New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met), which closed all its locations on March 13 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, is set to reopen its main location on 5th Avenue on August 29, 2020.
The Met’s new public hours will be noon-7 PM on Thursdays and Fridays, and 10 AM – 5 PM Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. The Museum will be closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
The Met also announced safety protocols including a requirement that everyone in the Museum wear a face covering and maintain physical distancing. The Museum’s staff will undergo health checks, and routine cleanings will be more frequent. The Met will also install hand sanitizer stations throughout.
The Met’s president, Daniel H. Weiss, states: “Perhaps now more than ever the Museum can serve as a reminder of the power of the human spirit and the capacity of art to bring comfort, inspire resilience, and help us better understand each other and the world around us.”
Three exhibitions will open on August 29: Jacob Lawrence: The American Struggle, with works from Lawrence’s series Struggle … From the History of the American People (1954–56); Making The Met, 1870–2020, based on works in the Met’s collection; and a site-specific installation for The Met’s Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden by Mexican-born artist Héctor Zamora.
New York is expected to enter Phase 4 of its reopening protocol, which will allow schools and low-risk arts, entertainment, and recreation businesses to reopen with social distancing requirements. Not included in Phase 4: movie theaters, shopping malls, and gyms. The maximum capacity of gatherings in Phase 4 is 50 people.
For more on the Met and its August 29 reopening, please go here.
