How three museum galleries capture a third of the Earth's surface
In short: The Pacific Ocean covers more than one-third of the globe, yet its vastness is often overlooked. At The Metropolitan Museum of Art, a massive 17,000-square-foot redesign aims to bring this immense, culturally diverse region into focus through hundreds of masterworks.
In November 2007, The Metropolitan Museum of Art reopened its redesigned Oceanic galleries in the Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a three-year renovation, the exhibition space was expanded to 17,000 square feet, divided into three distinct galleries. This reinstallation allowed the museum to present a significantly larger portion of its collection than was previously visible to the public.
The inaugural display featured more than 425 works spanning five major artistic regions: Polynesia, Micronesia, Melanesia, Australia, and Island Southeast Asia. A central focus is the Melanesian gallery, which utilizes an open floor plan to house nearly 300 objects. This includes monumental sculptures and personal accessories, such as a group of nine ancestor poles, known as bis, from the Asmat people of New Guinea.
One standout item is a huge Asmat canoe, exceeding 48 feet in length and able to hold 20 people. Many of these significant works, including the Asmat sculptures, were collected by Michael C. Rockefeller in 1961. By showcasing these treasures, the museum aims to represent the immense breadth of Oceania, a region comprising more than 25,000 islands and over 1,200 different cultures.
This curation provides a rare glimpse into the diverse artistic traditions of the Pacific Islands. By moving away from limited displays to a comprehensive regional overview, the museum highlights the interconnectedness and complexity of the hundreds of artistic traditions that define this vast oceanic expanse.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: A Third of the World in Three Rooms—Redesigning the Oceanic Galleries
- Also: New Galleries for Oceanic Art - The Metropolitan Museum of Art
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