“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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Location: 1220 Fifth Avenue, New York
Museum Day Hours: 10:00 a.m. ‐ 6:00 p.m.
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
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
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Location: 135 Broadway, Brooklyn
Museum Day Hours: 12:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.
Queens
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.