I just had to blog this article when I saw it this morning in the Times. Mainly because I spend a lot of time in museums, and one of my favorite things to do is watch other people look at art. Since the completion of the new Greek and Roman galleries at the Met, one of my favorite spots is the marble courtyard arranged around a fountain with a spectacular arrangement of Greek sculpture. Reactions range from shock regarding the statues' state of general undress to some people who took a picture of each other in front of literally every piece in the room.
I've often been struck by the urge to "collect" pictures of pictures. As if taking a picture of the Mona Lisa or Starry Night means that you earn some amount of invisible art points for having been to the museum it resides in, pushed your way to the front of the crowd, and snapped a badly-lit, off-center digital photograph of it.
What do you think? How do you look at art?
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