The plein-air assortment varieties a bridge “to what became the avant-garde,” the Impressionists and their successors. Before Rockefeller’s assortment was gifted to the Met, Rockefeller founded The Museum of Primitive Art in New York City with the intention of displaying these works, after the Met had previously proven Museum of Art little curiosity in his art assortment. In 1968, the Met had agreed to a brief exhibition of Rockefeller’s work. However, the Met then requested to incorporate the arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas in their permanent assortment.
