The stretch of Fifth Avenue on Manhattan's Upper East Side known as Museum Mile earned its name for the concentration of museums and cultural institutions dotted along that route. Once a year, in June, that wealth gets shared with the entire city (and fortunate visitors) during the Museum Mile Festival. This year's event, the 45th annual celebration, will be held on Tuesday, June 13, when eight major institutions will open their doors to the public completely free of charge from 6 to 9 p.m.
Participating in this year's festival are the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; Neue Galerie New York; Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; The Jewish Museum; Museum of the City of New York; El Museo del Barrio; and The Africa Center. Additional programming will be presented by The Asia Society, Church of the Heavenly Rest, AKC Museum of the Dog, New York Academy of Medicine and The People’s Bus.
The opening ceremony begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Museum of the City of New York, between 103rd and 104th streets on Fifth Avenue, featuring a performance from the Tony award-nominated musical "New York, New York."
Complementing the abundance of opportunities available inside these institutions, the festival will also spill out onto the street. Fifth Avenue between 82nd and 110th streets will be closed to cars for the duration, and most participating museums will offer pop-up displays, art activities, musical performances and other outdoor attractions.
Here's a list of what's on offer during the Museum Mile Festival on Tuesday:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is among the institutions inviting visitors inside free of charge during the Museum Mile Festival.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
As you might anticipate, the mighty Met Museum is offering a slate of hands-on art-making activities, storytelling sessions and other special events that they've created their own schedule, accessible here. Also featured are a silent dance party and a closing performance by Mariachi Real de México. It might not be the best time to queue up for big-ticket shows like "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty" or "Van Gogh's Cypresses," but a great opportunity to glimpse "Philip Guston: What Kind of Man Am I?" — the deceptively compact tip of an iceberg-size bequest.
Neue Galerie New York
The Neue Galerie is closed for renovation through September. But the institution plans to represent outside with a pop-up installation featuring activities and information about its mission, collection and future plans.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Guggenheim is emphasizing its current stellar exhibitions: "Gego: Measuring Infinity," "Sarah Sze: Timelapse," "Young Picasso in Paris" and "A Year with Children 2023," along with its always edifying Thannhauser Collection. Out on the street you'll find art-making activities using sustainable materials.
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
The Cooper Hewitt offers two timely, thought-provoking exhibitions: "Designing Peace," which explores how design can playing a decisive role in drawing attention to the pursuit of peace, and "Give Me a Sign: The Language of Symbols," illuminating the history, significance and impact of symbols used in mass communications.
The Jewish Museum
At the Jewish Museum you'll encounter a musical performance by Dingonek Street Band and a drop-in art-making activity. And there are two exceptional shows on view: "The Sassoons," examining one prominent Jewish family's collection amassed over four generations, and "After 'The Wild': Contemporary Art from The Barnett and Annalee Newman Foundation Collection," a breathtaking aggregation of works by artists whose careers were abetted by grants from a foundation established by the family of abstract expressionist artist Barnett Newman.
Museum of the City of New York
In addition to the kick-off ceremony and musical-theater performance already mentioned, this museum invites everyone to celebrate our hometown with a glimpse of a substantial and wide-ranging new exhibit, "This is New York: 100 Years of the City in Art and Pop Culture."
El Museo del Barrio
Whether you're a regular or you've never visited before, you'll see this unique cultural treasure in a new light with "Something Beautiful: Reframing La Colección," a comprehensive rethinking of how works in its collection are arranged and contextualized. El Museo also offers a live performance by Afro-Caribbean soul band Afro Dominicano and more music from DJ Jomero.
The Africa Center
Formerly known as the Center for African Art and then the Museum for African Art, The Africa Center is meant to provide visitors with fresh, honest insights into the continent's contemporary arts and culture. Visitors during the festival will get an early glimpse of "Black Future Newsstand," a thought-provoking interactive installation created by The Black Thought Project and Media 2070 with input from Black artists, journalists and cultural figures from around the world. The center is also hosting art workshops and a live performance by balafon master Famoro Dioubate with Kakande.
