Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Posted in People on December 16 2019, by Matt Newman
Congratulations to all of the young writers who submitted poems to this year’s Young Poets contest, and the winners who joined former U.S. poet laureate Billy Collins for December 15’s annual reading. You’ll find their poems on display here at NYBG through the end of the Holiday Train Show.
Posted in Programs and Events on June 10 2016, by Matt Newman
A highlight of the Garden’s NYBG/125 Anniversary celebrations kicked off with a night of soaring trumpets, matchless tap, a glowing Manhattan skyline, and the heights of what might just be called the defining sound of New York City—really good jazz.
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra was on grounds last night with trumpeter and music director Wynton Marsalis for a performance in honor of our 125th year, taking the stage on the Conservatory Lawn to play for a sold out crowd of over 1,600 fans new and old. We were ecstatic to have the concert introduced by both Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., and the former U.S. Poet Laureate and current Poet Laureate of NYBG, Billy Collins, whose memorable reading set the tone for a night of incredible artistry. You can read his dedication here.
Posted in Programs and Events on December 3 2015, by Matt Newman
The grounds may be growing cooler as we near the start of winter, but that can only mean the art and music of the Garden are all the more present. Throughout the Holiday Train Show, NYBG plays host not only to a much-loved poetry walk and reading, but a series of classical concerts that define the sounds of the season.
The verse of Billy Collins, former U.S. Poet Laureate and a fixture in the lyric history of New York, returns to the Garden this year during our Holiday Train Show, filling the Perennial Garden and its surroundings with the poetry of our city, our landscapes, and the singular experience of living in the five boroughs. You can find his poetry boards on display throughout December and January. But if you’re looking for a more intimate experience, be sure to get seats for Collins’ live reading—here at NYBG’s Ross Hall—on Saturday, December 12.
Posted in Programs and Events on December 12 2014, by Lansing Moore
Tomorrow afternoon, join us in welcoming former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins to NYBG for a special reading of his most beloved works. Visitors to the Garden have enjoyed his poems that line the Holiday Poetry Walk, inspired by trains, winter, and New York. Tickets are still available, so plan your weekend at NYBG and come enjoy the Holiday Train Show alongside beautiful poetry.
The Holiday Train Show continues this weekend with holiday guides, live a cappella, and screenings of your favorite holiday- and train-related films. Other programs this weekend include a special in-depth tour of the latest exhibition in the LuEsther T. Mertz Library, Flora Illustrata: A Celebration of Botanical Masterworks. These treasures from the Library’s Rare Book and other Collections span centuries, so come explore botanical history with an expert guide. Or you can be an expert for a day and join professionals and aficionados alike for this Saturday’s Annual Winter Bird Count to learn about bird conservation and population health while observing the Garden’s birds. Keep reading to get the full details on this weekend’s programs at NYBG!
Posted in Programs and Events on December 10 2014, by Matt Newman
The poetry of Billy Collins has long bridged the gap between the generations with its evocation of all things New York. For those who live here, his verse is a painted representation of daily life in the city, winter trips along the Hudson, and workaday commuter rituals unchanged for decades. At large, he’s a classic American poet, something recognized by virtue of the fact that he’s a former U.S. Poet Laureate. But as timeless as his words are, the effect is all the more potent when you hear them read aloud by Collins himself.
This Saturday, December 13, Billy Collins returns to The New York Botanical Garden for an intimate reading of his works in our Ross Hall. For those of you who’ve enjoyed strolling the Poetry Walk that winds its way through the Perennial Garden—just outside the Holiday Train Show taking place in the Conservatory—this is a chance to hear these poems as they were intended by the writer. Of course, if you haven’t had the opportunity to stroll through Poetry for Every Season, you’ll have the best of both worlds. And it’s not a bad time to check out the Train Show, either.
Posted in Programs and Events on November 11 2014, by Lansing Moore
November 15 marks the long-awaited opening of NYBG’s annual Holiday Train Show®! This beloved holiday tradition is now in its 23rd year, with more trains, more landmarks, and more fun than ever. The Holiday Train Show® is a whimsical reintroduction to New York through a mini-metropolis of landmarks both past and present.
See the monumental Brooklyn Bridge and the unmistakable Statue of Liberty alongside buildings from bygone eras revived as plant-based replicas, such as the original Penn Station and the TWA Flight Center. Admire New York’s most iconic structures as you have never seen them before and explore detailed models of nearby historic gems that may be completely new to you. Throughout the exhibit, more than a dozen large-scale model trains zip along almost a quarter-mile of track, for a thrilling display for the whole family.
Posted in Programs and Events on December 12 2013, by Matt Newman
On November 23 we had the singular pleasure of hosting one of America’s most prolific and critically acclaimed writers, friend of the Garden and former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins. And though you may know his many works in print—he likes to call his poems “a form of travel writing”—his oeuvre took on an entirely new luster as a sold-out crowd of fans, Garden Members, and curious readers gathered in the Ross Hall for an hour of recitation by the living master himself.
Even if you couldn’t make it to the Garden to hear Collins read in person, you’re not out of luck. Our videographer was on hand to preserve the moment in its entirety! So head below for a full reading of poems covering trains, winter weather, the quintessential New York experience, and all the slices of life that have made Collins so revered among writers. If you happen to be at the NYBG in the coming weeks, look for the poetry boards placed throughout Perennial Garden Way, each one offering bits of verse from our visiting poet as part of Poetry for Every Season. It’s the perfect complement to the charming architecture and zipping trains of the Holiday Train Show.
Posted in Photography on May 25 2011, by Ann Rafalko
If ever there were a spring day so perfect,
so uplifted by a warm intermittent breeze
that it made you want to throw
open all the windows in the house
and unlatch the door to the canary’s cage,
indeed, rip the little door from its jamb,
a day when the cool brick paths
and the garden bursting with peonies
seemed so etched in sunlight
that you felt like taking
a hammer to the glass paperweight
on the living room end table,
releasing the inhabitants
from their snow-covered cottage
so they could walk out,
holding hands and squinting
into this larger dome of blue and white,
well, today is just that kind of day.
Today ~ Billy Collins
This poem first appeared in Poetry (April 2000). Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen.