My spouse
and I visited the Met Cloisters Museum and Gardens on a Friday morning in late
May 2016. The Cloisters is part of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, but it
is less frequently visited due to its remote location overlooking the Hudson
River in Harlem’s Fort Tryon Park. The Cloisters is open daily from 10:00 am
until 5:15 (summer months) or 4:45 pm (winter months); the museum is open late
on summer Friday evenings until 7:30. Similar to the main branch of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, the suggested donation for admission is $25,
although visitors are free to pay whatever they choose. If you purchase
admission to one branch of the Met, you are welcome to visit the other branches
in the same day for no additional charge; the third branch of the museum is the
Met Breuer (opened in Spring 2016, this new Upper East Side museum is dedicated
to modern and contemporary art). In our opinion, visiting more than one part of
the Met on the same day is difficult logistically, not to mention taking a
significant amount of time and mental and physical endurance; the Met could
generously extend the admission policy to the next day or two rather than on
the same day and please more patrons in the process. Disappointingly, on the
day that we visited, the admission kiosk had run out of their supply of English
informational pamphlets about the Cloister; there were pamphlets available in
other languages, but not in English. Had we known that the Met could not
properly stock this branch of its museum, we might have deducted a few dollars
from the suggested admission that we paid. We were also dissatisfied that no
one mentioned that an audio guide was available – we only discovered it when we
saw other patrons using it towards the end of our visit.
The
Cloisters museum is dedicated to showcasing 5,000 works of art and architecture
from medieval Europe in a building reminiscent of the Middle Ages. Its contents
include a 12th-century chapter house, parts of five cloisters from medieval
monasteries, a Romanesque chapel, and a 12th-century Spanish apse brought
intact from Europe. Surrounded by peaceful gardens, the Cloisters offers serenity and solitude at its location in tranquil
Fort Tryon Park. The Cloisters collection includes works such as the unicorn
tapestries, sculptures, illuminated manuscripts, stained glass, ivory, and
precious metal work. The Cloisters is also renowned
for its three cloister gardens, named Cuxa, Bonnefont, and Trie. By definition,
a “cloister” is “a
covered path, hall, or walkway, usually in a religious institution, that has an
open arcade, gallery, arches, or colonnade on the inside surrounding an
enclosed garden and a wall on the outside”.
The Cloisters
Museum covers two floors; when you visit the basement level, be sure to look
for the large brown wood door that leads to the (seasonal) café and the
gardens, because the gardens (and the view of the Hudson River) were highlights
of the museum for us. Since we visited in late Spring, all of the foliage was
in full bloom, and at least three gardeners were busy at work with additional
plantings. The Trie Café offers simple fare like cold sandwiches, salads, desserts,
and drinks, and seating is al fresco (although under/on the covered arcades and
walkways) with a view of one of the beautiful courtyard gardens and fountains.
The gift shop offers many unique items, including myriad souvenirs dedicated to
the unicorn tapestries and many fascinating books. (We purchased an interesting
book about the creation of the Cloisters Museum.) The museum building was constructed
around 1918 but was purchased in 1924 by the Met with funds donated by John D.
Rockefeller. In fact, Rockefeller donated about 40 of his own personal works of
art that are currently owned by the Cloisters, including the famous unicorn
tapestries (created in the 17th century, this series of seven wall
hangings depicts the pursuit of an elusive unicorn).
Parking is
complimentary in Fort Tryon Park; some parking spots are located just steps
from the main entrance to the museum, and other spaces require a short walk to
the museum. From the front entrance, you must climb approximately 60 stairs to
reach the main level; however, vehicular assistance is available to those with
mobility issues. There is a small elevator in the museum to travel between the
main level and the basement level, although it is marked as staff only, so be
sure to ask for assistance if you need to use it.
We have
wanted to visit The Cloisters Museum and Gardens for many years, but its remote
location previously prevented us from doing so. We are glad that we finally
reached our destination! We enjoyed our visit, particularly the gardens, which
we would like to see again in other seasons.
