Description
Among the city's major museums, there is only one with the words "New," "York," and "City" in its name, and this is precisely what gives the Museum of the City of New York its unique mandate. A variety of exhibitions, public programs, and publications all investigate what gives New York City its singular character.
Exhibitions in recent seasons have focused on wide-ranging subjects, illuminating the events and issues that define New York: how to make this city more sustainable by the year 2030; New York's emergence from the shadow of its trans-Atlantic sister city, Paris, to take center stage in the fields of design, fashion, and the arts; Catholic New Yorkers, a once-persecuted minority group that transformed the cultural, institutional, and political life of the broader community; hip hop and its impact on fashion; Robert Moses and the transformation of the metropolis in the mid-twentieth century; how immigrants created their own affordable housing in the early twentieth century; the story of a young Russian woman who reinvented American fashion; and other illuminating and fascinating aspects of New York's rich and diverse past and present. These facets of the city's development also serve us well in that they help to inform us as we all consider our city's future.
The Museum's public programs also play a vital role in educating and enlightening visitors and participants. Leading observers of the city, including Ken Auletta, Robert Caro, David Gonzalez, Tim Gunn, Roger Kahn, Russell Shorto, and Robert A. M. Stern, have shared their insights in panel discussions and lectures. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, former Mayor Edward I. Koch, Congressman Charles Rangel, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, former Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff, and other current and former elected officials have participated in our events and programs. And on many weeknights, Museum audiences find visionary architects and photographers, or dedicated urban planners, the most colorful chefs and interior designers, or the talented stars of the Broadway stage--all right here on our stage, discussing their latest projects or delighting audiences with music, song, and dance.
