♪♪ >>> COMING UP ON NYC ARTS, A TRIP DOWNTOWN TO THE WHITNEY MUSEUM, THE RETROSPECTIVE CELEBRAING THE WORK OF THIS 91-YEAR-OLD ARTIST OVER SEVEN DECADES.

HE IS KNOWN FOR HIS DRAWING, HIS PRINTS, HE MADE IMPORTANT SCULPTURES.

THE TWO CANS OR THE SAVRAN CAN THAT'S FULL OF BRUSHES.

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

>> A VISIT TO THE EARLY FOLK ART MUSEUM.

AND THE WEATHER VANES.

>> THE ART OF THE WINS IS AN EXHIBITION OF THE AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM AND BRINGS TOGETHER A GROUP OF REMARKABLE AMERICAN WEATHER VANES.

THESE WERE OBJECTS DESIGNED TO CAPTURE ATTENTION ON A PUBLIC OR A PRIVATE BUILDING AND THEY SIGNAL PRIDE IN PERSONAL IDENTITY.

>> AND A VISIT TO THE NEVELSON CHURCH.

>> SHE WAS THE GRANDMOTHER OF ENVIRONMENTAL ART IN AMERICA.

AND SHE REALLY BELIEVED THE IMPORTANCE OF SURROUNDING PEOPLE WITH ART.

>>> FUNDING FOR "NYC ARTS" IS MADE POSSIBLE BY -- THEA PETSCHEK IERVOLINO FOUNDATION, THE LEWIS "SONNY" TURNER FUND FOR DANCE, JODY AND JOHN ARNHOLD, THE AMBROSE FOUNDATION, ELISE JAFFE AND JEFFREY BROWN, CHARLES AND VALERIE DIKER, THE NANCY SIDEWATER FOUNDATION, THE MILTON AND SALLY AVERY ARTS 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.

>> FIRST REPUBLIC BANK PRESENTS, FIRST BANKS 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.

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 -- >> SWANN ACTION 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'RE A LIFELONG COLLECTOR, A FIRST-TIME BUYER, OR LOOKING TO SELL.

INFORMATION AT SWANNGALLERIES.COM.

>> AND BY -- >> UNIKA VAEV, SINCE 1975, PROVIDING FABRICS AND ACOUSTIC PRODUCTS FOR WALL, CEILING AND FLOOR APPLICATIONS, AS WELL AS DESIGN SERVICES FOR COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL NEEDS.

INFORMATION AT UNIKAVAEV.COM.

♪♪ >>> GOOD EVENING.

AND WELCOME TO "NYC ARTS."

I'M ON LOCATION AT THE MORGAN LIBRARY AND MUSEUM IN MIDTOWN MANHATTAN.

IT IS LOCATED AT MADISON AVENUE AND 36th STREET.

MORGAN BEGAN AS THE PRIVATE LIBRARY OF FINANCIER MORGAN, ONE OF THE PREMIER ART COLLECTORS IN THE UNITED STATES.

FOUNDED IN 1906, THE MORGAN SERVES AS A MUSEUM, INDEPENDENT RESEARCH LIBRARY, MUSIC VENUE, ARCHITECTURAL LANDMARK AND HISTORIC SITE.

THE MORGAN OFFICE VISITORS CLOSE ENCOUNTERS WITH GREAT WORK OF HUMAN ACCOMPLISHMENT.

THE COLLECTION OF MANUSCRIPTS, RARE BOOKS, MUSIC, DRAWINGS AND WORKS OF ART, COMPRISES A UNIQUE RECORD OF CIVILIZATION, AS WELL AS A REPOSITORY OF IDEAS IN THE CREATIVE PROCESS FROM 4000 B.C.

ALL THE WAY TO THE PRESENT.

CURRENTLY ON VIEW IS IMPERIAL SPLENDOR.

THE ART OF THE BOOK IN THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE FROM 1800 TO 1500.

IT'S SWEEPING OVERVIEW OF MANUSCRIPT PRODUCTION DURING THE HOLY EMPIRE, ONE OF THE MOST IMPRESSIVE CHAPTERS IN THE HISTORY OF MEDIEVAL ART.

THEY ARE AMONG THE MOST LUXURIOUS WORKS OF ART FROM THE MIDDLE AGES.

THEY WERE DESIGNED TO ENLIGHTEN, ENTERTAIN AND TO EMBODY THE SACRED.

