7 Nice Museums in NYC

‘What are your hobbies?’ I find to be an extremely uncomfortable question. I don’t play an instrument, have a godawful dislike for sports, and I don’t regularly sit behind an easel either. (If ‘binge-watching series and eating cookies’ were a socially acceptable answer, I wouldn’t have a problem with this question). My answer is often something along the lines of ‘I enjoy discovering new things’. By ‘things’ I mean little restaurants, neighborhoods, and museums. Although I spend most of my time on the first two, I derive a lot of satisfaction from the last one. Because besides Netflix and cookies, a person also needs cultural nourishment, right? Fortunately, there is no shortage of nice museums here. So: here’s a list of a few of my favorite museums in New York.

MoMA

The MoMA is of course a classic. It was closed all summer because it was being given a new and larger look. So even for those who could find their way around, it’s now a bit tricky to orient themselves. The Van Goghs are still the most popular and that crazy helicopter is still hanging there, but the museum is probably twice as big and that means there’s room for almost exhaustingly much cool art. Besides more art, there’s also more shopping opportunity. The MoMA now has not one but two shops with souvenirs, design items, and art books. If you’ve gotten hungry from wandering through the large museum, I have a tip for you. Last week I discovered a new sandwich place (because, as you now know, that’s my hobby). Antico Noè doesn’t look particularly cozy, but the paninis are an ‘Italian baker’s kiss’.

MoMA PS1

One of my new favorites is MoMA’s little sister in Brooklyn, MoMA PS1. It’s located in an old school building that still has ‘girls’ and ‘boys’ in the tiles above the side entrances. The old building gives the museum a cozy atmosphere. Many of the exhibitions have a multimedia element (think image, light, and sound installations).

The Frick Collection

I love this museum because it’s small but nice and is located in a real Upper East Side mansion. The mentality here is very much ‘tear down and build something bigger and ‘better’, so there are only a few of the old palace-like houses that once overlooked Central Park still standing. The house of the Frick family (who made a fortune during New York’s Gilded Age of the Vanderbilt and Rockefeller caliber) still stands and has been transformed into a museum where you can see their art collection and changing exhibitions.

The Morgan Library

For anyone who loves old libraries with secret bookcase doors, The Morgan Library is a must-visit. The library isn’t large, but it is grand. In the modern extension, you’ll find various exhibitions, always around print themes (such as ‘illustrations of mythical creatures through the ages’).

The Met Cloisters

The Metropolitan Museum is one you definitely shouldn’t skip, but if you’re in the mood for something new, make the trek to The Met Cloisters. This branch of the mega-museum is located on a hill in the northwest of Manhattan by the Hudson River. Because of its location, you have a beautiful view over the valley. The museum itself looks like a medieval French or Italian monastery, complete with galleries around herbaceous inner gardens. The collection consists of, as you might have expected, medieval religious objects and artworks.

Museum of the City of New York 

Are you someone who wants to learn something about the city you’re visiting? Then this is the perfect place to start. When you visit this beautiful museum, start in the basement. There you can watch a film that explains the entire history of the city in 15-20 minutes. Something I always enjoy seeing in this film and the exhibitions are the Dutch influences that have remained from New Amsterdam. Our ancestors certainly did many awful things and were no angels here either, but the innocent remnants like Dutch street and neighborhood names and old Dutch documents always bring a smile to my face.

On my to-do list: Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum

I don’t know how it’s possible, but this museum has only recently come onto my radar. The design museum looks like a gem with cool installations and a beautiful garden. I haven’t yet found the opportunity to visit the museum (even if you live in New York, you still have to work and do grocery shopping), but it’s at the top of my list.

Written by: Anna van der Heijden