>>> COMING UP ON NYC ARTS.

A VISIT TO THE MUSEUM IN QUEENS.

A LEGACY OF THE WORLD RENOWNED SCULPTOR.

>> HE WANTED TO KIND SCULPTURE IN A WAY THAT MADE IT A FORCE FOR CIVIC GOOD.

HE WANTED TO MAKE AN ACTIVE PART OF OUR EVERYDAY LIVES.

THAT'S WHY HE NEVER STOPPED MAKING FURNITURE.

HIS LAMP SERIES.

PLAYGROUNDS, PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT.

SETS FOR THEATER AND DANCE, HE HAD LONG COLLABORATIONS WITH PEOPLE LIKE MARTHA GRAHAM.

>> A TRIP TO THE WHITNEY MUSEUM AND THE EXHIBITION JASPER JONES MY MIRROR.

>> ALTHOUGH JOHNS IS REALLY WELL-KNOWN FOR HIS PAINTINGS, HIS DRAWINGS, HIS PRINTS.

HE ALSO MADE VERY IMPORTANT SCULPTURES LIKE THE FAMOUS THAT IS FULL OF RUSSIAS.

BUT HE RETURNED IN A VERY RIGOROUS WAY TO SCULPTURE AGAIN IN THE EARLY 2000s.

>> AND A LOOK AT THE WORK OF AUGUSTA IN THE AMERICAN WING GALLERIES AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.

>> THE METROPOLITAN HAS 50 WORKS AND WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT HIS WORK IN SUCH A COMPREHENSIVE WAY FROM EARLY CAMEO PORTRAITS TO RELIEF PORTRAITS OF HIS FRIENDS AND FELLOW ARTISTS TO MODELS FOR AND REDUCTIONS AFTER HIS GREAT CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS.

>> FUNDING FOR NYC ARTS IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE LEWIS SUNNY TURNER FUND FOR DANCE.

THE AMBROSE FOUNDATION, JODY AND JOHN, ELISE AND JEFFREY BROWN, CHARLES AND VALERIE DYKER, THE NANCY SOOI WATER FOUNDATION, THE SALLY AVERY ARTS FOUNDATION, AL ROY AND TERRY CRUMB HOLZ FOUNDATION.

THIS PROGRAM IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY PUBLIC FUNDS FROM THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY COUNCIL.

ADDITIONAL FUNDING PROVIDED BY MEMBERS OF 13, NYC ARTS IS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY.

>> FIRST REPUBLIC BANK PRESENTS FIRST THINGS FIRST.

AT FIRST REPUBLIC BANK, FIRST REFERS TO OUR FIRST PRIORITY.

THE CLIENTS WHO WALK THROUGH OUR DOORS, THE FIRST STEP.

RECOGNIZE THAT EVERY CLIENT IS AN INDIVIDUAL WITH UNIQUE NEEDS.

FIRST DECREE.

SERVICE IN THE FORM OF PERSONAL BANKING.

THIS WAS FIRST REPUBLIC'S MISSION FROM OUR VERY FIRST DAY.

IT'S STILL THE FIRST THING ON OUR MINDS.

>> AND BY -- >> WE HAVE A DIFFERENT WAY OF HOOKING AT AUCTIONS.

OFFERING VINTAGE BOOKS AND FINE ARTS SINCE 1941.

WORKING TO COMBINE KNOWLEDGE WITH ACCESSIBILITY WHETHER YOU ARE A LIFELONG COLLECTOR, FIRST-TIME BUYER, OR LOOKING TO SELL, INFORMATION AT SWAN GALLERIES.COM.

>>> GOOD EVENING.

AND WELCOME TO NYC ARTS.

I'M PETER ON LOCATION AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.

CURRENTLY ON VIEW IS AN EXHIBITION THAT IS THE FIRST EVER OF ITS KIND FOR THE MET.

IT IS CALLED INSPIRING WALT DISNEY, THE ANIMATION OF FRENCH DECORATIVE ARTS WHICH YOU SEE IN THESE GALLERIES.

AND IT REVEALS WALT DISNEY'S PERSONAL FASCINATION WITH EUROPEAN ART AND THE USE OF FRENCH MOTIFS IN DISNEY FILMS AND THEME PARKS.

THE EXHIBITION INVITES A DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE DRAWINGS AND ILLUSTRATIONS OF DISNEY STUDIOS AND A RICH ARRAY OF THE FINEST WORKS OF THE 18th CENTURY DECORATIVE ARTS, AND DESIGN MOSTLY FROM THE MET'S OWN COLLECTION.

