What better way to stay out of the heat than by soaking up some fine art? Be it sculpture, painting or something a little more modern, the city’s major museums have plenty of indoor fun opening this summer.
MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
MoMA has the art world nearly cornered this summer with a host of new exhibitions throughout.
Re-picturing the Past/Picturing the Present
Printmaking and collage create layered historical records in an exhibition that explores the role of narrative, allegory, myth and literature in recent art. Early works by modern masters like Max Beckmann and contemporary prints by artists including Kara Walker and Christian Boltanski bookend this view from the late 19th to early 21st centuries. June 16 – Nov. 5.
Young Architects Program 2007
Each year MoMA, in conjunction with the P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, hand-selects a young designer to create an outdoor pavilion for the summer Warm Up concert series. From June 27 – Sept. 8, check out the work of this year’s five finalists.
Automatic Update
The art world may still be figuring out how to deal with new media, but that hasn’t stopped them from trying. In “Automatic Update,” artists reach for hi-tech source material. June 27 – Sept. 10.
What is Painting? Contemporary Art
from the Collection
The fourth in a series of exhibitions drawing for the museum’s massive archive, “What is Painting?” explores the place of the art from in contemporary art. July 7 – Sept. 17.
Present Tense: Photographs by JoAnn Verberg
The 25-year career of American photographer JoAnn Verberg is surveyed in this exhibition of 60 photographs – including many works where multiple photos enhance meaning. July 15 – Nov. 5.
Lost Vanguard: Soviet Modernist
Architecture
Architecture from 1922-32, once avant-garde and now deteriorating, tells the story of post-revolutionary Russia through more than 80 photographs. July 18 – Oct. 29.
METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART
South Asian Galleries
The revamped South Asian galleries of the Met open to the public Aug. 3, with 1,000 years of sculpture from the Hindu and Buddhist traditions represented by over 160 works.
Frank Stella on the Roof
It may have opened in May, but it’s not too late to spend a summer day on the museum’s roof with “Frank Stella on the Roof,” an exhibition of outdoor sculpture. Through Oct. 28, weather permitting.
WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART
Rudolf Stingel
Only one exhibition opens at the Whitney this summer, a solo show of work by Rudolf Stingel. The Italian-born New Yorker, a favorite from the 2006 Biennial, bends boundaries of material, media and the work of art itself. June 28 – Oct. 14.
When are museums free?
Ticket prices for the city’s museums have been on the rise, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get in without emptying your wallet. Here’s when to go on the cheap, when ticket prices are replaced by pay-what-you-wish fares.
The Frick Collection
Sunday 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Guggenheim Museum
Friday from 5:45 – 7:45 p.m.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The suggested admission of $20 is
always “suggested.”
Museum of Modern Art
Friday 4 – 8 p.m.
Whitney Museum of American Art
Friday 6 – 9 p.m.
Pool Party
Had enough culture? Cool off at one of these city pools. – J.W.
Asser Levy Recreation Center
23 Asser Levy Pl. 212-447-2020
Take a dip in the elegant indoor pool, which features a fountain and skylights, or bathe in the sun beside the outdoor pool at the Asser Levy Recreation Center.
Le Parker Meridien
119 W. 56th St. 212-708-7340
Really relax at this luxury hotel’s pool-spa complex, which has a fantastic view overlooking Central Park.
Soho House New York
29-35 Ninth Ave. 212-627-9800
Lounge around in privacy, at the exclusive pool on the famous roof of the Soho House. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are also served daily, overlooking the West Village and Hudson River.
The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers
60 Chelsea Piers, 212-336-6000
Treat yourself to an afternoon of swimming in this six-lane, 25-yard, competition-style pool with an adjacent oversized whirlpool spa. The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers also offers a variety of spa services, including the Swedish Massage, the Hot Rock Massage, the Seaweed Body Wrap, and many more.
