After visiting the new Whitney Museum twice, for a total of about five hours, I’ve come to some tentative conclusions–first and foremost, that it’s a successful building for art, which always be the prime goal of an art museum. I went into this blog’s archives to see what I thought when I first saw the plans–in 2011, at the groundbreaking ceremony. I recall a lot of negativity at the time, but I disagreed:
…I may rue this day, but I’m going out on a limb regarding the architecture: Piano’s design, based on the drawings and sketches I’ve seen, looks pretty good (though that clunky model Piano is holding at right gives me pause) for the display of art. I have disliked many of his more recent museum projects…But the Whitney is looking better. I’m not talking about the outside; this is about how the art will look…
I don’t rue the day. I stand by what I said then. I also said the outside of the building looked pretty clunky in the models–and it does in person, too. Never mind. I care more about the inside, and I couldn’t find a flaw during my two visits. Congratulations to the Whitney.
And that is just the start. Here are more first takes:
- The gallery spaces are varied, beautiful, flexible, some high-ceilinged (and some not), and absolutely great showcases for art. They are painted white, ink blue, grey and more white–appropriately for the art. More than one person I spoke with made comments along the lines of, “if only MoMA had a building like this.” Indeed.
- Flow between and among the galleries is excellent; no one is going to wonder which way to go, ask “have I been in this gallery before?” or get lost.
- The permanent collection installation, America is Hard to See, is dazzling. With about 600 works, it’s not too much–each piece has room to breath. And the installation is well-paced–some galleries showcase just a few works and at the other extreme, there are a few walls hung salon-style.
- For the most part, the choices are excellent: a mix of the very familiar, the must-haves, the under-appreciated. (I do wonder, however, about the absence of Helen Frankenthaler in particular–her Flood and Orange Mood, both in the collection, are wonderful pictures–and I could quibble with the choice of, say, a gigantic Lee Krasner).
- There are plenty of power walls. And unexpected walls. Among them are those with two pictures by Edward Hopper; two by Marsden Hartley; two separate walls with five each by Jacob Lawrence; one of 1930s anti-lynching prints; one of woodblocks by Chiura Obata,  and–too many more to mention.
- There are many more works on view by women and minority artists than is typical in almost any museum you can name, but never once did I feel, “oh, that’s a politically correct choice.” The integration (choice of words intended) works well.
- So, too, is the mix of painting, sculpture, prints, photographs and new media. It felt natural–and right.
- The labels were well-written, mostly lacking jargon, and never heavy-handed about themes; that lack of heavy-handedness is true throughout, even when the theme is overtly political.
- The views from the terraces are spectacular. They contained art, too.
One oddity: it does seem a little funny that an “Introductory Gallery” (pictured at top) containing Robert Henri’s great portrait of Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, John Sloan’s Backyards, Greenwich Village, and other works from the Whitney’s early days are downstairs, off the lobby, while the main installation starts on the eighth floor. The gallery is the right size and shape, though–and someone told me that it will be accessible free because of its position. If true, that’s something good. It’s adjacent to Untitled, the restaurant, so perhaps people will wander in to the museum from the restaurant.
While I was there, I told Donna De Salvo, the chief curator, that the installation was so good that the museum should leave it up for year, not take it down beginning in September as planned. She said that at least one other person had told her the same thing. Unfortunately, it has to be dismantled, to make room for two scheduled exhibits. So, I advise, make a real effort to see the Whitney between now and Labor Day.
I’ve posted some gallery shots below:
