In a perfect world there would be an exchange program. Around April 1st I could hand in my museum-issued whistle and clip-on tie and receive a radar gun, clip board, and seat behind home plate. "Kid," Paul DePodesta would tell me, "your only job is to clock pitches and take notes. I don't want to hear any fool ideas about players or talent. You're the eyes and ears of this organization, but the brains we've got covered. And, oh, welcome aboard."
It's not so ambitious a dream, but it's the one that occurs to me as I do my kindred work in the marvelous galleries of the Met. It doesn't matter if my boss never hears my thoughts or knows I'm thinking. All the better. Given space and anonymity, one can conjure up more fool ideas than his busy butt could ever dream.
Speaking of, meet the Met.
Aphrodite, Roman copy of a Greek statue, Imperial Period, 1st or 2nd Century A.D.
The Immaculate Conception (Detail). Guido Reni (Italian, 1575-1642)
Madonna and Child with Saints and Angels (Detail). Giovanni di Paolo (Italian, 1398-1482)
Scenes from the Stories of the Argonauts (Detail). Biagio d'Antonio (Italian, active last quarter of 15th Century)
Young Woman with a Water Pitcher. Johannes Vermeer (Dutch, 1632-1675)
Maria Teresa, Infanta of Spain. Diego Velazquez (Spanish, 1599-1660)
Adam and Eve (Detail of an etching). Albrecht Durer (German, 1471-1528)
Grand Inquisitor Cardinal Don Fernando Nino de Guevara. El Greco (Greek, 1541-1614)
Bust of a Greek General. Roman copy of a Greek work, Imperial Period, 1st or 2nd Century A.D.
White, Red, on Yellow. Mark Rothko (American, born Russia, 1903-1970)
Still Life with Apples and Pears. Paul Cezanne (French, 1839 - 1892)
Shiva as Lord of Dance. Tamil Nadu Region of India, Chola Period, ca. 1100
The Fortune Teller. Georges de La Tour (French, 1593-1652)
Mask (Kavat). Anonymous, Baining Culture (Papua New Guinea, 1972 or 1973)
Christ as the Man of Sorrows. Marco Zoppo (Italian, ca. 1432-1478)
Canoe. Chief Chinasapitch (Asmat Culture, Indonesia, Papua Province, 1961)
The Unicorn in Captivity. South Netherlandish tapestry, ca. 1495-1505.
The Death of Socrates (Detail). Jacques-Louis David (French, 1748-1825)
The Vision of St. John. El Greco (Greek, 1541-1614)