THE EXHIBITION WILL BE ON VIEW THROUGH MARCH 6th.

WE BEGIN OUR PROGRAM TONIGHT WITH A TRIP TO THE NOGUCHI MUSEUM IN QUEENS, FOUNDED IN 1985 BY WORLD-RENOWNED SCULPTOR NOGUCHI, THE MUSEUM IS A CULMINATION OF HIS LEGACY.

HE SPENT MONTH OF HIS CHILDHOOD IN JAPAN.

ONLY RETURNING TO THE UNITED STATES FOR HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE.

HE BEGAN SKUP UPON THING AT THE TAJ OF 18 AND EARLY IN HIS CAREER, TURNED TO ABSTRACTION.

NOGUCHI'S RELATIONSHIP WITH ORGANIC FORMS AND MATERIALS SPARKED A LIFELONG LOVE OF NATURE AND PUBLIC SPACES.

BEYOND HIS STONE WORK, NOGUCHI IS KNOWN FOR HIS AKAMI LIGHT SCULPTURES, AS WELL AS HIS SET DESIGNS FOR THE GROUNDBREAKING CHOREOGRAPHER MARTHA GRAHAM.

THE MUSEUM FEATURES HIS CLASSIC MONOLITHIC SCULPTURES, ALONG WITH MODELS AND PHOTOGRAPHS FROM HIS FRUITFUL SEVEN-DECADE CAREER.

♪ >> NOGUCHI WAS BORN IN 1904.

HE WAS BORN IN LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

HIS MOTHER WAS AN IRISH WOMAN FROM NEW YORK.

SHE WAS BORN IN BROOKLYN.

HIS FATHER WAS A TRAVELING POET IF JAPAN.

NOGUCHI WASN'T EVEN NAMED UNTIL HE WAS ALMOST 3 YEARS OLD.

HIS MOTHER JUST CALLED HIM BOY OR YO.

HIS IDENTITY WAS COMPLICATED FROM THE VERY FIRST MOMENT OF HIS BIRTH, HE WAS BIRACIAL, CHOSE TO BE MULTICULTURAL HIS WHOLE LIFE.

BUT AT A TIME WHEN IT WAS MUCH HARDER.

HE ENROLLED AT COLUMBIA IN PRE-MED.

HIS MOTHER THOUGHT HE WAS DESTINED FOR BIGGER THINGS THAN BEING A DOCTOR AND BY THAT SHE MEANT BEING AN ARTIST.

HE WAS A SPECTACULAR ACADEMIC SCULPTOR AT 19, 20.

AND THEN, VERY QUICKLY REALIZED THAT HE WAS BECOMING THE POSTER BOY OF A PASSE ART FORM.

HE REALLY WANTED TO CHANGE SCULPTURE IN A WAY THAT MADE IT A FORCE FOR CIVIC GOOD.

HE WANTED TO MAKE IT AN ACTIVE PART OF OUR EVERYDAY LIVES.

THAT'S WHY HE NEVER STOPPED MAKING FURNITURE, HIS LAMP SERIES, HE MADE PLAYGROUNDS, HE MADE PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT.

HE MADE SETS FOR THEATER AND DANCE.

HE HAD LONG COLLABORATIONS WITH PEOPLE LIKE MARTHA GRAHAM.

THE MUSEUM WAS FOUNDED IN 1985.

NOGUCHI HAD BEEN HERE FOR ALMOST TEN YEARS.

HE HAD BOUGHT A DERELICT FACTORY BUILDING, WHICH IS THE RED BRICK BUILDING BEHIND ME.

AND STARTED USING IT FOR STORAGE AND STAGING.

SCULPTURE IS ALL ABOUT PHYSICAL INCONVENIENCE.

EVERYTHING IS BIG AND HEAVY AND TAKES UP SPACE AND REQUIRES EQUIPMENT TO DEAL WITH.

SO SCULPTORS ALWAYS NEED MORE ROOM.

HE DECIDED THAT IN ORDER TO ENCAPSULATE HIS PERSPECTIVE OR HIS POINT OF VIEW, HIS WAY OF THINKING OF THINGS, UM, THAT THE BEST THING TO DO WAS TO BUILD AN INSTITUTION AND SO HE BEGAN TO TURN HIS PRIVATE GARDEN AND SPACE INTO A DISPLAY SPACE.

