All the Beauty in the World, Patrick Bringley, author and narrator
This book was a joy to read and listen to because although some authors are not the best choice to read their own books, this author was the best choice. He was a narrator par excellence, and the same goes for his storytelling. His explanations and descriptions of the art world brought me into the Metropolitan Museum alongside him. As he traveled around the world in the galleries, inhaling each exhibit, as a guard, so did I.
Just a young man, newly graduated from college, he landed a great job opportunity at the New Yorker Magazine. His life was on a trajectory to success. As people have been known to say, man plans, G-d laughs. At work, Patrick was beginning to feel like a cog in the wheel, doing his job, but growing lazy. He felt as if he was not bringing anything valuable to the table that would make his work outstanding. Then, Patrick's beloved brother Tom, not quite two years older than he, fell gravely ill. Tom was the "smart one", working in the field of science. Even so, he could not save himself. At the age of 27, after a valiant and courageous battle, Tom died. Patrick was devastated.
Filled with grief and disappointment, he left his job at the magazine and applied for and got a job as a guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a place where he believed he could embrace his grief and experience the loneliness he desired in order to heal. He moved from gallery to gallery, exhibit to exhibit and brought each painting to life for the reader. He filled his life with the lives of the artists. He spoke with such genuine feeling about every one of them and seemed to understand the psyche of the artists he referenced, so that I, as the reader, felt I was also intimately acquainted with their reasons for painting and their artistic style. He took me on a tour of the world and of art history that was different than any I have experienced before. It was like walking alongside Patrick and the artist on the same plane and in the same time. The tidbits of information he offered were invaluable.
Patrick remained at the museum for a decade. After five years, he married Tara and two children followed. They brought contentment to his life and removed his need to continue to embrace loneliness. He was more able to deal with his loss and his grief. Another 5 years passed and he finally moved on. The museum had been the perfect place for Bringley to lose himself and live vicariously through the lives of the artists and the visitors. Some of the artists were obscure to me, some were well-known, but every one he offered up was interesting and successful and his descriptions of every painting was enlightening. It was simply a pure pleasure to learn about, and bear witness to, the life and work that brought him so much pleasure and solace. The job demanded nothing from him that he couldn’t give and he gave all he could give to the guardianship of the treasures housed there. Today, Bringley engages in public speaking and also leads some private art tours. I cannot imagine a more a wonderful guide. I felt as if I was standing next to Patrick, the guard, telling me what I could do and what I could not, as I read, He enriched my experience with his every word and thought concerning the paintings and the museum.
The reader will travel through the corridors and the galleries with him, and thus also through history and the entire world. His love and appreciation of the art world that guided him through his grief and his growth, his marriage and fatherhood is gently revealed. His is a very relatable journey, and it is one of the most beautiful tours of the Met, the reader will ever encounter. Every sentence contained a message, a fact, a story about the author, artist, the museum, and life. The experience was enriching; the information priceless.
This is a tender story about a young man as he embraced his loneliness and his grief, and for a decade, traveled through the world of art to relieve his pain and rebuild his spirit. As he breathes life into the museum, he brings his own life back to the center and appreciates everything around him more.