Art Review: Greek & Roman Gods at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts

When a museum totally overhauls its permanent collection galleries, curators and directors call it a “reinstallation.” The term’s too modest and too technical.

“Reinstallation” suggests putting the air conditioners back in the windows in time for summer or, if you can find one, hiring a plumber. A reinstallation of the kind that the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has just opened, displaying its Greek and Roman art, isn’t a remodel or a decorating project, though. The museum has opened a new school for teaching the culture of Greece and Rome through art. It’s an extraordinary conceptual project and a big construction job, too.

About the Author

Brian T. Allen

Brian T. Allen is National Review’s art critic.

When a museum totally overhauls its permanent collection galleries, curators and directors call it a “reinstallation.” The term’s too modest and too technical.

“Reinstallation” suggests putting the air conditioners back in the windows in time for summer or, if you can find one, hiring a plumber. A reinstallation of the kind that the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has just opened, displaying its Greek and Roman art, isn’t a remodel or a decorating project, though. The museum has opened a new school for teaching the culture of Greece and Rome through art. It’s an extraordinary conceptual project and a big construction job, too.