Arts: Diego Rivera Exhibit & MOMA New York Tips

Over the next couple months the Museum of Modern Art is doing a spotlight on the work of Mexican painter Diego Rivera (ends May 12th).  If you are not familiar with Rivera, I would suggest that you first look up the story about his paintings originally commissioned for Rockefeller Center in 1932.  Although a famous artist in his own right, he is also well known as the husband of another famous Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo.  Perhaps you've even seen the 2002 film Frida starring Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina and have already learned something about his personal life.
The MOMA will have a series of murals that Rivera painted in 1931 for his solo show at the Museum which have not been shown to the public in 80 years.  In conjunction with the exhibition, MOMA will also be hosting one free lecture and a lecture series.  The free lecture that will be running regularly is entitled "Diego Rivera: Murals for the Museum of Modern Art" (Feb. 3rd at 3:30pm, Feb. 9th at 11:30am, and Feb. 10th at 3:30pm) [FREE with museum admission].  There is also a paid 3-part lecture series entitled "Diego Rivera: From Mexico to Manhattan" that includes:  "Rivera at Rockefeller Center" (Feb. 8th at 6pm; Daniel Okrent, Writer), "Rivera and Mexico" (Mar. 22nd at 6pm; Elena Poniatowska, Writer/Journalist), and "The Revolutionary Life and Times of Diego Rivera" (April 23rd at 6pm; Alan Knight, Oxford University). [$10 regular ticket/$8 members/$5 students & seniors].

You can enjoy this work at a cheaper rate by exploring the many discounted ticket and membership offers that MOMA has available.  General admission tickets can be purchased at a discount if you are a Senior 65+ ($18), hold a valid Student ID ($14), or are a Guest of a Member ($5).  The full rate is $25.  Memberships are available at a discount if you are an Artist ($50), National/International Visitor ($70), or if you hold a valid Student ID ($50).  The full rate for membership is $85 for an Individual, $140 for a Dual, and $175 for a Family.  All memberships are tax deductible.  So, if you only want to visit once with your family of 3+ or just a few times during the year, it might make the most sense to have one of you purchase a discounted membership and the rest to buy the $5 member guest tickets.  Membership also provides discounts on lectures & other special events.  The MOMA is my personal favorite art museum in New York and a definite must-have on any "New York in 24 Hours" list.

To find out more, visit MOMA and Time Out NY:
http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/1168
http://newyork.timeout.com/arts-culture/art/1922415/diego-rivera-murals-for-the-museum-of-modern-art