Description: The fruits of a lifetime of experience by a cultural colossus, Philippe de Montebello, the longest-serving director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in its history, distilled in conversations with an acclaimed critic
Brief description: Philippe de Montebello is the longest-serving director of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in its history. His retirement in 2008 was described as the end of an era "in the cultural life of the city, the state, the nation, and the world." He is a Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur and has a worldwide influence on cultural policies, often in an advisory capacity. He is now Fiske Kimball Professor in the History and Culture of Museums at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York.
Review Quotes: Philippe de Montebello has produced a humane and engaging volume aimed squarely at the educated lay reader . . . The book hints at the history of the museum as a societal institution and yields insights into the benefits and shortcomings of seeing art in a museum setting, where our access to objects often entails severing them from their original content. . . . It is a testament to Mr. de Montebello's character that he has chosen to write a book of this type and not an arrogant, inflammatory account of his tenure at the Met.-- "The Wall Street Journal" (9/13/2014 12:00:00 AM)