Great Museums: Elevated Thinking: The High Line in New York City

Narrated by actress Susan Sarandon, this hour-long documentary film showcases the High Line, a most unusual and unlikely public park. Since opening in 2009, it has become a top global tourist destination, with nearly 5 million visitors annually.
Since 1998, Great Museums' call to action has been find the museum in your own backyard. The High Line is a perfect example. "The long, narrow High Line is like a gallery in a museum where the city itself is on display," explains co-executive productive Marc Doyle. "You see the Statue of Liberty looking one way and the Empire State building looking the other."
The mile-and-a half-long High Line offers visitors a carefully curated world of woodlands, thickets, prairies and meadows - floating 30 feet in the air - through 22 blocks of Manhattan's West Side. It is like a living museum of plants - a tour de force of public landscaping - carefully curated atop an abandoned elevated railroad that was saved from the wrecking ball. "We filmed the High Line over the course of two years to capture the full glory of all four seasons," says Chesney Doyle, co-executive producer of Great Museums.
"Elevated Thinking" is the story of a grassroots effort, led by Friends of the High Line co-founders Robert Hammond and Joshua David, to buck city hall and save a massive, derelict, mile-and-half-long, freight railway from demolition. Against all odds, they built a coalition of neighbors, real estate developers, philanthropists, and city officials, including the support of the Bloomberg administration. CSX Transportation, which had purchased the High Line 1998, supported the idea of repurposing the High Line and eventually donated the structure to the city. "Many residents thought it was a big, ugly piece of junk in the sky," says Great Museums' Chesney Doyle. "Now it's a model for communities everywhere."

[@d.vincentwernham2157]

The genius of this documentary and the High Line is timeless! No matter how many times I view this documentary and enjoy the High Line in person, the experience is magically beautiful! In conclusion, these works of art are simply awesome!

[@TheCarole41]

I have watched this film for the third time and will watch it again and again. I have never wanted to visit New York but if at 78 I could afford it I would go straight to the High Line and walk as far as I can. To all those involved in thinking of using such a structure this way I salute you.

[@pacificrules]

I applaud Friends of High Line for harmonizing Preservation and Beauty in one flow. Looks absolutely gorgeous and inviting to the community. 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@d.vincentwernham2157]

This is an extraordinary documentary about an extraordinary experience! The High Line is a masterpiece in every way!

[@RonnieSouthbuckle]

This is a great video. I was very interested in the portion where they described how landscape design takes you on a journey, and how the design of the stairs was made to slow people down, bring them out of the city and into a journey. Fascinating.

[@woop2235]

I’m so happy to have found this documentary of The High Line ♥️ It has become my favorite place to visit whenever I’m in New York. Thank You to all who made this possible.

[@butikimbo9595]

Simply Fantastic Documentary seen from a railways enthusiast from Manchester, Great Britain where a similar project is taking shape and totally inspired by High Line, the latest that i really had no idea fo its background and success. Great work. Thank you for sharing.

[@rolandomichel2070]

I LOVE the High Line! It truly adds something special to the whole New York Experience. Can not wait to return.

[@hookywooky]

Superbly produced documentary! Shouts of Bravo and deafening applause!

[@openlc555]

This is such a beautiful and natural looking park. Thumbs up to all the designers and staff.

[@Smackdaddyt]

As a kid growing up in NYC, I used to bike the High Line (West Side Elevated highway: 1970s) before they fixed this up. It is now more beautiful than ever. Thank you NY. I do miss biking it though.

[@Smackdaddyt]

+Bruni The entry up the ramp was on Houston Street. As soon as we got up on the highway, it was all ours. We rode up to 22nd street where the highway fell off. We could see the other side, but there was about 30 feet of highway missing. Naturally, we turned around and rode back down the same path.

[@metropod]

+Yogi T Wrong high line. You were on the highway. This is the old train line.

[@tonyleon6787]

My favorite documentary EVER...