WHEN THE MUSEUM OPENED, IT WAS SEASONAL.

WHEN NOGUCHI WOULD BE HERE HIMSELF, YOU COULD RING THE BELL AND HE WOULD COME DOWN AND WRUNG W WALK YOU THROUGH.

ONE OF THE THINGS YOU WILL NOTICE WHEN YOU COME TO OUR MUSEUM PROBABLY RIGHT AWAY IS WE DON'T HAVE WALL LABELS.

WE DO THAT NOT BECAUSE NOGUCHI HATED WALL LABELS.

WHEN THE MUSEUM FIRST OPENED, THERE WERE LABELS IDENTIFYING ALL THE SCULPTURES SOMEWHERE NEAR THEM IN A KIND OF TRADITIONAL-MUSEUM FASHION.

GRADUALLY, HE JUST REMOVED THEM.

AND IT'S BECAUSE HE WANTED YOUR EXPERIENCE OF THE WORK TO BE PRIMARY.

THE FASTEST WAY TO KILL AN ARTWORK IS TO PRETEND THAT YOU'VE SOLVED IT.

THE MUSEUM IS REALLY ABOUT A DIRECT AND INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH THESE OBJECTS AND THESE THINGS.

AND MORE IMPORTANT, THE LARGER SENSE OF AN ENVIRONMENT THAT THEY CREATE.

THEY REALLY PRODUCE AN ATMOSPHERE AND WE'RE STANDING IN THIS GARDEN, WHICH ISN'T EVEN TWO-THIRDS OF AN ACRE.

IT'S TEENY TINY, IT'S A POSTAGE STAMP.

THE BLACK HOLE IS NEW YORK CITY.

AND THE URBAN MAELSTROM AND AS SMALL AS IT IS, YOU SOAK IT IN AND YOU SOAK IT IN THROUGH OSMOSIS.

IT'S LIKE VISITING A FOREST, NOT LIKE GOING TO THE MUSEUM.

MAYBE, NOGUCHI'S MOST SUCCESSFUL SCULPTURE OVERALL ARE HIS AKARI LANTERNS.

HE CALLED THEM LANTERNS RATHER THAN LAMPS BECAUSE HE SAID HE WANTED THEM TO BE AS MOVEABLE AS BUTTERFLIES.

TRADITIONAL PAPER LANTERNS NGIFU CITY, SPECIFICALLY, ARE MADE WITH WASHI PAPER THAT IS MADE WITH BARK OF A TREE AND IT PRODUCES A PAPER THAT IS MORE DURABLE, MORE FLEXIBLE, AND MORE RESILIENT THAN CLASSIC COTTON PAPER.

MADE OUT OF JAPANESE SALT.

THE SALT COLUMN IS A SINGLE CRYSTAL OF THE SALT AND NOGUCHI WORKED WITH HARDER AND HARDER STONES BECAUSE HE WANTED THE MATERIAL TO RESIST HIM.

WHAT HE REALLY LIKED WAS STONES THAT HAD ALREADY BEEN MARKED BY SOME PROCESS, THAT HE WOULD THEN INKOORPT INTO THE WORK.

YOU CAN SEE THE LINES OF DRILL HOLES-LET THOSE DRILL HOLES WERE MADE MANUALLY WITH HAND DRILLS AND THEN THEY WILL PUSH TWO BAMBOO WEDGES INTO THE HOLE AND EL FILL THE HOLE WITH THE WATER.

THE BAMBOO WEDGES EXPAND ENOUGH TO CRACK THE STONE.

NOGUCHI LOVED THAT.

AND HE LOVED THE PRODUCT OF THIS BREAKING PROCESS.

SO, HE WOULD TAKE THESE STONES AND SET THEM UPRIGHT, SLICE THE BOTTOM OFF SO THAT IT WOULD STAND UP AND THEN MAKE HIS FEW ADJUSTMENTS TO TURN THEM INTO SCULPTURE IN AIR QUOTES.

THE WELL THAT'S RIGHT BEHIND ME, THIS WONDERFUL VARIATION THAT IS A CIRCULATING FOUNTAIN.

THE WATER JUST CASCADES OUT OVER THE STONE.

THAT IS ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE SALT COLUMNS JUST LOPED OFF WITH A DRILL MAKING A HOLE IN IT.

