Walking through a world-class museum you may see and marvel at amazing, famous works of art. Or…read moreyou may see very new, contemporary works of art few have had the opportunity to enjoy. In both scenarios, Lauren Kaplan will help you understand and appreciate the art you are looking at by a multiple of ten thousand. You will be amazed and floored by her explanations, her breadth of knowledge and art history, the background of each artist, and the meaning the artist has infused in every work. She will help the entire art experience come alive in ways you do not expect. And you will wonder how you ever walked a museum or gallery without her. For us, she brought alive the Biennial at the Whitney and turned a simple museum visit to a huge learning experience. Am I recommending Lauren? More than that, I am suggesting you hire Lauren to make your art experience awaken and come alive in ways you could never predict.

My boyfriend's parents recently invited me on a private tour of the Guggenheim with Lauren Kaplan…read more Private tour! Guggenheim! I am no fool, so obviously I said yes. FYI, I'd never been on a professional museum tour and I'm not exactly a visual art fanatic-- I like specific types of art, hate some others. Well, Lauren was super eloquent and nice, and I really appreciated how the tour wasn't about getting you to necessarily love the art -- it was about providing you with the knowledge to understand the art, the processes behind it, etc. so that you could form your own educated opinion. She was totally nonjudgmental, and I would definitely recommend her to both art lovers and skeptics alike. Plus, she brought PROPS!!

Absolutely loved our small group tour through Chelsea art galleries. Merrily is delightful and the…read moreperfect guide - knowledgeable, prepared, and totally up to date on the ever-changing art scene in NYC. We had art novices in our group as well as those with more arts experience and we all had a great time. She shared interesting info about each artist, including previous work and info on future shows/exhibits. I am already looking forward to my next trip to New York and will book tours with her again and again, including the Chelsea tour as the exhibits change often.

Had a great small group tour today with Merrily. The galleries had each had different styles of…read morework and some really major artists. She also told us about interesting buildings along the way. Merrily 's style is informative, relaxed and knowledgeable, I never felt like we were in a "lecture". I'm so glad I went!

We went on a Lower east side tour with Marian and had such a great time! She was personable and the…read morecompany was extremely accommodating to our schedule. The immersive art was interesting and something we never would have found on our own. Such a great experience for New Yorkers and tourists.

Great value for the money! Took a chance on a tour with these guys and really enjoyed it. Heart for…read moreArt Institute is a new and unique concept in a sea of culture that is New York City. Tour guide Gabi was excellent in her delivery of concise and interesting information and structuring an engaging tour. Our tour was on surviving the intrigues of the court of Henry VIII and was set up to mirror a Game of Thrones like storytelling based on various Metropolitan pieces relating to said time period, which I thought was very cool. Will definitely take another tour with this company and possibly write an updated review as they expand their offerings.

Absolutely LOVED this tour!…read more I read about it recently as it was mentioned in O Magazine which is Oprah Winfrey's Magazine and I knew that I HAD to do a short trip from Chicago to NYC to take this signature and insightful tour lead by Professor Andrew Lear! Dr. Lear is the Founder and Master Guide of the Shady Lady Tours and is a leading scholar in the area of the history of sexuality. There were seven people in my group and we met at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) in front of the Giant Pharaoh in the main lobby. Dr. Lear then distributed the entrance tickets and the Nasty Women of the MET Tour commenced. The Nasty Women of the MET focuses on the "[f]eisty, path-breaking women--women who had more power and/or independence than we usually think women in the past had." (According to Dr. Lear's Web Site). I saw many works of art that I probably would not have spent a lot of time exploring on my own..but Dr. Lear provided "the backstory" of each painting, sculpture, vessel, statue, and cultural artifacts that were explored. I have to admit that my favorites included the Gertrude Stein painting in which she was painted by Pablo Picasso and it took about 90 sittings to complete! I find her intriguing. I also was fascinated by the Female Pharaoh Hatshepsut of Egypt who ruled 1500 years before Cleopatra....in the Egyptian Wing. Hatshepsut's statue shows her dressed in female attire, "[b]ut she wears the nemes headcloth, a royal attribute usually reserved for the reigning king." (As listed in the MET's formal description of her statue sitting on the throne). The final stop was the John Singer Sargent portrait of a young woman Edith Minturn from the mid 1860s. While the artist's choice was a request that Ms. Minturn dress in an evening gown during the sitting she showed up in a two piece outfit in which her skirt did not touch the floor-but her shoes were readily seen. Her husband stands behind her and she smiles vibrantly as if she "knows" that she has clout, class, and authority as well as individuality. FYI-her husband stood in for Ms. Minturn's Great Dane when the dog became unavailable to sit for the portrait. The stories and featured art that is/was explored on this tour were exceptional and as diverse as the "Nasty Women" that were peppered throughout the MET. I would like to return to attend the "Shady Lady Tour." Truly impressive tour, well paced (2 hours) with an entertaining and educational experience provided by Dr. Lear.

Finally went on a tour with them again today. I was fortunate to have Andrew Lear be the guide. The…read moretour was educational, fun, and interesting. I say this as someone who doesn't really like art, but does in the way that he teaches it. It's amazing to me hearing about who the paintings or sculptures are actually of and the story that goes with them. Cool tidbit: The goddess Aphrodite was supposed to be executed but her lawyer pulled her top off exposing her boobs and then they acquitted her LOL. The Paris tour looks amazing as well but don't think I would ever be able to do it. In any case, if you want to go to the MET because you feel that you should but find art zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, take this tour. Two hours of showing you interesting pieces. Great way to spend a rainy, cold day in NYC.

It was great fun running around The Met, learning about the Bad Ass Women who can be found…read morethroughout the museum. Elizabeth was a fun, knowledgeable and energetic tour guide. She made the tour great!! We went to Sangria 46 for dinner and ordered mango sangria just because of a story she told us about a sculpture!!! This tour is a great way to experience a museum in a different way!! Thanks Elizabeth!!

Absolutely the best experience we've had! Wonderful tour and tour guides. Elizabeth & Scott had my…read morehusband and I beyond interested and I learned so many things I had no idea about even after visiting the met for 8+ years regularly. Highly recommend this tour to anyone who wants to have a great time, learn in a fun and entertaining way and laugh constantly during a lovely evening. You will definitely see us again! P.s: I ended up winning the down to party challenge and took home "William" (the blue hippo on the photo). It was my husband's birthday and I gotta say best party ever. Thank you for such a wonderful experience !

I was in the area and had some free time between activities, so I decided to do the tour again,…read morebecause every tour is supposed to be different and unique. Unfortunately, it wasn't. The tour was exactly the same. Saw the exact same things, in the exact same order, heard the exact same jokes, was asked the exact same questions by the pages, did everything in the exact same order. The only slight difference was the end, doing a Tonight Show segment instead of a Today Show segment. Melanie and Kenndey, the pages were great, but it was a waste of time and money, and I guess foolish on my part believing them it that it would even be slightly different.

I was so pleasantly happy with this tour! I have teenagers (17 & 15 yo girls) and was worried that…read morethey would appreciate it, and they had raving reviews in the end! Loved - Hearing the history of NBC within the building and as a company. Various locations things were filmed around the studio The Pages were fantastic and knowledgeable! Being able to finally see 8H! I didn't get to see all of the studios because they were filming but I heard it changes every time. I was just happy overall that it was so well put together for fans of shows and especially NBC! I would be more than happy to come back, and I'm not the type that does tours more than once!

I have been an on-again-off-again patron of the Met since I was very young. However, I have never…read morefelt as informed, energized, and enthusiastic about art as I did when I participated in the Gay Secrets of the Metropolitan Museum tour with Professor Lear. Wow! Professor Lear is a bit of a character with an overall sunny disposition and an indisputably shining passion for art. His knowledge about the history of homosexuality and of art in general is quite vast, and his entertaining yet thorough explanations make each stop on the tour such a delight. He was very open to questions, comments, and playful back-and-forths with the people in the tour group, which added a much-welcomed sense of community and casualness. I learned so much and couldn't have been happier with my experience. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! (Note that I have copied+pasted my review from Trip Advisor to ensure this service is properly reviewed across multiple platforms. I'm not a robot or paid, I promise!)

I'm not surprised for the current and very rare ALL 5-star reviews here for these tours. I…read morethoroughly enjoyed the "Gay Secrets of the Metropolitan Museum" I took last weekend. Andrew, our guide, a former art professor and academic author, was very knowledgable about the museum and the works, guiding us through centuries of art (somewhat out of chronological order, but to keep walking in that massive museum to a minimum) and telling us some of the stories behind them. I saw works I never noticed before and even visited rooms I had never been in before -- which with even dozens of previous museum visits is understandable, given the Met's hundreds of galleries and easily more than 10,000 works on display. It was great to have a knowledgable guide, and I thought I got a very good value.

Jody is a fantastic guide. She not only knows the best gallery shows, but she is very knowledgeable…read moreabout art and artist. We had an amazing tour of the best NY galleries.

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Derrick really knows Williamsburg! He had a wealth of information to share, and was always saying…read morehello to familiar faces. I will definitely book another tour in another area of Brooklyn!

Jeff is the perfect guide. Patient, knowledgeable and funny. This tour is a great way to see some…read moreof the best street art in New York City and the ever changing scene that is Bushwick, Brooklyn. The walking tour goes at a good pace to cover a wide area but slow enough to also stop, think and take photos. Good value for money and well organised the tour takes you through the main streets in Bushwick and Jeff explains the background behind many of the pieces. It's a good way to get your bearings before revisiting solo or continuing your wonder under your own steam. Bushwick, Brooklyn is the street art epicentre with an ever changing array of works from world renowned street artists.