THEY RETAIN THE ABILITY TO DAZZLE AND INSPIRE MODERN AUDIENCES JUST AS THEY DID THOSE OF THE MIDDLE AGES.

ENCOMPASSING A BROAD SECTION OF CENTRAL EUROPE, THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE PLAYED A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARTS OF THE BOOK.

THROUGHOUT THE MIDDLE AGES, SCRIBES AND ARTISTS ACROSS THE EMPIRE DEVELOPED AN ARRAY OF VISUAL TECHNIQUES THAT TRANSFORMED THEIR MANUSCRIPTS INTO VIVID EMBLEEMBLEMS, PRESTIGE AND PRODECISION.

FROM PARCHMENT AND GOLD AND SWEEPING CYCLES OF NARRATIVE ILLUSTRATIONS, THE STRIKING FEATURES OF THESE MANUSCRIPTS LEND THEM GREAT PRESENCE AND GRANDEUR.

AT STAGE 24, JESTER JOHNS PAINTED THE WORK HE WOULD BE KNOWN FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE.

THE FINGLE REPRESENTATION OF THE AMERICAN FLAG.

IT WAS A 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.

THE WHITNEY, IN COLLABORATION WITH THE PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART, PRESENTS JASPER JOHNS, MIND, MIRROR, THE INTROSPECTIVE OF 900 ARTWORKS, SOME OF WHICH FROM THE ARTIST'S PERSONAL COLLECTION AND NOW BEING SHOWN 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-DECADE 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 SCANDAL IN THE ART WORLD.

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

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

HE'S BEST KNOWN FOR THESE KINDS OF IMAGES, HE'S HAD A REALLY LONG CAREER.

ALMOST 70 YEARS OF WORK.

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

EVERY DECADE IT'S ALMOST LIKE A NEW ARTIST 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 AT THE PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART, TO CELEBRATE HIS 90th BIRTHDAY.

THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE RETROSPECTIVE EVER DEVOTED TO JOHNS' CAREER.

THERE'S 500 WORKS BETWEEN THE 2 MUSEUMS AND EVERY MEDIUM IN WHICH JOHNS MADE ART.

THE EXHIBITION IS CALLED JASPER JOHNS MIND MIRROR, BECAUSE HE MADE WORKS THAT PLAY WITH SYMMETRY AND INTROSPEPGS.

AND THE MIRROR HAS BEEN PART OF HIS CAREER FROM THE BEGINNING UNTIL TODAY.

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

YOU MOVE TO THE SIDE, YOU CAN SEE THE WORK HAS A SCULPTURE QUALITY.

THEY'RE THREE FLAGS THAT GET PROGRESSIVELY SMALLER AS THEY INCH OFF OF THE CANVAS.

THREE FLAGS IS MADE OUT OF MATERIAL CALLED ACCOSTIC.

IT'S WAX AND PIGMENT.

EACH BRUSH STROKE, LIKE CANDLE WAX, CONGEALS ON THE SURFACE AND GIVES THE SURFACE A REALLY DISTINCT APPEAL.

HE NEVER SAID WHY HE PAINTED FLAGS AND HE SAID HE HAD A DREAM THAT HE PAINTED ONE.

THESE ARE THE WORKS THAT ARE SO OPEN TO INTERPRETATION BECAUSE OF THE FEELING THAT MANY OF US HAVE ABOUT THIS COUNTRY AND THE SYMBOL AND THE IDEA IT INSPIRES IN US.

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

YOU SEE HIS ART OPENING UP TO A NEW VARIETY OF IMAGERY.

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

HE'S PAINTING FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF AN ARTIST LYING IN HIS BATHTUB.

YOU SEE FROM THE TOP OF HIS OWN COLLECTION.

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

YOU SEE PANTS FROM A HOOK.

HE MADE TWO VERSIONS OF THE PAINTING IN COLOR AND IN BLACK AND WHITE IN OIL.

THIS IS ONE OF THE PLACES IN THE EXHIBITION, THAT 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 AND PRINTS, HE MADE IMPORTANT SCULPTURES.

LIKE THE TWO ALE CANS OR THE SAVRAN CAN.

HE RETURNED TO SCULPT AGAIN IN THE EARLY 2000s.

HE WAS THINKING OF REMAKING A WORK FROM THE 1960s, WHICH IS A RELIEF SHOWING NUMBERS FROM ZERO TO NINE.

HE WANTED TO CAP THAT WORK IN A MORE DURABLE MATERIAL.