SOME OF THESE SCULPTURES ARE ERODING BUT THE TREES ARE GROWING.

THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO EACH OTHER IS CHANGING CONSTANTLY OVER TIME.

HE PLANTED ALL OF THE TREES SO THE MAGNIFICENT KATSURA TREE THAT PROVIDES THE CANOPY THAT DOMINATES THE GARDEN REALLY WAS A SPRIG.

IT WAS A QUARTER IN SAPLING AND NOW YOU SEE WHAT THAT'S BECOME AND THAT'S WHY THE HEART AND SOUL OF THE NOGUCHI MUSEUM IS THIS GARDEN.

>> AT JUST AGE 24, JASPER JONES PAINTED THE WORK HE WOULD BE MOST IDENTIFIED WITH FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE, THE SINGULAR REPRESENTATION OF THE AMERICAN FLAG.

IT WAS SUBJECT HE WOULD RETURN TO AGAIN AND AGAIN.

THE BEGINNING OF A BODY OF WORK BY ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL AMERICAN ARTISTS OF THE 20th CENTURY.

WITH WHITNEY IN COLLABORATION WITH THE PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART, PRESENTS JASPER JONES MIND MIRROR.

A RETROSPECTIVE OF NEARLY 500 ARTWORKS, SOME OF WHICH ARE FROM THE ARTIST'S PERSONAL COLLECTION AND ARE BEING SHOWN PUBLICLY FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THE TITLE OF THE EXHIBIT REFLECTS BOTH THE COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE TWO MUSEUMS AND JOHNS' OWN FASCINATION WITH MIRRORING AND DOUBLES.

A THEME THAT HAS CAPTIVATED THE NOW 91-YEAR-OLD ARTIST THROUGHOUT HIS SEVEN-DECADES CAREER.

>> JASPER JOHNS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LIVING ARTISTS NOT JUST IN AMERICA BUT ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.

HE WAS BORN IN 1930 AND BEGAN SHOWING HIS WORK IN NEW YORK IN THE MID-1950s.

HIS WORK INITIALLY CAUSED A SKAPDLE IN THE ART WORLD.

HE WAS INTRODUCING COMMON MOTIFS LIKE FLAGS, LIKE MAPS THAT WERE THOUGHT NOT TO BE APPROPRIATE SUBJECT MATTER FOR ART.

AND HE PRESENTED THEM IN A WAY THAT PEOPLE THOUGHT WAS VERY PLAIN, STRAIGHTFORWARD.

ALTHOUGH HE IS BEST KNOWN FOR THESE KINDS OF IMAGES, HE HAS HAD A REALLY LONG CAREER, ALMOST 70 YEARS OF WORK.

I THINK WHAT PEOPLE WILL SEE WHEN THEY COME HERE IS AN ARTIST WHOSE IMAGINATION WAS ALWAYS CHANGING.

EVERY DECADE, IT IS ALMOST LIKE A NEW AR TICKET THAT IS COMING TO THE FORE, IN HIS WORK.

THE SHOW IS ACTUALLY APPEARING IN TWO CITIES AT THE SAME TIME.

HERE AT THE WHITNEY AND PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART TO CELEBRATE HIS 90th BIRTHDAY.

IT IS THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE RETROSPECTIVE EVER DWOETDED TO JOHNS' CAREER.

THERE ARE 500 WORKS BETWEEN THE TWO MUSEUMS IN EVERY MEDIUM IN WHICH JOHN'S MADE ART.

THE EXHIBITION IS CALLED JASPER JOHNS'S MIND MIRROR BECAUSE HE'S OFTEN MADE WORK PLAY WITH SYMMETRY, WITH REFLECTIONS IN A SINGLE PICTURE.

IN THE SENSE OF THE DOUBLE, THE ECHO, OR THE MIRROR, IT'S BEEN ONE OF THE CENTRAL PREOCCUPATIONS OF HIS CAREER FROM REALLY THE VERY BEGINNING UNTIL TODAY.

THREE FLAGS IS FROM 1958 AND IT'S ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC WORKS IN JOHNS'S CAREER AND ALSO IN THE WHITNEY'S COLLECTION.

WHEN YOU MOVE A LITTLE BIT TO THE SIDE, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE WORK ACTUALLY HAS A SCULPTURAL QUALITY.

THERE ARE THREE FLAGS STACKED ON TOP OF ONE ANOTHER THAT GET PROGRESSISTICLY SMALLER AS THEY INCH OFF THE SURFACE OF THE CANVAS.

