My favorite paintings from the Met in NYC, pt 4

Circus Sideshow, Georges Seurat, 1888; the Met's collection of Asian art—35,000+ objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the 21st century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world

Mada Primavesi, Gustav Klimt, 1912; Mada, the 9 year old daughter of a Viennese industrialist, stands tall in a specially-made dress amid a profusion of spring-like patterns in this work

Maria Teresa, Infanta of Spain, Diego Velazquez, 1651; I know I'm not one to comment on someone else's hair (I hadn't had mine cut since 2019 when I visited but have since) but where is the appeal with this hairstyle?

Eugene Murer, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1877; It has been suggested that Murer’s pose and gaze in this work served as a model for Van Gogh’s famous portrait of another great Impressionist collector, Dr. Paul-Ferdinand Gachet (Murer's neighbor in Auvers)

Rouen Cathedral-the Portal (Sunlight), Claude Monet, 1894; Monet painted 30+ views of Rouen Cathedral moving from one canvas to another as each day progressed

Two Young Peasant Women, Camille Pissarro, 1891; the artist wanted to preserve the values of agrarian society that were being threatened by the rapid industrialization of France; this was a favorite work of the artist which he gave to his wife

Apples and Grapes, Claude Monet, 1879; a spell of bad weather forced Monet to retreat indoors for this work but I liked seeing that he could paint more realistic subject matter

Bouquet of Chrysanthemums, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1881; the artist felt that he had greater freedom to experiment in still lifes than in figure paintings

A Cowherd at Valhermeil, Auvers-sur-Oise, Camille Pissarro, 1874; I've always loved Pissarro's works, like this one from his village NW of Paris, that reflect his interest in the pulse of daily rural life

Irises, Vincent van Gogh, 1890; just before he checked himself out of the asylum at Saint-Rémy, Van Gogh painted four exuberant bouquets of spring flowers, the only still-lifes of any ambition he had undertaken during his yearlong stay

The Dancing Class, Edgar Degas, 1870; this is Degas's first depiction of a dance class; because the artist did not yet have privileges to go backstage at the Paris Opéra, his subjects came to his studio to pose

The Cathedrals of Art, Florine Stettheimer, 1942; this is a fantastical portrait of 3 of NYC's major museums—MOMA, the Met and the Whitney —and abounds with depictions of real-life art critics, dealers, and even the artist herself

Trees and Houses near the Jas de Bouffan, Paul Cezanne, 1886; the artist is remembered for his important contribution to the rise of Modernism in the 20th century; this work was done at the family estate in the south of France

Two Young Girls at the Piano, Auguste Renoir, 1892; Renoir lavished extraordinary care on this work as it was going into a new museum in Paris, the Musée du Luxembourg, which was to be devoted to the work of living artists

Potato, Joan Miro, 1928; the painting's title appears to be derived from the representation of an actual, recognizable potato: lodged in the woman's forehead is a small, brown, oval object with three tendrils

Portrait of Gerard de Lairesse, Rembrandt, 1665; born Rembrant Harmenszoon van Rijn with Harmenszoon indicating that his father was named Harmen, and van Rijn referring to his hometown near the Rhine; he added the silent d for reasons unknown, in 1633

Young Woman with a Water Pitcher, Johannes Vermeer, 1662; the first work by Vermeer to enter an American collection, this painting embodies the artist’s interest in domestic themes, giving an almost voyeuristic glimpse into the private life of a woman