HE WAS LED TO THINK ABOUT ALUMINUM, BRONZE, COPPER, SILVER AND HOW THE DIFFERENT METALS WOULD FORM THE WAY THE WORK LOOKED AT THE END, THE WAY THE LIGHT WOULD BE REFLECTED OFF OF IT, THE WAY THE CASTING WOULD SIT ON THE SURFACE.

IT EVEN HAS A FOOTPRINT ON IT.

THAT'S THE FOOTPRINT OF THE DANCER AND CHOREOGRAPHER, AND HE WAS A FRIEND TO JOHNS AND THIS IS AN HOMAGE TO HIM.

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

UNTITLED FROM 2018 IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF THAT.

THIS WORK WAS 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 DETAIL LIKE THE DOLLAR SIGN AND THE REFERENCE TO THE POLICE BLOTTER.

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

A LITTLE HAT ON THE SKELETON'S HEAD.

THE SMILE, THE GRIMACE THAT'S THERE.

YOU GET A SENSE OF AN ARTIST THAT IS CONFRONTING DEEP TRUTHS WITH INSPIRATION AND FRESH IDEAS.

THE IDEA OF THE SHOW WAS TO MAKE PEOPLE WHO KNEW JOHNS' WORK TO FEEL LIKE THEY WERE SEEING IT FOR THE FIRST TIME AND TO INTRODUCE A NEW GENERATION OF VIEWERS TO THIS INCREDIBLE BODY OF WORK.

♪♪ >> FOR MORE THAN 60 YEARS, THE AMERICAN FOLK ARLT MUSEUM HAS GIVEN CENTER STAGE TO THE WORK OF SELF-TAUGHT AMERICAN ARTISTS.

CURRENTLY ON VIEW IS AMERICAN WEATHER VANES, THE ART OF THE WINDS.

IT EXPLORES THE ARTISTRY OF THE WEATHER VANE, A PRACTICAL TOOL, USED TO MEASURE THE DIRECTION OF THE WIND.

FROM A WOODEN ROOSTER TO A GREEK GODDESS, POSED AS A DANCER, EACH WEATHER VANE REVEALS TECHNOLOGY, ART AND CULTURAL HISTORY.

NYC ARTS VISITED THE LINCOLN SQUARE LOCATION TO SPEAK WITH CURATOR EMILY DeVAULT.

>> AMERICAN WEATHER VANES, THE ART OF THE WINDS, IS AN EXHIBITION AT THE FOLK ART MUSEUM.

AND IT BRINGS TOGETHER A GROUP F AMERICAN WEATHER VANES, THAT TELLS THE STORY OF THE FOLK ART FORM FROM THE MID 18th CENTURY TO THE EARLY 20th CENTURY.

THE ART OF THE WINDS OPENED ON THE AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM'S 60th ANNIVERSARY.

AND WE'RE EXCITED TO BE ABLE TO SHARE WITH OUR AUDIENCES AN EXHIBITION ON THIS THEME, WHICH HAS BEEN SO IMPORTANT TO THE HISTORY OF AMERICAN FOLK ART, AS ONE OF THE FIRST AND REALLY IMPORTANT FORMS TO EMERGE AS AN OBJECT OF SPECIAL INTEREST FOR AMERICAN FOLK ART COLLECTORS AND ALSO ADDS A REAL OPPORTUNITY TO SHINE A SPOTLIGHT ON THIS FORM, WHICH HASN'T HAD A COMPREHENSIVE TREATMENT IN MANY DECADES.

THE IDEA BEHIND WEATHER VANES IS THEY ARE FUNCTIONAL BUT IT'S SAFE TO SAY THEY HAD STRONG AESTHETICS COMPONENTS TO THEM.

OBJECTS DESIGNED TO ATTRACT ATTENTION.

AND ON TOP OF A PUBLIC OR PRIVATE BUILDING MAY SIGNAL PRIDE, IN SOCIAL IDENTITY.

THE RANGE OF FORMS THEY ADOPT REALLY SPEAK TO THE DIFFERENT THEMES.

HORSES AND COWS ON TOP OF BARNS.

AND THE ROOTS ON TOP OF THE CHURCH.

IN THE EARLY 20th CENTURY, WEATHER VANES ARE APPRECIATED AS ART OBJECTS.

THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO WITH THIS EXHIBITION AND WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO FOR THE FOLK ART MUSEUM IN GENERAL.

THERE ARE A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WEATHER VANES FORMS THAT EVOLVE OVER TIME AND ARE BROUGHT TO THE BRITISH AND DUTCH AMERICAN COLONIES IN THE 18th CENTURY, THROUGH IMMIGRANT CRAFTSMEN THAT BRING THEIR SKILLS AND TRADITIONAL SKILLS WITH THEM.

ONE OF THEM IS THE BANNER WEATHER VANE, THAT STARTED IN A FABRIC FORM, AS A SORT OF FLAG.

IT WOULD TOP A CASTLE TOWER TO DISPLAY A COAT OF ARMS.

THESE EVOLVED FROM FABRIC INTO METAL.

THERE'S MANY EXAMPLES IN THE SHOW, INCLUDING A SPECTACULAR ONE ON OUR TITLE WALL, WHICH WAS MADE IN MAINE IN THE MID 19th CENTURY.

ANOTHER MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN WEATHER VANE FORM IS THE ROOSTER, ALSO KNOWN AS THE WEATHER COCK.

AND THE ROOSTER DEVELOPS AS A PARTICULAR VANE TO TOP CHURCHES IN MEDIEVAL EUROPE AROUND THE 8th CENTURY BECAUSE OF THE BIBLICAL STORY OF PETER'S DENIAL, DURING THE LAST SUPPER, JESUS PREDICTS THAT HIS APOSTLE PETER WILL BETRAY HIM THREE TIMES BEFORE THE COCK CROWS.

IT'S A GALLERY OF 19th CENTURY WEATHER VANES THAT EXPAND INTO THIS EXPLOSION OF DIFFERENT FORMS.

THE IMAGINATION REALLY TOOK FLIGHT DURING THE VICTORIAN ERA.

AND THE MAKERS BEGAN MAKING ALL KINDS OF FANTASTICAL FIGURES, INCLUDING WITCHES AND DRAGONS.

AND ALSO, PICKING UP THEMES OF TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION, THAT YOU FIND IN THE FORM OF A LOCOMOTIVE WEATHER VANE AND A TOURING CAR WEATHER VANE.

THE EARLIEST AMERICAN WEATHER VANE TEND TO BE UNIQUE EXAMPLES.

THEY WERE NOT REPLICATED MULTIPLE TIMES BY THE MAKERS.

THEY WERE ONE-OFF WORKS OF ART.

WOOD WAS A MATERIAL THAT WAS WIDELY USED IN THE BRITISH AMERICAN COLONIES.

THERE WERE ARTISANS THAT WERE FAMILIAR WITH IT.

IN THE MID-19th CENTURY, YOU SEE COPPER REALLY BECOMING A MATERIAL OF CHOICE.

COPPER IS HIGHLY MALLEABLE, IT CAN BE WORKED INTO DETAILED WORKS OF ARTS THAT YOU SEE.

AND DURING THE TIME OF GROWING INDUSTRIAL EFFICIENCY, MAKERS BEGAN TO DEVELOP PRACTICES THAT ALLOWED THEM TO STEP UP PRODUCTION.

COLLECTORS HAVE ALWAYS APPRECIATED IN PARTICULAR THE HISTORICAL SURFACES OF WEATHER VANES BECAUSE THEY ARE INTENDED TO THE OUTDOOR OBJECTS THAT CHANGE WITH EXPOSURE TO THE WIND AND THE RAIN.

COPPER WEATHER VANES DEVELOP THIS BEAUTIFUL, VELVETY OXIDIZED GREEN.

WHEN THE WEATHER TAKES PLACE, YOU CAN SEE THE WAY THEY HAVE THE WONDERFUL LAYERS OF HISTORY INSCRIBED ON THEIR SURFACES.

THIS LONG ASSOCIATION WITH HISTORIC MEMORY, WHICH IS REALLY INTEREST.

THAT SENSE OF THE WEATHER VANE AS A MEMORY KEEPER, ALIGNS WITH INSTANCES, IN WHICH WEATHER VANES BECOME TIME CAPSULES, WHERE MAKERS OR COLLECTORS HAVE TUCKED LITTLE NOTES INSIDE.

ONE EXAMPLE IN THE SHOW IS A BEAUTIFUL WOODEN HEART AND HAND WEATHER VANE THAT WAS MADE FOR A TAVERN IN ROXBURY, MASSACHUSETTS.

AND THE ARTISAN WHO WORKED ON THE WEATHER VANE, DID THAT, THEY TUCKED A NOTE INSIDE THAT DOCUMENTED THEIR MAKING OF THIS OBJECT.

SOMETHING WE THOUGHT A LOT ABOUT AS WE WERE PLANNING THIS EXHIBITION, IS THE WAY THAT WEATHER VANES CAUSE US TO PAUSE.

IF YOU LOOK UP, YOU MIGHT SEE AN OBJECT THAT REALLY TAKES YOU BY SURPRISE.

AND ALLOWS THE VIEWER TO EXPERIENCE A MOMENT OF BEAUTY AND UPLIFT.

IT'S A MOMENT OF THE EXTRAORDINARY, WITHIN THE ORDINARY.

>>> NEXT ON OUR PROGRAM, WE VISIT THE NEVELSON CHAPEL.

IT WAS CREATED BY LOUISE NEVELSON, ONE OF NEW YORK'S CAREER ARTISTS.

SHE BECAME KNOWN FOR HER TECHNIQUE OF COLLECTING DISCARDED FURNITURE AND OTHER OBJECTS FROM THE STREETS OF NEW YORK AND THEN REASSEMBLING THEM INTO LARGE-SCALE ART INSTALLATIONS.

NEVELSON'S ARTWORK FOR THE CHAP OFFICIAL THE GOOD SHEPHERD, IS THE ONLY INSTALLATION OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

IT'S A GEM, IN THE CITY GROUP CENTER IN MIDTOWN MANHATTAN.

THE ENTIRE COMPLEX, INCLUDING THE CHURCH, WAS DESIGNED BY HUGH STUNNINGS WITH INTERIORS AND LEILA AND VINIELLI.

AFTER 40 YEARS, NEVELSON'S MASTER WORK IS UNDERGOING A DISCOVERY AS AN OASIS OF PEACE.

>> NEVELSON CONSIDERED THIS ENVIRONMENT HER OASIS OF SILENCE.

A PLACE THAT PEOPLE COME DAY IN AND DAY OUT, TO FIND IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS INCREDIBLY BUSY CITY, SOME ELEMENT OF PEACE AND SILENCE.

>> ONCE YOU'RE INSIDE, YOU'RE SURROUNDED BY NEVELSON.

AND SHE WAS THE GRANDMOTHER OF ENVIRONMENTAL ART IN AMERICA.

SHE REALLY BELIEVED THE IMPORTANCE OF SURROUNDING PEOPLE WITH ART.

>> NEVELSON WAS ONE OF THE FEW WOMEN ARTISTS IN THE 1970s WHO REALIZED PUBLIC ART WITH GREAT SUCCESS.

>> THE NEVELSON CHAPEL IS THE ONLY INTACT ENVIRONMENT THAT SHE EVER MADE.

>> LOUISE NEVELSON WAS BORN IN UKRAINE IN 1899.

HER FAMILY IMMIGRATED WHEN LOUISE WAS A LITTLE GIRL.

NEVELSON'S FATHER WAS A WOOD KUTTNER THE OLD COUNTRY.

AND ONCE THEY CAME TO MAINE, HE HAD A JUNK YARD.

OF COURSE, THAT INSPIRED MUCH OF NEVELSON'S WORK.

SHE WOULD USE TOILET SEATS AND BED STANDS AND CHAIR RAILS AND EVERYTHING THAT SHE WOULD FIND ON THE STREETS OF NEW YORK CITY.

TO ME COLLAGES.

THAT WAS HOW SHE WAS WELL-KNOWN.

SHE HAD HER FIRST BREAKTHROUGH PROJECT IN 1969 AT THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART.

LOUISE NEVELSON WAS 60 YEARS OLD.

IT TOOK HER THAT LONG TO ACHIEVE PUBLIC RECOGNITION.

>> ST. PETER'S WAS A NEOGOTHIC LUTHERAN CHURCH.

AND THE CONGREGATION WAS DOWN TO 65 OR 70.

>> 1970s, ST. PETER'S AND CITIBANK CAME TOGETHER TO START PLANNING AND BUILD WHAT WAS CALLED CITIGROUP CENTER.

AT THE HEART OF THAT COMPLEX IS NEVELSON CHAPEL.

>> THE PASTOR AT THAT TIME IS RALPH PETERSON.

AT THE POINT THEY WANTED A DECORATED CHAPEL, AN INTERFAITH CHAPEL.

HE WAS APPROACHED BY PACE GALLERY.

AND PACE GALLERY SAID, THERE'S 1% FOR THE ARTS, WHICH MEANS THERE'S QUITE A LOT OF MONEY AVAILABLE FOR THE ARTS.

