I had the opportunity to take the behind-the-scenes tour at the Philadelphia Museum of Art thanks to our HMA art experience benefactor. It was a fascinating tour filled with fun facts and sneak peeks of some of the inner workings of the museum.
One of the most interesting things about the museum is that when you stand parallel with the long museum walls, you’ll notice the walls either curve in or out. This is true for all of the main walls in the building. The reason it was built this way was to stop perceptional disproportion when the building is viewed at a distance.
Surprisingly the basement is spectacular as well. Giant wooden doors separate you and the original vaulted tunnel, which was part of an entrance at one time. The basement isn’t dark and dusty, and is lit by natural sunlight in some places.
Lastly we ended the tour with a beautiful view off the top of the roof of the Museum. It was a little scary considering you had to walk out to the edge of the roof after crawling through a small doorway. It was well worth the scare because I got a great shot.
Overall I learned a lot, was very entertained, and my guide was very knowledgeable. Now I look at the Philadelphia Museum of Art with a whole new perspective.
