by Jon Lackman | 17 February 2006 | Modern, Museums
Kenneth Silver and Carol Ockman said that they felt “inhabited by Bernhardt” when they assembled the exhibition “Sarah Bernhardt: The Art of High Drama” for The Jewish Museum, contributor Ross Finocchio reports. They spoke last night at NYU’s Maison Française, drawing laughs as they excitedly described Bernhardt (1844–1923) as a deft manipulator of her own public persona, an innovator in the exploitation of photograph and film technology, and the prototype of the modern mass-media star, to whom Greta Garbo, Madonna, and Britney Spears all owe a debt of thanks.