AND HE KNEW NEVELSON'S WORK AND REPUTATION AND WANTED HER TO DO IT.

AND PETERSON KNEW HER WORK ALS AND REALLY LIKED IT.

THE WORKS IN THE CHAPEL ARE NOT THE KIND OF FOUND OBJECT, WHETHER IT WAS FURNITURE OR SOMETHING SHE FOUND ON THE STREET.

THEY WERE SHAPES MADE TO ORDER FOR HER.

>> NEVELSON WAS JEWISH BY BIRTH.

THIS ISN'T A SPECIFICALLY CHRISTIAN HEALING SPACE.

THIS IS A SPIRITUAL SPACE.

>> I WANT YOU TO READ SOME QUOTES FROM HER.

IT'S SOMETHING ABOUT HOW SHE SAW HER SPIRITUALITY.

EXTRACTION ALLOWS ME TO TRANSCEND CHRISTIAN IMAGERY TO THE ESSENTIAL POINT WHERE ALL RELIGIONS MEET.

EACH ELEMENT FORMS A HOLE IN ITSELF.

A DELIBERATE EXPRESSION OF JOY AND WARMTH.

FOR ME, FOR MY WORK, THIS CHAPEL IS A STATE OF PURITY AND TRUTH.

I THINK THE FACT THAT THEY ARE DOING A RESTORATION WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT NEVELSON WOULD 100% APPROVE OF.

SHE ALWAYS WANTED HER WORK TO LOOK AS FRESH AS POSSIBLE.

>> THERE'S TWO MAJOR ELEMENTS OF THE RESTORATION FOR NEVELSON CHAPEL.

TO DEAL WITH THE ENVIRONMENT.

WE'RE LOOKING AT A DEDICATED HVAC SYSTEM, TO ENSURE THAT THIS ENVIRONMENT IS REGULATED FOR LONG-TERM CARE OF THE WOOD AND PAINT.

THE SECOND ELEMENT OF THE RESTORATION IS CLEANING ALMOST 35 YEARS OF RESTORATION OVERPAINT.

BUT IN THE END, ALL THESE SCULPTURES WILL BE NEVELSON'S ORIGINAL PAINT.

>> NEVELSON'S SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO MODERNISM IS THAT SHE FORMED A UNIQUE LANGUAGE.

IT WAS SURREALISM, CONSTRUCTIVISM, PART COLLAGE, HAD RESIDENTS OF MINIMALISM.

BUT IT WAS REALLY ALL NEVELSON.

>> THE CHAPEL IS NOT AS WELL-KNOWN AS IT SHOULD BE.

HOPEFULLY WITH THE RESTORATION GOING ON, MANY MORE PEOPLE WILL KNOW ABOUT IT.

>> WE WANT TO ENSURE THAT 40, 50, 60 YEARS FROM NOW, PEOPLE WILL FIND THIS IN, NOT A PRISTINE CONDITION, OF A LIVING ENVIRONMENT.

BUT PEOPLE WILL SEE THAT WE HAVE HONORED IT AND WE'RE PASSING ON HA HAS BEEN HANDED DOWN TO US.

♪♪ >>> I HOPE YOU ENJOYED OUR PROGRAM TONIGHT.

ON LOCATION AT THE MORGAN LIBRARY AND MUSEUM.

THANK YOU FOR WATCHING.

SEE YOU NEXT TIME.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ >>> FUNDING FOR "NYC ARTS" IS MADE POSSIBLE BY -- THEA PETSCHEK IERVOLINO FOUNDATION, THE LEWIS "SONNY" TURNER FUND FOR DANCE, JODY AND JOHN ARNHOLD, THE AMBROSE FOUNDATION, ELISE JAFFE AND JEFFREY BROWN, CHARLES AND VALERIE DIKER, THE NANCY SIDEWATER FOUNDATION, THE MILTON AND SALLY AVERY ARTS FOUNDATION.

ELROY AND TERRY CRUMHOLD 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 BANKS 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.

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 -- >> SWANN AUCTION 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'RE A LIFELONG COLLECTOR, A FIRST-TIME BUYER, OR LOOKING TO SELL.

INFORMATION AT SWANNGALLERIES.COM.

>> AND BY -- >> UNIKA VAEV, PROVIDING FABRICS AND ACOUSTIC PRODUCTS FOR WALL, CEILING AND FLOOR APPLICATIONS, AS WELL AS ACOUSTICAL DESIGN SERVICES.