The Metropolitan Museum has two exhibitions which are quite wonderful.  The first is William Wegman, he of the marvelous photos of his dog, Man Ray.  This is in honor of his recent gift to the Museum of videos, drawings,prints and photographs.  There’s a 90-minute collection of the videos being shown.  Also shown are drawings, prints and photographs by his contemporaries in Southern California, John Baldessari, Vija Celmins, Douglas Huebler, Ed Ruscha and others.  And, of course, photos of his dog, Man Ray.  Man Ray is a real “ham” and enjoyed the attention.  The exhibit is well worth your time and attention.  Now at the Met.

The second exhibit is Birds of a Feather: Joseph Cornell’s Homage to Juan Gris.  Back in October of 1953 Cornell visited an art gallery in midtown Manhattan, the Sidney Janis.  Among the many works by modern artists, one in particular stood out for Cornell.  This was Juan Gris’ celebrated collage The Man at the Café (which is also shown with this exhibit).  Cornell created boxes, collages and a Sandtray in homage to Juan Gris, whom he called a “warm fraternal spirit.”  The main protagonist of Cornell’s Juan Gris series is a bird—the great white-crested cockatoo—specifically, an image taken from a 19th century print of the species that Cornell repeatedly used to explore the fascinating shadows Gris produced in his own practice.  It was certainly interesting. Birds of a Feather now at the MET.

Miriam Silverberg is a freelance journalist and owner of Miriam Silverberg Associates, a boutique publicity agency in Manhattan. She may be reached at silverbergm@mindspring.com.