THREE FLAGS LIKE MANY OF JOHNS' WORKS IS MADE OF A MATERIAL CALLED ENCAUSTIC.

IT IS WAX AND PIGMENT.

EACH BRUSH STROKE ALMOST LIKE CANDLE WAX THAT DRIPS OFF A CANDLE CONGEALS ON THE SURFACE, IT HARDENS, LEAVES A KIND OF INTERESTING TEXTURAL QUALITY THAT GIVE HIS SURFACES A REALLY DISTINCT APPEAL.

JOHNS NEVER REALLY SAID WHY HE PAINTED FLAGS, EXCEPT THAT HE HAD A DREAM THAT HE PAINTED ONE.

BUT I THINK THESE ARE SOME OF THE WORKS THAT ARE SO OPEN TO INTERPRETATION BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT FEELINGS THAT MANY OF US AND OTHERS IN THE WORLD HAVE ABOUT THIS COUNTRY AND THE SYMBOL AND THE IDEAS IT INSPIRES IN US.

RACING THOUGHTS IS ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING AND IMPORTANT WORKS OF JOHNS'S FROM THE 1980s.

YOU SEE HIS ART JUST OPENING UP TO A WHOLE NEW VARIETY OF IMAGERY FOR THE FIRST TIME.

IMAGES FROM HIS PERSONAL LIFE, HIS FAMILY HISTORY, THE HISTORY OF ART.

IT'S PAINTED FROM THE POINT OF VIEW ALMOST OF THE ARTIST LYING IN HIS BATHTUB.

YOU SEE A RUNNING TAP AT THE BOTTOM RIGHT.

A HAMPER WITH A GEORGE ORE POT ON TOP.

A PORTRAIT OF THE ART DEALER LEO CASTELLI, WHO WAS HIS FRIEND.

AT THE SAME TIME, YOU SEE HIS PANTS MAYBE HANGING FROM A HOOK.

HE MADE TWO VERSIONS OF THIS PAINTING IN BOTH COLOR AND ENCAUSTIC AND BLACK AND WHITE AND OIL.

THIS IS ONE OF THE PLACES IN THE EXHIBITION WHERE WE REFLECT ON THE ORGANIZING PRINCIPLE OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE EXHIBITION IN PHILADELPHIA AND IN NEW YORK.

ALTHOUGH JOHNS IS REALLY WELL KNOWN FOR HIS PAINTINGS, HIS DRAWINGS, HIS PRINTS, HE ALSO MADE VERY IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING SCULPTURES.

IMAGES, LIKE THE TWO AIL CANS OR THE FAMOUS CAN THAT IS FULL OF BRUSHES.

HE RETURNED IN A VERY RIGOROUS WAY TO SCULPTURE AGAIN IN THE EARLY 2000s.

HE WAS THINKING ABOUT REMAKING A WORK FROM THE 1960s WHICH IS A RELIEF THAT SHOWS NUMBERS COUNTING FROM ZERO TO NINE.

HE WANTED TO CAST THAT WORK IN A MORE DURABLE MATERIAL, SO HE WAS LED TO THINK ABOUT ALUMINUM, BRONZE, COPPER, SILVER, AND HOW THE DIFFERENT METALS WOULD BASIC HI INFORM THE WAY THE WORK LOOKED IN THE END, THE WAY THE RIGHTLIGHT WOULD BE REFLECTED OFF OF IT.

THE WAY THE CASTING WOULD SIT ON THE SURFACE.

THE PIECE EVEN HAS A FOOTPRINT ON IT.

THAT IS THE FOOTPRINT OF THE FAMOUS DANCER AND CHOREOGRAPHER WHO IS A GREAT FRIEND OF JON'S AND THIS WORK IS A KIND OF OHMAGE TO HIM.

ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING THINGS ABOUT ORGANIZING THIS EXHIBITION WAS THAT THE FINAL CHAPTER OF THE SHOW WAS WRITING ITSELF AS WE WERE WORKING ON THE PROJECT.

UNTITLED FROM 2018 IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE FROM THAT.

THIS WORK WAS ACTUALLY BEGUN MUCH EARLIER THAN 2018 AND STOLEN BY A FORMER ASSISTANT.

WHEN THE WORK WAS RETURNED TO HIM FROM THE FBI, HE REVISITED IT ADDING IN DETAILS LIKE THE DOLLAR SIGN AND THE REFERENCE TO THE POLICE BLOTTER.

