Going to the met I was most excited to see Monet’s, Water Lilies. My Nana had stationary printed with the lilies when I was young and Monet’s lily series will always remind me of her. I anticipated having an emotional response while standing in front of these paintings. Though when I actually stood there, looked, appreciated, and recalled memories, I felt nothing. True, I had admiration for the handling of paint and the color composition, but it evoked nothing in me. I did the traditional tourist thing, had my picture taken and talked to strangers about art school, and moved on. I wandered the Met looking at art I had never seen, while reconigizing some from art history classes past. I turned a corner and saw Daumier’s, Third Class Carriage, and it startled me. I gasped. And wanted to cry from happiness and also empathy for the subject matter. This painting emits a raw essence of the poor in this carriage with a painfully beautiful tone. I’ve seen this painting many times in art history classes over the years, and never had the appreciation I felt seeing it in person. It was a truely astonishing experience.
-Celeste