[@rajsingharora26]

Every Time in NYC I walk it again & again ......cannot wait to revisit my all time fav urban monument in my fav city on the planet ........ just makes you truly happy the High Line.

[@teresitanaranja3430]

Almost 1.5 mile long of walking from N to S of the High Line Park is at first unimaginable but as you walk in unison with the others, feeling tired seem to retract and eventually enjoying the views from left to right. The remnants of Meatpacking District are still present, but transformed to give a unique class of its own.

[@Marchant2]

NYC just keeps getting better and better.

[@ningxiawolfberry]

Deblasio and Cuomo are destroying it now. It is ashame.

[@410phee4]

NYC sucks now, barely any New Yorkers left

[@brucelucas1756]

I honestly found this video beautifully inspiring, how taking something that was looked upon as an eyesore and transforming it into a place of wonderment is truly an amazing accomplishment.🥰😘😁

[@JohnPaul-le4pf]

I live about 200 miles north of NYC. I've walked the High Line a few times, and it's a "must-see" for any occasional visitor to Manhattan. It's a beautiful creation.

[@eattherich9215]

This film is a lovely reminder of my previous two visits with an historical overview for good measure.

[@ToilerOnTheSea]

Coming in 5 days and this is going to be a highlight for me.

[@stephenhowe4107]

From the UK, London. I have walked along High Line twice. Pure magic. A lovely part of New York. Half way along towards Meat Packing district area, you can get off and there is pub underneath that sells cider. Miss New York every day. Also worth seeing the Japanese trees in West Central Park, half way up.

[@eattherich9215]

I saw the distant view of the Statue of Liberty and it was a heart stopping moment for me. My plan to visit New York City this year are cancelled, but on a future visit I shall look again for that view and make sure I have a camera that can capture it.

[@phypastore]

Just beautiful. I was there last weekend and I will go this weekend to another block. It's truly wonderful.

[@saranbhatia8809]

Love the Highline....way forward!

[@diannemarshall4078]

The High Line is a paradise above ground. I will be returning this Spring. While there visit the Whitney its amazing. Bklyn. New Yoker.

[@AndrewG1989]

Elevated walkway is lot better than just closing it down and being unused. This is remarkable.

[@cesartovar9500]

I love to know places In NYC ,thanks for sharing

[@NKsEntertainment]

Awesome 👍

[@margaritacarmona-carriedo7503]

GORGEOUS! One of my Fav Places of My City! Great Video!

[@diannewi]

Wonderful introduction to the High Line. Thanks!

[@ruzzelladrian907]

I didn't feel stressed out or got tired walking on the High Line, that was the magic of how they designed the path ways and gardens. I cannot thank the people who made it all possible, and it's all for free.

[@gavinanderson7872]

This is a beautiful work of architecture and imagination, love it and New York City.

[@deanelydiard1846]

Stunning, And I'm sure this helps clean the air a bit .

[@PedroGonzalez-pc6nb]

Beautiful!

[@mohannarendran8623]

Excellent production, thank you!

[@Eljardindegabic]

me encanta cuando dice: its looks natural it looks wild but far from it... todo un arte, hermoso.

[@paulflores5335]

An incredible success story

[@robertbl7500]

Simply 😊😊😊😊!!!

[@MiaHessMusic]

A friend of mine took me here about 7 years, very cool place!!!

[@m.showers1242]

This is a wonderful intro to the Highline!

[@triciak1402]

This looks amazing. I live near the elevated train in Philadelphia and I love this idea.

[@10411702]

This has been a wonderful experience.

[@apsluis]

wonderful place and great work to recover something that many people thought lost. Another reason to visit NY one day.

[@saf40]

Wonderful

[@dmok42195]

I love Landscape Architecture!

[@ABTCdirector]

Well done.

[@sharonthompson2333]

Such an enjoyable video, thank you so much. I am from California and have never been to New York but now it is even a bigger dream of mine and this will be the first place I visit. Thanks to all of you who have made this happen and keep it going.

