These 22 New York-Area Museums Are Offering Free Admission for One Day Only This Weekend

Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 21, when dozens of museums throughout the city will open their door for free.

The Museum of Art and Design in New York. Courtesy of the Museum of Art and Design.

You get a free museum admission! And you get a free museum admission! And you get a free museum admission! Free museum admissions for everybody!” shouts the imaginary art-world Oprah in our minds.

Yes, the 15th annual Museum Day is just around the bend: this Saturday, September 21, more than 1,500 museums and cultural institutions across the country will open their doors to visitors for free. That includes a fair share of institutions in the New York City area.

Not be confused with Museum Mile Day or Open House New York, Museum Day is organized by Smithsonian Magazine—and last year over 450,000 people participated. If you’re interested, all you need to do is download a special ticket for entry, each good for admission for two.

A word to the wise: you have to choose your destination ahead of time and once it is selected, it can’t be changed. To help you pick, we’ve put together a list of the participating art institutions.

 

Manhattan

American Folk Art Museum

Courtesy of the American Folk Art Museum.

Courtesy of the American Folk Art Museum.

Location: 2 Lincoln Square (Columbus Avenue between 65th and 66th Streets), New York 

Museum Day Hours: 11:30 a.m.–7:00 p.m.

 

Museum of Arts and Design

Courtesy of the Museum of Art and Design.

Courtesy of the Museum of Art and Design.

Location: 2 Columbus Circle, New York
Museum Day Hours: 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.

 

Asia Society and Museum

Courtesy of Asia Society.

Courtesy of Asia Society.

Location: 725 Park Avenue, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.

 

Bard Graduate Center Gallery

Courtesy of Bard Graduate Center.

Courtesy of Bard Graduate Center.

Location: 18 West 86th Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m

 

Museum of Chinese in America

Courtesy of the Museum of Chinese in America.

Courtesy of the Museum of Chinese in America.

Location: 215 Centre Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.

 

Museum of the City of New York

Courtesy of the Museum of the City of New York.

Courtesy of the Museum of the City of New York.

Location: 1220 Fifth Avenue, New York
Museum Day Hours: 10:00 a.m. ‐ 6:00 p.m.

 

Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Courtesy of the Cooper Hewitt.

Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Center.

Location: 2 East 91st Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m.

 

Museum of Illustration at the Society of Illustrators

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

The Society of Illustrators. Photo: ajay_suresh. Creative Commons license.

Location: 128 East 63rd Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

 

The Jewish Museum

Courtesy of the Jewish Museum.

Courtesy of the Jewish Museum.

Location: 1109 Fifth Avenue at 92nd Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m.

 

National Museum of the American Indian in New York

Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian.

Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian.

Location: Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House,One Bowling Green, New York
Museum Day Hours: 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

 

Poster House

Courtesy of the Poster Museum.

Courtesy of the Poster Museum.

Location: 119 West 23rd Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.‐6:00 p.m.

 

Ukrainian Museum

Courtesy of the Ukrainian Museum.

Courtesy of the Ukrainian Museum.

Location: 222 East 6th Street, New York
Museum Day Hours: 11:30 a.m.‐5:00 p.m.

 

The Bronx

Derfner Judaica Museum + The Art Collection at Hebrew Home at Riverdale

Courtesy of the Derfner Judaica Museum + The Art Collection at Hebrew Home at Riverdale.

Courtesy of the Derfner Judaica Museum + The Art Collection at Hebrew Home at Riverdale.

Location: 5901 Palisade Avenue, Bronx
Time: Museum closed Saturday; ticket valid Sunday, September 22, 10:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

 

Brooklyn

Williamsburg Art & Historical Center

Courtesy of the Williamsburg Art and Historical Center.

Courtesy of the Williamsburg Art and Historical Center.

Location: 135 Broadway, Brooklyn
Museum Day Hours: 12:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.

 

Queens

The Noguchi Museum

Courtesy of the Noguchi Museum.

Courtesy of the Noguchi Museum.

Location: 9-01 33rd Road at Vernon Boulevard, Long Island City
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.

 

Staten Island

Alice Austen House Museum

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Location: 2 Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island
Time: 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. 

 

Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden

Courtesy of Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden.

Courtesy of Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden.

Location: 1000 Richmond Terrace, Buildings C & G, Staten Island
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

 

Westchester

Katonah Museum of Art

Courtesy of the Katonah Museum of Art.

Courtesy of the Katonah Museum of Art.

Location: 134 Jay Street, Katonah
Museum Day Hours: 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

 

Long Island 

The Heckscher Museum of Art

Courtesy of the The Heckscher Museum of Art.

Courtesy of the The Heckscher Museum of Art.

Location: 2 Prime Avenue, Huntington
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

 

Hofstra University Museum of Art

Courtesy of the Hofstra Museum of Art.

Courtesy of the Hofstra Museum of Art.

Location: 112 Hofstra University, Hempstead
Museum Day Hours: 12:00 p.m.‐4:00 p.m.

 

Nassau County Museum of Art

Courtesy of the Nassau County Museum of Art.

Courtesy of the Nassau County Museum of Art.

Location: One Museum Drive, Roslyn Harbor
Museum Day Hours: 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

 

Newark 

Newark Museum

Courtesy of the Newark Museum.

Courtesy of the Newark Museum.

Location: 49 Washington Street, Newark
Museum Day Hours: 12:00 p.m. ‐ 5:00 p.m.

Check the Museum Day 2019 website for additional information.


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