Welcome to the Art Angle, a podcast from Artnet News that delves into the places where the art world meets the real world, bringing each week’s biggest story down to earth. Join host Andrew Goldstein every week for an in-depth look at what matters most in museums, the art market, and much more with input from our own writers and editors as well as artists, curators, and other top experts in the field.

To call the mood of this past spring in the New York art world “apocalyptic” would hardly be an exaggeration. Although it was on March 22 that the rapid spread of COVID-19 pushed governor Andrew Cuomo to order the closure of all non-essential businesses in New York state, the renowned museums and galleries that make New York City the beating heart of the US art world had already started voluntarily shutting down almost two weeks earlier out of concern for public safety.

As spring unfolded, furloughs and layoffs devastated the for-profit and nonprofit sides of the arts workforce alike; dealers started frantically pivoting to online viewing rooms to try to coax sales from collectors forbidden by law to enter their bricks-and-mortar galleries; and a major survey estimated that up to one-third of American museums might never re-emerge from the lockdown.

Yet by late June in New York, the pandemic had receded far enough that galleries were permitted to begin reopening their long-closed doors to the public if they felt ready. Governor Cuomo then signaled that the state’s museums could resume operating in late August. By Labor Day weekend, a steady stream of art-starved visitors had completed the careful reanimation of the New York art world—an outcome that seemed almost unthinkable six months earlier.

So, how exactly did NYC’s museums and galleries contend with a half-year of lockdown? What have they changed to accommodate the realities of the new normal? And what is the forecast for the future? On this week’s episode, Artnet News’s Eileen Kinsella and Tim Schneider join Andrew Goldstein to offer their insights.

Listen above and subscribe to the Art Angle on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, or wherever you get your podcasts. (Or catch up on past episodes here on Artnet News.)

Listen to Other Episodes:

The Art Angle Podcast: How a Powerhouse Hollywood Agency Is Turning Artists Into Stars

The Art Angle Podcast: How the World Health Organization Is Using Art to Fight the Pandemic

The Art Angle Podcast: Futurist Doug Stephens on What Art Dealers Can Learn From the Retail Revolution

The Art Angle Podcast: The Secret Art History of Burning Man

The Art Angle Podcast: How Rupert Murdoch’s Son Became Art Basel’s Savior

The Art Angle Podcast: How the Wellness Revolution Just Arrived in the Art World

The Art Angle Podcast: Art Critic Jerry Saltz on Why It’s Time to Build a New Art World

The Art Angle Podcast: How Black Women Are Leading a Grassroots Art Revolution

The Art Angle Podcast: How the Heck Did Auction Houses Just Sell Almost a Billion Dollars in Art During a Global Pandemic?

The Art Angle Podcast: How Hank Willis Thomas Is Making Politics an Art Form