CBS 2 At The Met

CBS 2 At The Met: Cloisters

NEW YORK (CBS) ― It's a tranquil getaway right in Manhattan. With regal covered walkways and blooming gardens, the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Cloisters branch is steps away from the city's lush Fort Tryon Park. Philanthropist and art collector John D. Rockefeller Jr. donated this land high above the Hudson River. The museum opened in 1938.

One of the current displays inside features photos showing the Cloisters' early beginnings. The Met boasts this is America's only museum exclusively for the art and architecture of the Middle Ages. The signature exhibition, the Unicorn Tapestries donated by Rockefeller.

From the colorful weavings dating back 500 years to stunning stained glass windows and galleries of artifacts, Museum educators say the Cloisters is a classroom for 40-thousand students a year. One of those educators,

Nancy Wu told CBS 2's Dana Tyler, there's something for everyone. Wu said, "On weekends we have gallery programs for families and adults. Everyday there's a highlights tour and a garden tour for the general public. We have concerts of Medieval music. We have internships and all sorts of programs for the entire family."

The Cloisters' meticulously-cared for gardens are Medieval works of art, too. With an undisturbed view of the Hudson River as Rockefeller intended, visitors can learn the art of Medieval gardening.

The Cloisters' Associate Horticultural Manager showed off one area to Dana Tyler. "This is a bonefont herb garden. and this is the main teaching garden for the museum and all of these are plants that were known and grown in the middle ages. They are all assigned to their beds by use."

The garden features several hundred plants like the magical Mandrake and the multi-use Quince trees.

Whatever the season, Larkin encourages visitors to find the art in the gardens, and the gardens in the art. And you don't have to have a green thumb to get it. Larkin said, "What we will be doing this year for the first time is creating a corner of container plants that people may freely touch and pinch and break bruise. So we'll have a designated corner of you can touch me plants but you can't everything!"

And on June 7 and 8 check out "Garden Days" weekend, when gardens are in full bloom. There are also tours and programs for families set up.

The Cloisters is open year round.

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