If you like amazing works of art and think pictures of them would be even better with you in it, I have some bad news for you. Several New York City museums are banning the use of selfie sticks saying that it’s too much of a safety risk to other patrons as well as the precious, priceless art. So far, the Solomon R. Guggenheim, The Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum, the Frick, and the New Museum all have bans on selfie sticks; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, and El Museo del Barrio are considering their own bans.
A representative from the Museum of Modern Art explains that this is not a brand new policy, but language had to be clarified to include selfie sticks, which probably annoyed the crap out of their legal department:
“It has long been a policy that visitors may only use handheld devices to take photos, without any camera extension devices. We have simply added selfie-sticks to this policy, which is in place to ensure the safety of our visitors and the Museum’s works of art.”
So no, regular selfies that you take with your tallest friend’s longest arm are not banned in any of these establishments (unless there are broader bans on all photography, which some museums have). But good job, internet — you’ve forced long-standing cultural institutions to acknowledge your selfies. You did it.
Sources: DNAinfo, New York Observer, Gothamist