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Before the Modern: The New York Renaissance, 1876–95

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 July 2009

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On the evening of March 31, 1895, three hundred of New York City's most notable artists and patrons assembled in Madison Square Garden to honor Chicago architect Daniel H. Burnham. Led by Burnham, Chicago had bested New York in a hotly contested competition for sponsorship of the Columbian World Exposition that proudly exhibited the nation's Gilded Age accomplishments in art, architecture, and technology. Astride New York's most prestigious public square, Madison Square Garden might well have been built for the occasion. Arriving by carriages in livery, New York's fin de siècle elite, dressed in top hats, black ties, and tails, leisurely entered architect Stanford White's resplendent edifice, accompanied by their glitteringly attired female companions. Atop the Garden's Florentine tower rested a nude sculpture of Diana, Greek goddess of the hunt.

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Research Article
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Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2000

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References

NOTES

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