New NYC museum exhibits to catch
Muhammad Ali, boxing's "greatest," was painted by artistic great LeRoy Neiman. It'll be on exhibit at the New-York Historical Society. Credit: LeRoy Neiman Foundation
The map of New York City is dotted with museums, and fall is the prime museum-going season. This year there are shows that take you to Cuba, the Jerusalem of a millennium past or the French court of the 18th century. You might discover works of artists from Kerry James Marshall and Beverly Buchanan to Agnes Martin and Pierre Gouthière.
Here are 10 exhibits you don’t want to miss:
JERUSALEM 1000–1400:EVERY PEOPLE UNDER HEAVEN’
Jerusalem today is divided into the Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Armenian quarters, a hint of the holy city’s diverse past. With more than 200 works, the Met’s fall exhibit zooms in on a particularly rich period of its history, focusing on six factors that fostered creativity and inspired art: Pulse of Trade and Tourism, Diversity of Peoples, Air of Holiness, Drumbeat of Holy War, Generosity of Patrons and Promise of Eternity.
WHEN | WHERE Through Jan. 8 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave.
INFO $25; 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org
‘SOUR, SWEET, BITTER, SPICY: STORIES OF CHINESE FOOD AND IDENTITY IN AMERICA’
Every dish tells a story — of flavors, traditions, innovation, culture, identity and more. The Museum of Chinese in America turns to dozens of chefs, restaurateurs and home cooks to tell the stories of, and behind, Chinese food in this country. The oral history and multimedia installation features chefs from New York to Los Angeles and many cities in between.
WHEN | WHERE Oct. 6–March 26 at the Museum of Chinese in America, 215 Centre St.
INFO $10; 855-955-MOCA, mocanyc.org
‘AGNES MARTIN’
Trace the life and career of the abstract artist as you walk through this retrospective. More than 100 paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures and a film span from the 1950s to the early 2000s, including some of the last pieces Martin created before her death in 2004. Her style is spare and abstract, heavily influenced by nature.
WHEN | WHERE Oct. 7-Jan. 11 at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Ave.
INFO $25; 212-423-3575, guggenheim.org
‘BEVERLY BUCHANAN — RUINS AND RITUALS’
In October, the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art launches “A Year of Yes: Reimagining Feminism at the Brooklyn Museum,” a series of 10 exhibitions that will open over the course of a year to celebrate its 10th anniversary. The first among them is devoted to Beverly Buchanan with roughly 200 works, including sculpture, painting, photography, drawing, notebooks of the artist’s writings and a video installation. These broach topics such as gender, race, class, identity, memory, historical injustice and Southern vernacular architecture.
WHEN | WHERE Oct. 21–March 5 at the Brooklyn Museum, 200 Eastern Pkwy.
INFO $16; 718-638-5000, brooklynmuseum.org
‘KERRY JAMES MARSHALL: MASTRY’
Seven months after its grand opening, the Met Breuer (in the old Whitney Museum building) will open its fifth exhibit. “Mastry” highlights the career of renowned African-American artist Kerry James Marshall, who was born in Birmingham, Alabama, raised in South Central Los Angeles and is now based in Chicago. His work is often about black figures, history and culture. The show is primarily composed of Marshall’s paintings and will be presented in tandem with “Kerry James Marshall Selects,” for which the artist chose roughly 40 works from the Met’s collections that speak to his influences.
WHEN | WHERE Oct. 25–Jan. 29 at the Met Breuer, 945 Madison Ave.
INFO $25; 212-731-1675, metmuseum.org
‘DREAMLANDS: IMMERSIVE CINEMA AND ART, 1905–2016’
You’ll never look at movies the same way again after “Dreamlands.” The Whitney’s high-tech exhibit is a series of immersive displays that look at how American artists and filmmakers (and a few Germans who influenced them) have experimented with the moving image over the past century. Visitors will have a chance to consider how these artists played with color, touch, music, light and darkness, animation and two versus three dimensions.
WHEN | WHERE Oct. 28–Feb. 5 at the Whitney Museum, 99 Gansevoort St.
INFO $22; 212-570-3600, whitney.org
‘MASTERWORKS: UNPACKING FASHION’
The Costume Institute’s fall show will showcase roughly 60 important “masterworks” it has acquired over the past decade. The pieces span from the early 18th century to the present and include womenswear, menswear and accessories. They are iconic works that have left their mark on fashion history, from designers such as Azzedine Alaïa, Cristóbal Balenciaga, Iris van Herpen and Alexander McQueen.
WHEN | WHERE Nov. 18–Feb. 5 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave.
INFO $25; 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org
‘PIERRE GOUTHIÈRE: VIRTUOSO GILDER AT THE FRENCH COURT’
Visitors to this Frick exhibition might feel as if they’ve stepped back into the 18th century French court of Louis XV or that of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. They’ll see clocks, vases, firedogs, wall lights and other pieces the famous gilder might have made for a king or queen, duke or duchess, count or marquis. Though works often have been falsely attributed to Gouthière, this show includes 21 that can be attributed to him with certainty.
WHEN | WHERE Nov. 16–Feb. 19 at the Frick Collection, 1 E. 70th St.
INFO $22; 212-288-0700, frick.org
‘¡CUBA!’
A trip to Cuba has never seemed so feasible. But until you’re able to see the island firsthand, you can visit this exhibition, the first in a string of collaborations with the Cuban National Museum of Natural History. The immersive show explores Cuba’s biodiversity — wetlands and caves, and wildlife such as the endangered Cuban crocodile — along with culture, art, music, spiritual traditions, celebrations, food and farming.
WHEN | WHERE Nov. 21–Aug. 13 at the American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street
INFO $22; 212-769-5100, amnh.org
‘MUHAMMAD ALI, LEROY NEIMAN, AND THE ART OF BOXING’
The world lost a celebrated boxer and a social activist when Muhammad Ali died in June. Born Cassius Clay, he was an iconic figure in and out of the ring, often depicted by artist LeRoy Neiman. This timely exhibit includes watercolors and sketches by Neiman as well as art by Ali himself.
WHEN | WHERE Dec. 16–March 12 at the New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West
INFO $20, 212-873-3400, nyhistory.org
