met in the era following George Floyd's murder and the correlating social justice movement by Black Lives Matter and others. Let's just say that diversity is a challenge at the Met... All in all, a very worthwhile inside look at a venerable cultural icon that is facing challenges it could not have imagined in any way as it was preparing for its 150 year anniversary.
"Inside the Met" premiered this weekend on PBS with its initial 2 episodes, which are now available on PBS On Demand, Amazon Instant Video, and other streaming services. The 3rd and last episode will air next weekend. A DVD with all three episodes will be released in July. If you have any interest in the Met, or more generally how a cultural giant is forced to assess its continued relevance in troubled times, I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.
Couple of comments: this is the latest TV documentary by veteran British director Ian Denyer. Here he seems to have been given unfettered access to the Met as it gears up for what promises to be an amazing year (2020), in which it celebrates 150 years (the Met opened in April, 1870). As it turns out, 2020 indeed was an amazing year, but not for the reasons anyone could've expected. Episode 1 documents the intricate details of what it takes to prepare various exhibits, while in the meantime reminding us regularly how much closer we are getting to the outbreak of the coronavirus in New York (in early March, 2020), and the eventual indefinite shutdown of the Met (March 12, the first major museum to do so, and quickly followed by all other cultural institutions in New York), and the challenges faces by Met executives and staff alike. There are no words for it. Episode 2 "All Things To All People?" examines the relevance of the Met in the era following George Floyd's murder and the correlating social justice movement by Black Lives Matter and others. Let's just say that diversity is a challenge at the Met... All in all, a very worthwhile inside look at a venerable cultural icon that is facing challenges it could not have imagined in any way as it was preparing for its 150 year anniversary.
"Inside the Met" premiered this weekend on PBS with its initial 2 episodes, which are now available on PBS On Demand, Amazon Instant Video, and other streaming services. The 3rd and last episode will air next weekend. A DVD with all three episodes will be released in July. If you have any interest in the Met, or more generally how a cultural giant is forced to assess its continued relevance in troubled times, I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.
