We need light to see art, but the safest place for it is in the dark. Umm… what? Learn how light energy can damage materials, and what we do at The Met to keep art safe for years to come.

#MetKids Microscope is a show about the science behind the art (and the art behind the science!) at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Learn true stories about real discoveries from scientists at the Museum, and do some experiments on your own!

Do Not Not Try This at Home: Experiment With Light

Difficulty Level: 1/5

Materials

Paper
Pencil, Crayons, or Paint
Tape

Instructions

1. Create 2 or more similar drawings on multiple sheets of paper. Make sure each drawing has the same colors!
2. Find a bright sunny spot to place one drawing. Label this drawing “sun.”
3. Find another spot with no sun for a different drawing. Label this drawing as “no sun.”
4. If you made multiple drawings, find other spots for them around your house. Think about how much sun shines in different areas and the length of time the sun is visible. Don’t forget to label your drawings.

After a few days, place your drawings side by side.

How did the light affect the drawing?

Head of Digital Content: Sofie Andersen
Executive Producer: Sarah Wambold
Director/Writer/Producer: Benjamin Korman
Animation Direction: Lisa LaBracio
Art Direction: Lisa LaBracio
Effects Animation: Tom Bayne
Animation: Lisa LaBracio
Experiment Photography: Mia Nacamulli
Production Coordinators: Lela Jenkins, Emma Masdeu-Perez
Narrator: Corin Wells, Eric Breitung
Education Consultants: Emily Blumenthal, Darcy-Tell Morales, Julie Marie Seibert
Episode Consultants: Eric Breitung, Adam Eaker, Ted Hunter, Marco Leona
Original Music: Austin Fisher
Sound Mix: Dave Raymond
Additional Photography: Peter Berson
Special Thanks: Téo Nacamulli Tabet

Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) (Dutch, 1606–1669). Self-Portrait, 1660. Oil on canvas, 31 5/8 x 26 1/2 in. (80.3 x 67.3 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913 (14.40.618)

The Temple of Dendur, Roman period, completed by 10 B.C. From Egypt, Nubia, Dendur. Aeolian sandstone, Temple proper: 252 x 252 x 492 in. (640 x 640 x 1250 cm); Gate: 318 x 144 x 132 in. (808 x 366 x 335 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Given to the United States by Egypt in 1965, awarded to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1967, and installed in The Sackler Wing in 1978 (68.154)

Adélaïde Labille-Guiard (French, 1709–1803). Self-Portrait with Two Pupils, Marie Gabrielle Capet (1761–1818) and Marie Marguerite Carreaux de Rosemond (died 1788), 1785. Oil on canvas, 83 x 59 1/2 in. (210.8 x 151.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Julia A. Berwind, 1953 (53.225.5)

Mirror Cover with the Attack on the Castle of Love, 19th century. European (Medieval style). Ivory (?) or some kind of plastic, 5 x 3/8 in. (12.7 x 0.9 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Rogers Fund, 1911 (11.93.14)

Abraham Entertaining the Angels from the Story of Abraham, ca. 1600. Flemish. Wool, silk, silver-gilt thread (21 warps per inch, 9 per cm.), 19 3/4 x 20 in. (50.2 x 50.8 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of George Blumenthal, 1941 (41.100.57e)

Feathered Tabard, 15th–16th century. Peru. Chimú culture. Cotton, feathers, 30 x 25 in. (76.2 x 63.5 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Fletcher Fund, 1959 (59.135.8)

Han Gan (Chinese, active ca. 742–756). Night-Shining White, Tang dynasty (618-907), ca. 750. Handscroll; ink on paper, Overall with mounting: 14 x 444 x 5 1/8 in. (35.4 x 1140 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, The Dillon Fund Gift, 1977 (1977.78)

Michelangelo Buonarroti (Italian, 1475–1564). Studies for the Libyan Sibyl, ca. 1510–11. Red chalk, with small accents of white chalk on the left shoulder of the figure in the main study, 11 3/8 x 8 3/8 in. (28.9 x 21.4 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1924 (24.197.2)

Armor (Gusoku), 18th century. Japanese. Iron, lacquer, silk, gilt copper, 57 3/4 x 31 x 21 1/2 in. (146.7 x 78.7 x 54.6 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Rogers Fund, 1904 and 1906 (06.118; 04.4.65n; 14.100.536–.537)

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890). Irises, 1890. Oil on canvas; 29 x 36 1/4 in. (73.7 x 92.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Adele R. Levy, 1958 (58.187)

Images © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

© 2021 The Metropolitan Museum of Art

#MetKids is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies