The exhibitions featured in the Schwartz Gallery Met are curated by Dodie Kazanjian, the house's curator-at-large and editor-at-large for Vogue, and are inspired by heroines from the upcoming season's new productions.

Artist Cecily Brown modeled her work on Suor Angelica in Puccini's Trittico; John Currin selected Helen from Strauss's Die ‹gyptische Helena; Sophie von Hellermann chose Rosina from Il barbiere di Siviglia; Barnaby Furnas took Euridice from Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice; Makiko Kudo selected Princess Yue-yang in Tan Dun's The First Emperor; and Richard Prince chose Cio-Cio-San from Madama Butterfly. Other artists, including David Salle, Verne Dawson, George Condo and Wangechi Mutu, will also take part in the exhibition, which will be on display through the end of the Met's season in May 2007.

The Schwartz Gallery Met will be located on the south side of the opera house's lobby; it will be free and open to the public.

In a statement, incoming general manager Peter Gelb said, "From Chagall's extraordinary murals adorning the front of the theater to David Hockney's stunning sets on stage, the visual arts have long been an integral part of this opera house. With a Met gallery to display new works of contemporary art inspired by our opera repertory, we are continuing this alliance with the visual arts world. We also hope to invite the next Hockney or Chagall to design scenery for future seasons at the Met."