About the Exhibition

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To celebrate Philippe de Montebello's thirty-one years as director of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum's Forum of Curators, Conservators, and Scientists organized an exhibition of approximately three hundred works of art—from a total of more than eighty-four thousand—that were acquired during his tenure. This unique exhibition, which was on view October 24, 2008, through February 1, 2009, was a collaboration among curators from the Museum's seventeen curatorial departments. Special emphasis was placed on works that had been transformative to the Metropolitan Museum's collection by building on existing strengths and expanding into new areas.

Acquired by purchase and donation, individually and in groups, these works demonstrate how the de Montebello years enhanced the Museum's encyclopedic collection dramatically and encouraged public access to the greatness of the world's artistic traditions. Read more about the exhibition or see images of the works on view.

About Philippe de Montebello

Philippe de Montebello began his career at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1963 in its Department of European Paintings and rose steadily through the curatorial ranks. Except for four-and-a-half years as director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (1969–1974), he spent his entire career at the Met, returning in 1974 to assume the post of vice director for curatorial and educational affairs, and then becoming the Museum's director in 1977. Read more about Philippe de Montebello.

Special Features

Audio

A special series of interviews between Philippe de Montebello and the Museum's curators provides an inside look into the Museum's collections. Each conversation highlights a particular work of art that is featured in the exhibition. See a list of all available interviews.

Video

In conjunction with the exhibition, the public television series Great Museums created a series of Webisodes that offered a behind-the-scenes look at the planning and installation of the exhibition, part of a full one-hour episode scheduled to air in 2009. See a list of related videos.

View the RSS archive of audio and video content related to this exhibition.

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Building the Collection

This exhibition powerfully demonstrated how contributions toward the purchase of works of art can literally transform the Met's collection. See Ways to Give for more information about how to support the Museum.

Met Publications

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History

As part of his goal to make scholarly resources available to the public, Mr. de Montebello supported the establishment of the Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, a chronological, geographical, and thematic exploration of the history of art from around the world, as illustrated by the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection. The Museum's curatorial, conservation, and education staff—the largest team of art experts anywhere in the world—research and write the Timeline, which is an invaluable reference and research tool for students, educators, scholars, and anyone interested in the study of art history and related subjects.

Exhibition Catalogues and Other Publications

Mr. de Montebello's tenure was marked throughout by notable growth in the institution's publishing program. Now the leading art book publisher in the United States, the Metropolitan Museum issues between twenty-five and thirty lavishly illustrated, prize-winning collection and exhibition catalogues each year. Many of these catalogues may be purchased online in The Met Store. You may also see Met Publications for more information on recent and upcoming publications.