I LIKE TO THINK THIS IS THE WORK OF A MAN IN HIS LATE 80s THINKING ABOUT DEATH, ABOUT MORTALITY, AND EVEN THOUGH THERE IS A SENSE OF MORBIDITY TO IT, THERE IS ALSO A SENSE OF HUMOR.

A LITTLE HAT ON THE SKELETON'S HEAD, THE SMILE, THE GRIMTS THAT'S THIS.

YOU GET A SENSE OF AN ARTIST CONFRONTING REALLY DEEP TRUTHS BUT ALWAYS WITH A SENSE OF INSPIRATION AND FRESH IDEAS.

I THINK THE IDEA OF THE SHOW WAS TO MAKE PEOPLE WHO KNEW JOHNS'S WORK FEEL ALMOST LIKE THERAPY SEEING IT FOR THE FIRST TIME.

AND ALSO, HOPEFULLY, TO INTRODUCE A NEW GENERATION OF VIEWERS TO THIS INCREDIBLE BODY OF WORK.

>>> NEXT, WE VISIT THE AMERICAN WING GALLERIES FOR A LOOK AT TWO WORKS BY AUGUSTA.

THE ARTIST IMMIGRATED TO NEW YORK FROM IRELAND AS A CHILD AND BECAME ONE OF THE FINEST AMERICAN SCULPTORS AND MONUMENT BUILDERS OF THE LATE 19th AND EARLY 20th CENTURIES.

GORDONS WAS A MASTER OF THE HUMAN FORM.

AND HIS BRONZE STATUES REFLECTED THE PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES, AS WELL AS THE SPIRIT OF HIS SUBJECTS.

HIS VICTORY SCULPTURE IS DEPICTED AS A GUIDING FORCE LEADING THE CIVIL WAR HERO WILLIAM TELL COUPLE SEE SHERMAN AND HIS PORTRAIT OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS INFORMED IN PART BY THE SUBJECT'S OWN SPEECHES AND WRITING.

>> I AM CLAIRE TOLLS.

I AM CURATOR IN THE AMERICAN WING AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART AND WE ARE STANDING IN THE NEW AMERICAN WING GALLERIES.

26 NEW SPACES DEVOTED TO ART FROM THE 18th CENTURY THROUGH THE EARLY 19th CENTURY.

I AM HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT AUGUSTA ST. GORDONS, WHO IS ARGUABLY THE GREATEST AMERICAN SCULPTOR OF THE LATE 19th CENTURY.

THE METROPOLITAN HAS 50 WORKS AND WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT HIS WORK IN SUCH A COMPREHENSIVE WAY FROM EARLY CAMEO PORTRAITS TO LAY RELIEF PORTRAITS OF HIS FRIENDS AND FELLOW ARTISTS TO MODELS FOR AND REDUCTIONS AFTER HIS GREAT CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS.

HE WAS BORN IN IERHAND BUT CAME HERE TO NEW YORK AS AN INFANT AND WAS RAISED ON THE LOWER EAST SIDE.

HE BEGAN AT AGE 13 WORKING AS AN APPRENTICE FOR A CAMEO CUTTER, AND THAT REALLY FUELED HIS INTEREST IN BECOMING A SCULPTOR.

IN 1867, HE WENT ABROAD TO PARIS TO STUDY AND TRAINED AT REALLY THE FOREMOST TRAINING GROUND FOR STUDENTS ACROSS THE WORLD AT THAT TIME.

HE ALSO STUDIED IN ROME.

HE CAME BACK TO NEW YORK, AND ESTABLISHED A CAREER AS A SCULPTOR OF GREAT CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS.

SOME OF THE BEST-KNOWN WORKS IN NEW YORK ARE THE MONUMENT IN MADISON SQUARE PARK AND THE GREAT GILDED EQUESTRY YEN STATUE OF GENERAL SHERMAN AT 59th STREET AND FIFTH AVENUE.

IN 1892, AFTER SHERMAN DIED, HE RECEIVED A COMMISSION FOR A MONUMENT TO HONOR HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE UNION CAUSE.

ST. GODDENS INCORPORATED AN AL GORCAL FIGURE INTO A REALISTIC PORTRAIT OF THE PERSON BEING COMMEMORATED SO WHILE GENERAL SHERMAN IS MARCHING ALONG ON HORSEBACK, THE WINGED VICTORY OF VICTORY IS LEWDING HIM ON.

