Art Event in NYC: Seurat’s Circus Slideshow at the Met Museum 

On view till May 29, 2017

Feel the energy of festive crowd, hear the noise of excitement, become part of Paris street fair at the end of 19th century! This is the experience of the exhibition at the Met Museum about the saltimbanques, street performers, who were a well known presence on the cities’ streets around Europe. The musicians, the acrobats, the clowns – they are all there with all their glory and misery.

The title painting in the show is a great masterpiece by Georges Seurat “Parade de Cirque” complemented by many more works on the subject of street shows and circus performances. Seurat’s oeuvre is represented by two paintings and 16 conte crayon drawings. Those are shown alongside the works of Seurat’s contemporaries such as Fernand Pelez, Louis Hayet, Honoré Daumier among others. The stunning and subtle “Parade de Cirque” is contrasted by the naturalistic depiction of saltimbangues in Perez’s “Grimaces and Misery—The Saltimbanques” from Petit Palais in Paris. Other works in this exhibition are the lithographs and posters of Corvi Cirque, street scenes, and even a drypoint by Rembrandt from 1655. The selection of material and the storyline of the show presents the viewer with multiple angles of street life mixing highs and lows of that time.

The New York Times review calls “Seurat’s Circus Slideshow” at the Met Museum “an enthralling exhibition”.

Venue: The Met Museum on Fifth Avenue        Time: till May 29, 2017