[@GreatMuseums]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@gregorykennerly2321]

I have never lived in New York, but I think it's the greatest city in the world. Not just the buildings and the cultural institutions, but the people. I love the people of New York. I wish I could die a New Yorker.

[@lowesonia8551]

Fabulous A Plus for New York Loved the Dutch Paysagist bravo all concerned in its creation

[@clarefriend1376]

I’d love to visit NYC just to see the High Line

[@3hijos5nietos]

Thank you, very inspiring. Greetings from Chile.

[@phyllispetras2181]

12:43 pink plant? NEVER saw this beauty!

[@neyann]

I am in love.

[@Brooklynlife1000]

I'm gonna go on a nice Spring Day. I live in NYC yet never walked this lovely stretch.

[@ROSEISDAHLTROYEGREEN]

beauty..MR PIET..

[@MrLuvOldies]

Thanks. Wonderful,Great New York City. Mmmmmmmm

[@chucktaylor4958]

What a treasure.

[@rebekahdelibro9015]

I am so glad Joshua David and Robert Hammond worked together to revitalize this amazing place! Can't wait to see it in April! Where's theres God's will there's a way!

[@user-jw1vk2nf5u]

GOOD!!!

[@jeffr4169]

That's a great idea! :D

[@bronxboy47]

I want to experience this so bad I can taste it. I've been away for 35 years. Will I ever return to my hometown?

[@chrissharp4538]

My wife and were able to walk this in April. So amazing. Hope you get to see it soon.

[@Foh9L64di]

I wish we have something like this somewhere in Bangkok!

[@MillerMeteor74]

I'm a little bit disappointed now. When I first started watching this I thought how cool it was that the Highline contained this amazing wilderness of plants and shrubs that grew there on their own. But then later in the video I find that all of that is gone, and it's now landscaped. Why couldn't the wild plants be left there? Things that grow on their own and then thrive are the best for any particular space. I'll continue watching. It looks beautiful anyway, and I'd like to visit eventually.

[@paulheywood2116]

awesome love to go one day

[@kaloarepo288]

The elevated railway features in the famous car chase scene in the 1970 movie "The French Connection" starring Gene Hackman.Very iconic.

[@3rty7]

its the coolest man, a work of art .. perhaps they could extent it all the way to central park and go above the park for part of the way too ?

[@germancreatives88]

Piet Oudolf is a Legend!

[@zachwhitsett1722]

ian cale Dutch people really know there plants and water! :)

[@WetPooooopie]

Nice, I was here yesterday and made my own mini vid.

[@alisonlee3314]

We need to copy your example here in London. It's beautiful.

[@eattherich9215]

There are proposals for mini highlines in various places in London. The first of them is what remains of the old Bishopsgate goods yard. Another is in Camden. If you google 'a highline for london', you will see all the schemes from walks to gardens.

[@heinrichgrueber6341]

New York, I love you as you are.

[@chloewhite9941]

52:50_it would make a great painting :) (in a good way of course )

[@evaldnegrom4299]

Legal mesmo....

[@josephvasquez1804]

i love this so much!!!! thats why they need to stop building against it and obstructing views

[@gggreggg]

re: March pruning and cutting.could the cut material be ground up an put back in place as natural and free mulch/compost?

[@alanhughchandler5504]

I live in Burlington Vermont we did the same thing to an area of rail road track that was not being used and now we have a bike / walking path that runs along the shore of lake Champlain from South to North.The first time I walked the High Line it was like being in apart of my home

[@trainman747]

YOU Must GO here when IN THE CITY

[@Francisco.Rizzuti]

Please make subtitles for this!! spanish if possible. thank you!

[@floweringscapes7362]

No talk of how the High Line contributed to the gentrification of Chelsea and the impact on the socioeconomic status of neighborhood through the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.

[@ChipNPutt]

+Caroline Stern Life goes on, known as progress.

