Aventurina King

The Metropolitan Museum’s “Dawn of a Golden Age”.

The exhibit has usurped the space of last year’s “Glory of Byzantium” without comparing to it scalewise.  Where the hanging byzantine chandelier had squizzed people along the wall like blocking paste, clustering chinese earthenware, silk and glass objects cower behind glass panes as intimidating museum goers lean in. 
Lack of glamour aside, the exhibit is well enough assembled to make its point, thrust a fragment of truth in our thoughts.  The first sections prepare us to receive it. They string early periods of art influenced by the West, South … (you name it).  The following, last and most impressive section (a massive buddha and exquisitly garnished boddhisatvas almost challenge the Byzantine chandelier), reveals the flourishing Tang period pieces.  Our by now expert eye can pick out the foreign influences that assemble into its distinctively chinese style.  Point being: what is chinese today wasn’t chinese in the first place.  I get it.

    Presentation of the infant:  Young french woman, university student not only sucked into New York’s culture but sucking it in, and blowing it out (through this blog).