SHE HOLDS A PALM FRAUND IN HER HAND, WHICH IS A SYMBOL OF VICTORY.

AND SHE IS REALLY QUITE AMERICAN, IN A SENSE.

HE WORKED WITH SEVERAL DIFFERENT MODELS TO CREATE THIS SCULPTURE.

GENERALLY, THIS WAS A PROCESS THAT WAS KIND OF AN AMALGAMATION OF POSES.

MOST INTERESTING IS THE FACT THAT ONE OF THE MODELS WAS A WOMAN NAMED LETTY ANDERSON WHO WAS AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMAN FROM SOUTH CAROLINA AND HE WORKED WITH HER FREQUENTLY AND SAID SHE HAD A FIGURE LIKE A GODDESS.

HE WAS A REAL PERFECTIONIST.

IN THE CASE OF THE VICTORY, HE ARRANGED DRAPERIES ON FOUR DIFFERENT MODELS AND IT TOOK HIM SOMETHING, LIKE, TWO WEEKS TO GET THE LOOK HE WAS AFTER AND WHEN HE FINISHED THE FIGURE, HE WROTE HOORAY, IT IS THE GREATEST VICTORY ANYONE EVER MADE.

HERE I AM IN FRONT OF ONE OF OUR MOST RECENT SCULPTURE ACQUISITIONS, STANDING LINCOLN.

THIS IS A REALLY EXCITING PIECE FOR OUR COLLECTION BECAUSE DESPITE THE COMPREHENSIVENESS OF THE COLLECTION, WE HAD NO SCULPTURES REPRESENTING THIS GREAT COMMISSION THAT HE DID FOR THE CITY OF CHICAGO.

ST. GODDENS WAS COMMISSIONED TO COMPLETE A FULL LAJT PORTRAIT OF LINCOLN IN 1883 AND IT WAS UNVEILED IN LINCOLN PARK IN CHICAGO IN 1887.

FOR HIS PORTRAIT OF LINCOLN, HE RELIED ON A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT SOURCES BUT VERY INTERESTINGLY, HE HAD FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE WITH LINCOLN BECAUSE HE GREW UP IN NEW YORK CITY.

AND SAW LINCOLN WHEN HE CAME TO NEW YORK IN 1861 ON HIS WAY TO WASHINGTON TO ASSUME THE PRESIDENCY.

LATER, HE WAS ONE OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO WENT THROUGH A LINE AT CITY HALL TO SEE THE SLAIN PRESIDENT LYING IN STATE IN APRIL OF 1865.

SO, HE SAID THAT THESE TWO TIMES THAT HE SAW LINCOLN REALLY FORMED HIS IMPRESSION OF THE GREAT MAN, AS HE CALLED HIM.

ST. GODDENS ALSO READ HIS SPEECHES AND WRITINGS, AND REFERENCED PHOTOGRAPHS THAT WERE TAKEN OF LINCOLN DURING THE CIVIL WAR.

BUT A VERY, UM, INTERESTING OPPORTUNITY AROSE FOR HIM IN 1885 WHEN AN ARTIST FRIEND OF HIS SHOWED HIM PLASTER MODELS OF LINCOLN'S FACE AND HANDS.

AND THESE WERE MODELS THAT HIS FATHER, THE SCULPTOR, HAD TAKEN FROM LIFE WHEN LINCOLN WAS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT IN THE SPRING OF 1860.

SO, HE WAS ABLE TO USE THE LIFE MASK, AS WELL AS THE MODELS OF THE HANDS TO INCORPORATE INTO HIS SCULPTURE.

HERE IS LINCOLN IN A TRANSITIONAL MOMENT.

WE CAN PRESUME HE IS JUST STOOD UP FROM THIS OVERSIZED CHAIR ESTATE WITH AN EVIL EMBLAZONED ON ITS CREST RAIL.

AND HE IS IN THIS MOMENT OF CONTEMPLATION WHERE WE PRESUME IS ABOUT TO LIFT HIS HEAD TO ADDRESS THE AUDIENCE IN FRONT OF HIM, AND SAY SOMETHING MEANINGFUL AND SERIOUS AND PROFOUND.

AND HE CAPTURES THE PENSIVENESS AND THE SEW LEMTY OF THE MOMENT AND THE BURDEN LINCOLN FELT DURING THIS GREAT WAR.

