Charles Meryon, The Pont-au-Change, Paris (1854), courtesy Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute

Few cities have been chronicled more extensively than Paris. The Clark’s exhibition “Second Empire Paris: History and Modernity” suggests that the act of chronicling is as significant as what is being documented. The views of Paris in this small but provocative show of prints and photographs provide glimpses of the forces at work— political, sociological, and artistic—as the city was transformed into a gleaming modern capital. As the Second Republic lurched to its disappointing end, a promising new leader stepped forward. Like his namesake, Louis-Napoléon understood the art of self-promotion: “The name of Napoléon is a program in itself. At home it means order, authority, religion, and the well-being of the people; abroad, national dignity.” The French responded by installing him as ...

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