Over 100 years after it planned to place monumental sculptures in the niches of its grand, columned exterior, the Met Museum launched its new Façade Commission with Wangechi Mutu’s regal figures. Titled ‘The NewOnes, will free Us’ the four-sculpture series introduced imagined divinities on a scale to match the Met’s monumental seated pharaohs. Holding court in the Lehman Wing’s atrium, two bronzes and a striding cyborg-inspired figure by South Korean sculptor Lee Bul open the excellent ‘Face of Modern Life’ exhibition, a selection of portrait-related artwork from the Met’s 20thcentury to contemporary collection. (Exhibition is ongoing while the museum builds the Tang Wing, projected to open in 2030).
