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Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Review

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Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Address: 1071 5th Ave., between E. 88th and E. 89th Sts., Upper East Side, New York, NY | Map It
Phone: 212/423-3500
www.guggenheim.org

Category: Museums/Galleries
Location: New York City

Write a review | Avg. member rating: 3.2/5

Fodor's Review:

Frank Lloyd Wright's landmark museum building is visited as much for its famous architecture as it is for its superlative art. Opened in 1959, shortly after Wright's death, the Guggenheim is acclaimed as one of the greatest buildings of the 20th century. After a three-year restoration project completed at the end of October 2008, the Guggenheim building is once again a glorious vision. Eleven coats of paint were removed, exterior cracks were fixed, and supporting structures were reinforced. Inside, under a 92-foot-high glass dome, a seemingly endless ramp spirals down past changing exhibitions. The museum has strong holdings of Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Marc Chagall, Pablo Picasso, and Robert Mapplethorpe.

Highlights

Wright's design was criticized by some who believed that the distinctive building detracted from the art within, but the interior nautilus design allows artworks to be viewed from several different angles and distances. Be sure to notice not only what's in front of you but also what's across the spiral from you.

On permanent display, the museum's Thannhauser Collection is made up primarily of works by French impressionists and Postimpressionists Matisse, van Gogh, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Cézanne. Perhaps more than any other 20th-century painter, Wassily Kandinsky, one of the first "pure" abstract artists, has been closely linked to the museum's history. Beginning with the acquisition of his masterpiece Composition 8 (1923) in 1930, the collection has grown to encompass more than 150 works.

Tips

Gallery talks provide richer understanding of the masterpieces in front of you. The museum offers tours at a terrific price: free!

Eat before trekking over to 5th Avenue; restaurants on Lexington offer more varied fare than the museum's cafeteria.

The museum is pay what you wish on Friday after 5:45. Lines can be long, so go early. The last tickets are handed out at 7:15.

Cost: $18
Open: Sun.-Wed. 9-5:45, Fri. and Sat. 9-8. Closed Thurs.
Subway: 4, 5, 6 to 86th St.

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Member Reviews and Ratings

Reviewed by bachslunch from US on 12/14/08
This contemporary art museum's collection is just OK, but what's really worth the while here is the architecture, which is unusual and striking. At $18.00 required admission, this place is overpriced for what it offers.