Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
So was I once myself a swinger of birches.
And so I dream of going back to be.
In ‘Birches’ (1915), the US poet Robert Frost (1874-1963) ponders the nature of unusually low tree branches, recognising that they must have been sunken by ice storms, but preferring to believe that they’ve been bent by the carefree swinging of children at play. From this imagery, he contrasts the rational and world-weary tendencies of adults with the unbridled freedom of youth. In this reading of the poem by Frost at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 1955, his aged, emotive baritone pairs perfectly with his striking imagery and wistful words. Featuring audio first digitised by the MET in 2020, this visual adaptation pairs Frost’s reading of one of his most celebrated works with woodland footage and apt imagery from the museum’s collection.
Video by the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Director: Stephanie Wuertz
video
Technology and the self
A haunting scene from ‘Minority Report’ inspires a voyage into time and memory
7 minutes
video
Family life
The stream-of-consciousness thoughts and memories that emerge while cooking a meal
5 minutes
video
Film and visual culture
A lush animated opus evokes the frenzied pace of modern life
4 minutes
video
Family life
The precious family keepsakes that hold meaning for generations
10 minutes
video
Neuroscience
This intricate map of a fruit fly brain could signal a revolution in neuroscience
2 minutes
video
Information and communication
Coverage of the ‘balloon boy’ hoax forms a withering indictment of for-profit news
17 minutes
video
Childhood and adolescence
Marmar is living through a devastating war – but she’d rather tell you about her new dress
8 minutes
video
Meaning and the good life
Wander through the English countryside with two teens trying to make sense of the world
10 minutes
video
Art
A puppeteer makes sense of an overwhelming world by shrinking it down to size
5 minutes