MoMA Monday

Had I chosen to stay on campus this term instead of traveling to the Big Apple, today would have been a day like any other at Elmira College. I would have woken up this morning, grabbed a coffee in Campus Center and made my way to my first class of the new term followed by lunch, another class, and then probably falling into bed.

However, the average day in New York City involves grabbing a monstrous bagel, hopping on the busy subway, and spending the day with the art of Vincent Van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol and countless other renown artists.

Standing on the first floor of the Museum of Modern Art today, I felt like a kid in a candy store impatiently waiting in line just knowing that the walls directly above me were the works of the greatest, most influential, and inspirational art of past decades. Sure I've read about these artists in art history and contemporary art classes, written numerous papers about them and their work, and have memorized titles, dates, and theories while flipping through my textbooks. But until today I have never stood face to face with a Pablo Picasso painting or seen the true colors of a Mark Rothko up close and personal. Seeing these amazing works of art does not compare to reading about them or viewing them reproduced on a projector in a lecture hall. Seeing these pieces in person forces the viewer to confront the scale, texture and content of the work in a way that is impossible to grasp when looking through a book. Appreciating these pieces in person seems only right for any aspiring artist or art student.

My most memorable experience of the day was turning the corner and encountering Jackson Pollock's 8' 10'' by 17' 5 5/8'' foot painting entitled "One: Number 31". With my nose inches away from the canvas, I was able to see every abstract drip of paint on the enormous canvas. I got lost in the chaos of the colors and the movement in the painting, but was able to achieve a sense of calmness at the same time. I felt so small in front of this important painting that helped define the Abstract Expressionist movement of Post World War II America. The next paper I write about an Abstract Expressionist, Post Impressionist, Surrealist or any other artist featured in the MoMA, I can speak from my unforgettable experience with the powerful works of art that I saw today.

-Maggie Zurbruegg-Ramey

Pollock, Jackson. One: Number 31. 1950. Museum of Modern Art, New York.

Detail