The Institute no longer has a free day. It has raised its ticket prices, during an economic downturn, no less, when many have found themselves without work or the hope of finding it in the near future, if ever. In doing so, it denied the newly destitute one of the few simple pleasures they had left. One can get in for free for two hours, maybe - not worth the trip, for that. One would spend more time travelling than one would spend in the museum.
I deducted a star for the lack of class shown by the timing of that change. In hard times, the Institute's word to the outsourced professional and middle classes has been "we don't care. go away." Something I hope we'll all remember, someday, should circumstances change and they, once again, come to us all with palms outstretched, asking for our financial help, as they had so many times in the past, before opportunity became an ever scarcer privilege, almost entirely reserved to the very young and well connected when it was to be had, at all.
As we have seen, our charity would be better invested elsewhere. Art is worth caring about. This museum isn't.
References: original review
I deducted a star for the lack of class shown by the timing of that change. In hard times, the Institute's word to the outsourced professional and middle classes has been "we don't care. go away." Something I hope we'll all remember, someday, should circumstances change and they, once again, come to us all with palms outstretched, asking for our financial help, as they had so many times in the past, before opportunity became an ever scarcer privilege, almost entirely reserved to the very young and well connected when it was to be had, at all.
As we have seen, our charity would be better invested elsewhere. Art is worth caring about. This museum isn't.
References: original review
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