Met News: A Look at The Met Film Archive

Watch a year of films from the vaults. [View in browser]( [The Met]( [Met News]( [A Look at The Met Film Archive]( Since January 2020, The Met has released films from our moving-image archive each month as part of the Museum's 150th anniversary. These have included behind-the-scenes vignettes of life around the Museum, artist profiles, and process films about art-making techniques such as weaving and ironworking. We are tremendously grateful to everyone who has tuned in from home, and we extend a warm welcome to all newcomers discovering these films for the first time today. We hope they have surprised, delighted, and inspired you—or simply allowed you to see the past with fresh eyes. In this newsletter, we present some of the year's most popular films and several staff picks. [Metropolitan Cats, 1983]( [Metropolitan Cats, 1983—A History of Cats at The Met]( From ancient Chinese sculpture to the modern Broadway stage, cats have long been a source of inspiration for artists. [Watch now →]( [The Pottery Maker, 1926]( [The Pottery Maker, 1926]( In "The Pottery Maker" (1926), an elderly woman brings her granddaughter to a pottery studio in search of a new pitcher—but the mischievous youngster has other plans.[Watch now →]( [The Fayum Portraits: Funerary Painting of Roman Egypt, 1988]( [The Fayum Portraits: Funerary Painting of Roman Egypt, 1988]( This enigmatic short film presents fifty Egyptian funerary portraits from the region of Fayum. [Watch now →]( [The Sun and Richard Lippold, 1966]( [The Sun and Richard Lippold, 1966]( Leo Hurwitz's hypnotic documentary pays tribute to Lippold's sculpture "Variation within a Sphere, Number 10: The Sun" (1953–56), a rarely shown work commissioned by The Met.[Watch now →]( [La Belle Époque, 1983]( [La Belle Époque, 1983 — Featuring Diana Vreeland and Douglas Fairbanks Jr.]( Travel back in time and revisit The Costume Institute's 1982 exhibition "La Belle Époque," organized by the legendary Diana Vreeland. [Watch now →]( [Cities of the Gods, 1970]( [Cities of the Gods, 1970]( Shot on location in Mexico and Honduras, "Cities of the Gods" was made to accompany the groundbreaking exhibition "Before Cortés: Sculpture of Middle America," which celebrated The Met's centennial in 1970. [Watch now →]( [The Spectre: A Legend of Old New England, 1925]( [The Spectre: A Legend of Old New England, 1925]( This uncanny short, filmed partially in the period rooms of The Met's American Wing, recounts a young couple's struggle with a malign apparition intent on stealing their baby. [Watch now →]( [De Artificiali Perspectiva, or Anamorphosis, 1991]( [De Artificiali Perspectiva, or Anamorphosis, 1991]( In this dazzling short animation by the Brothers Quay, learn about the illusionistic technique known as anamorphosis, in which a hidden image only becomes visible when viewed from a different angle or in a curved mirror. [Watch now →]( [Steel Drums in New York, 1977]( [Steel Drums in New York, 1977]( Learn about the steel drum's fascinating global history, from its origins in Trinidad and Tobago to its status as one of the world's most popular musical instruments, in this thought-provoking hour-long film. [Watch now →]( [In a Brilliant Light: Van Gogh in Arles, 1984]( [In a Brilliant Light: Van Gogh in Arles, 1984]( This film presents the stories behind many beloved works by Van Gogh alongside beautiful footage of daily life in contemporary Provence. [Watch now →]( [Plan Your Visit]( The Met Fifth Avenue and The Met Cloisters are now open! [Watch this video]( or check out the [visitor guidelines page]( to learn about our [new health and safety protocols](. Please note that our [opening days and hours have changed](. Entry to the Museum will be by timed ticket or reservation only and capacity will be limited. Separate timed exhibition tickets are required for [Making The Met, 1870–2020]( and [About Time: Fashion and Duration](. See the [visitor guidelines page]( for more information on reserving or buying tickets in advance. [Buy or reserve your tickets now →]( [The Met Fifth Avenue]( 1000 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10028 [The Met Cloisters]( 99 Margaret Corbin Drive Fort Tryon Park New York, NY 10040 [metmuseum.org]( [Explore]( [Membership]( [Donate]( [Manage Your Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe]( For more information about the exhibitions, including sponsorship credits, see [Making The Met, 1870–2020]( and [About Time: Fashion and Duration](. Your support allows the Museum to collect, conserve, and present 5,000 years of world art. [Donate now.]( Comments are welcome at [metmuseum_newsletter@metmuseum.org](mailto:MetMuseum_Newsletter@metmuseum.org).