[@ruzzelladrian907]

I love Diane Von Furstenberg even more! She's awesome! She helped saved the High Line. DVF ❤️ 👄

[@julianvivarconde1350]

Me gustaría también que estuviera traducido al español

[@marcel911]

I remember this from GTA IV. I never realised it was a real railway. It seemed so odd the way it passed through buildings.

[@JuanSebastianTorresFigueroa]

HIGHLY SUBLIME

[@ruzzelladrian907]

36:38 Only in New York City. So chic.

[@Olizimm]

La vecchia High Line di New York sarà l'infrastruttura più visitata da tutti i turisti del mondo. E' stata parte integrante della città e lo sarà ancora in futuro.

[@loganbaileysfunwithtrains606]

Surprised CSXT gave the city the property, management would have had it tore down if it was still abandoned today

[@Bebalovesjoejonas]

How would I cite this for a project in my geography class?

[@Alrucards]

Could have put a light rail or a tram on the high line but this is also good.

[@maximilianschmid3848]

Where can I get the DVD?

[@GreatMuseums]

Hi! You can purchase the DVD in the High Line Shop: shop.thehighline.org/great-museums:-elevated-thinking-the-high-line-in-new-york-city-(dvd)/dp/484 Glad you enjoyed!

[@sammavacaist]

They must have done this before they finished the last leg. Past Hudson Yards it turns toward the river and it overlooks the subway car yard. You can watch the helicopters take off from the 34th Street heliopad and it comes out at the new Jacob Javitts center.

[@earthmama5659]

Only a New Yorker would call this wild.😳

[@ovh992]

DVF was not the first boutique in the meatpacking district. She was not even a pioneer. Jeffrey was the first store to open there and DVF was the 2nd wave of boutique openings. Jeffrey MADE the modern day fashion district known as the meatpacking district.

[@theJesFine]

in the world of unintended consequences living along the High Line has made Chelsa one of the most desirable places in NYC to live with rents rising 10 times the rate of the rest of the city with the subsequent rise in evictions. Excellent documentary coming to HBO which speaks to this.....Class Divide www.nytimes.com/2016/04/13/movies/review-class-divide-shows-the-extremes-hypergentrification-creates-ina-neighborhood.html?_r=0

[@MrTheWillyanico]

A 11 PERSONAS NO LES GUSTA EL DOCUMENTAL O NO LE GUSTA EL HIGH LINE?

[@nicolasroque163]

I remember as a 7 yr old kid that train passing 26th st n 10th ave blowing the horn with meat n other things

[@michaelvainer3350]

I always thought that there were no green spaces in the MEGALOPOLISES.

[@pnull]

Can you ride bikes on the Highline?

[@billybatts6364]

+Peter Null NO NO NO NO NO. Didn't you here the architect about "slowing down?" No bikes. No dogs. It's for people to stroll.

[@pnull]

Thank you!

[@hanagomikusohana9118]

This looks similar to the monorail in the city of Bogota. Our backwardness is not only mentally if not culturally, thank Mr Pañalosa

[@user-basilica4726]

29:30

[@interstellarphred]

I am sure the highway lobby is gloating, its closure as a railway brings into stark relief the failures of American transportation policy.

[@Kevin-yh9yt]

It was a great idea when it was concieved, when the Highline ran thru a low-rise industrial district on the West Side. Once it was 'rezoned' and developers got their hands on it during the Bloomberg admin , it is now simply a boring canyon passing thru generic glass highrises filled with Wall Streeters and packed with tourists walking cheek to jowl. A huge missed opportunity and now no New Yorker would be caught dead there.

[@cats0182]

I'm a self-exiled NY'er. Can no longer afford to live there. Two things I'd love to see before I die. The High Line Park and the Walkway Across the Hudson. Given that I live in "Semi-rural Outer Slobovia", I'm not optimistic.

[@ruzzelladrian907]

34:17 There's a good chance those monks aren't real. RED FLAG!