Public Parks, Private Gardens: Paris to Provence
At The Met Fifth Avenue
March 12–July 29, 2018
Watch a video that illuminates the dramatic transformation of Paris during the Second Empire (1852–70) into a city of tree-lined boulevards, parks, and neighborhood squares. This vast urban renewal initiative increased public green space a hundredfold, grounding both horticultural and artistic innovation.
This footage of Monet painting in his garden at Giverny is excerpted from a film conceived by Sacha Guitry to pay tribute to French cultural luminaries during World War I. Archival footage courtesy of Ina Mediapro
Credited as a historic first for the genre, film comedy got its start in a garden, as seen in this footage produced by the pioneering Lumière brothers. Archival footage courtesy of Historic Films Archive, LLC
Banner image: Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). The Parc Monceau (detail), 1878. Oil on canvas, 28 5/8 x 21 3/8 in. (72.7 x 54.3 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The Mr. and Mrs. Henry Ittleson Jr. Purchase Fund, 1959 (59.142). Related Content image: Georges Seurat (French, 1859–1891). Study for A Sunday on La Grande Jatte (detail), 1884. Oil on wood, 6 1/8 x 9 1/2 in. (15.6 x 24.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Bequest of Sam A. Lewisohn, 1951 (51.112.6)