HE WAS KNOWN FOR HIS ATTENTION TO NATURALISTIC DETAIL, NOT ONLY TO GETTING AN ACCURATE PORTRAIT FACIAL REPRESENTATION BUT ALWAYS THINKING OF LITTLE WAYS TO ENLIVEN THE COMPOSITIONS, TO MAKE THEM MORE INTERESTING.

WHETHER IT'S ATTENTION TO TEXTURAL DETAIL OR JUST LITTLE NARRATIVE DETAILS THAT REALLY BRING THE PIECES ALIVE.

I AM CLAIRE TOLLS, CURATOR IN THE AMERICAN WING AT THE METROPOLITAN WING AND I HOPE YOU WILL COME VISIT OUR GALLERIES AND PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO THE INSTALLATION OF OUR SCULPTURE COLLECTION.

>> I HOPE YOU ENJOYED OUR PROGRAM THIS EVENING.

ON LOCATION AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, THANK YOU FOR WATCHING AND SEE YOU NEXT TIME.

>> NEXT WEEK ON NYC ARTS.

A LOOK AT THE EXHIBITION THE SLIP STRING.

REFLECTION, RESILIENCE, AND RESISTANCE IN THE ART OF OUR TIME AT THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM.

>> THE SLIP STREAM IS ACTUALLY A TERM BORROWED FROM AERONAUTICS, IT IS THE TURBULENCE THAT FOLLOWS A LARGE MOVING OBJECT.

WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE SLIP STREAM, WHICH OFFERS US A PERSPECTIVE FROM WHICH TO LOOK AT 2020.

>> AND A VISIT TO THE MUSEUM OF ARTS AND DESIGN AND THE EXHIBITION "CRAFT FRONT AND CENTER."

>> THIS EXHIBIT IS DESIGNED AROUND NARRATIVE VIGNETTES.

THERE IS A GREAT NUMBER OF BEAUTIFUL TEXTILES THAT INTRODUCES MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES FROM WEAVING, EMBROIDERY, TO APPLIQUE AND QUILT MAKING.

>> AND A VISIT TO THE SOUTH STREET SEA PORT AND THE NEWLY RESTORED WAIVER TREE.

THE FLAGSHIP OF ITS COLLECTION.

>> IT IS, FOR US, THE CONNECTION BETWEEN NEW YORK AND THE REST OF THE WORLD.

♪ ♪ >> FUNDING FOR NYC ARTS IS MADE POSSIBLE BY TEAPECHE FOUNDATION, THE LEWIS SUNNY TURNER FUND FOR DANCE.

THE AMBROSE MANILA FOUNDATION, JODY AND JOHN ARVILT, JEFFREY BROWN, CHARLES AND VALERIE DYKER, THE NANCY TSAI WATER FOUNDATION, THE AVERY ARTS FOUNDATION, AL ROY AND TERRY CRUMHOLZ FOUNDATION, AND ALAN AND JAMES S. MARCUS.

THIS PROGRAM IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY PUBLIC FUNDS FROM THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY COUPLE.

ADDITIONAL FOUNDING PROVIDE THE BY MEMBERS OF 13, NYC ARTS IS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY -- >> FIRST REPUBLIC BANK PRESENTS FIRST THINGS FIRST.

AT FIRST REPUBLIC BANK, FIRST REFERS TO OUR FIRST PRIORITY.

THE CLIENTS WHO WALK THROUGH OUR DOORS.

THE FIRST STEP IN?

RECOGNIZE THAT EVERY CLIENT IS AN INDIVIDUAL WITH UNIQUE NEEDS.

FIRST DECREE, BE A BANK WHOSE CURRENCY IS SERVICE IN THE FORM OF PERSONAL BANKING.

THIS WAS FIRST REPUBLIC'S MISSION FROM OUR VERY FIRST DAY.

IT'S STILL THE FIRST THING ON OUR MINDS.

>> AND BY -- >> SWAN GALLERIES.

WE HAVE A DIFFERENT WAY OF LOOKING AT AUCTIONS.

OFFERING VINTAGE BOOKS AND FINE ARTS SINCE 1941 WORKING TO COMBINE KNOWLEDGE WITH ACCESSIBILITY WHETHER YOU ARE A LIFELONG COLLECTOR OR FIRST-TIME BUYER OR LOOKING TO SELL, INFORMATION AT SWANGALLERIES.COM.