We Are Here: Scenes from the Streets
JIMMY! God’s Black Revolutionary Mouth
Current & Upcoming Exhibitions
Discover Passport to Museums Partners
Get free admission to the museums below who generously provide this experience to current Columbia students.
All you need for admission is your CUID with a current semester validation sticker.
Get your validation sticker from the Student Service Center in 210 Kent Hall [more info]
1280 Fifth Avenue (at 109th Street)
New York, NY 10029
theafricacenter.org
Explore facets of contemporary Africa, its diaspora, and people of African descent through performances, installations, talks, readings, and film screenings. The Africa Center does not always have exhibitions on view, so check their events calendar before heading over.
725 Park Avenue (between E 70th and 71st Streets)
New York, NY 10021
asiasociety.org/museum
Savor Asia Society’s intimate and diverse collection of both traditional and contemporary Asian and Asian-American art. With artworks from over a dozen countries spanning an astonishing 3,100 years, you are sure to find inspiration. Enjoy a free guided tour, or take advantage of their Friday late-night hours for a memorable evening out.
120 East 125th Street (between Park Ave and Lexington Ave)
New York, NY 10035
cccadi.org
Connect to Caribbean culture both past and present at CCCADI, where you can enjoy music, dance, and art from renowned artists as well as emerging artists from the local community. Dedicated to advancing cultural equity and social justice for African descendent communities, CCCADI explores the effects of the African Diaspora and makes invisible histories visible.
1230 Fifth Avenue (between 104th and 105th street)
New York, NY 10029
elmuseo.org/
Discover the arts of Latino, Caribbean, and Latin American cultures through El Museo’s wide-ranging exhibitions and exciting public programs. Current Columbia students, faculty, and staff receive free admission for themselves plus a guest with a valid CUID.
79 Essex Street
New York, NY 10002
icp.org
Take a deep dive into the medium of photography. ICP’s acclaimed exhibitions cover the full spectrum of photography, from early daguerreotypes, documentary images, and contemporary photography to multimedia installations that employ both traditional and digital techniques.
333 East 47th Street
New York, NY 10017
japansociety.org
For a crash course in Japanese arts and culture (past and present), get yourself to Japan Society, a true hidden gem in the neighborhood of two major NYC landmarks—Grand Central Station and the U.N. Headquarters. Its gallery regularly features expertly curated and designed exhibitions, and its auditorium hosts one-of-a-kind performances from Japan’s leading theater and dance artists. And don’t forget to take a moment to savor the calm of the lobby’s indoor garden.
11 W 53rd Street (between 5th and 6th Avenues)
New York, NY 10019
moma.org
Expand your horizons and lose yourself in a world of new art and ideas. Newly renovated in 2019, MoMA has added even more gallery space to exhibit pieces from its collection of over 150,000 artworks, including masterpieces such as Monet’s Water Lilies, van Gogh’s The Starry Night, and Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. Not just a still-life experience, MoMA also offers over 1,000 film screenings per year, a summer concert series in their sculpture garden, and a drop-in studio space where visitors can participate in hands-on projects. Whether it’s showing you something you’ve never seen before, or showing you how to see something familiar in a new way, MoMA is always an eye- and mind-opening adventure.
32-37 Vernon Boulevard
Long Island City, NY 11106
noguchi.org
Escape the din of city life at this intimate indoor/outdoor garden museum dedicated to the category-defying, cross-disciplinary works of Isamu Noguchi. With works in stone, metal, wood, and clay, as well as models for public projects and gardens, dance sets, and Akari Light sculptures, there is something for everyone. Noguchi preferred for his pieces to be displayed unaccompanied by titles or text, so you can visit and find your own meanings, or join one of the museum’s guided tours for a wealth of information on this polymath’s creations.
New York City Building
Flushing Meadows Corona Park
Queens, NY 11368
queensmuseum.org
A museum that embodies its overarching philosophy of openness, the Queens Museum is also a historic site, a community center, and an educational space for all. View the entirety of NYC all at once with its “Panorama of the City of New York,” a 9,335 square foot scale model of the city’s 320 square miles, with every street and park and 895,000 buildings represented. Situated in the famous NYC building that housed the U.N.’s General Assembly from 1946-1952, the Queens museum is steeped in local and international history. After you take in the museum’s current exhibition offerings, enjoy a picnic under the crape myrtle trees on their extended outdoor seating area, integrated with Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
32-01 Vernon Boulevard at Broadway
Long Island City, NY 11106
socratessculpturepark.org
Find rejuvenation at the Socrates Sculpture Park, a cultural anchor in Queens that displays topical exhibitions of large-scale contemporary public art. Formerly an illegal dumpsite, the scenic 5-acre waterfront landscape is a testament to the reclamation, revitalization, and creative expression that is possible when artists and community members join forces. As the vast majority of the sculptures and multimedia installations exhibited at Socrates are built on-site, visitors have the unique opportunity to witness the art-making process, kindling an appreciation for this labor-intensive work and encouraging interaction between artists, artworks, and the public.
Lenfest Center for the Arts
615 West 129th Street
New York, NY 10027
wallach.columbia.edu
Connect with your fellow students at the Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia’s premier visual arts space. Located in the dynamic new Lenfest Center for the Arts, the Wallach presents projects that are organized by graduate students and faculty at Columbia. These exhibitions focus on the contemporary artists of our campus and communities and offer new scholarship on University special collections, offering diverse approaches to the arts and advancing Columbia’s historical, critical, and creative engagement with visual media.
2 Lincoln Square (Columbus Avenue at 66th Street)
New York, NY 10023
folkartmuseum.org
Delight yourself with authentic, inspired, unconventional, and compelling works by self-taught artists from four centuries across the globe. The American Folk Art Museum is just a short trip down to 66th Street, across from Lincoln Center. Behind its unassuming facade you’ll find a diverse lineup of exhibitions and programs, including live music, film screenings, talks, and more.
1040 Grand Concourse
Bronx, NY 10456
bronxmuseum.org
Check out the Bronx Museum of the Arts for innovative contemporary art with a focus on artists of color and NYC-based artists. Located on Grand Concourse just a few blocks from Yankee Stadium, the museum is only about a 20-minute ride on the B or D train from Columbia.
Fort Tryon Park
New York, NY 10040
metmuseum.org/visit/plan-your-visit/met-cloisters
Escape the city without leaving the city. At the top of scenic Fort Tryon Park, you’ll find the Met Cloisters, the branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art dedicated to the art and architecture of medieval Europe. The building itself—a 1930s reconstruction featuring elements of medieval French cloisters—is a highlight, as are the serene gardens. Free admission for current Columbia students, faculty, and staff.
30 Irving Place
New York, NY 10003
goethe.de/ins/us/en/sta/ney/uun.html
A cultural center for all things German, the Goethe-Institut offers everything from language lessons to jazz concerts to readings of contemporary literature. In addition to housing a film archive and a library of art, literature, and film, the Goethe-Institut also offers many off-site arts events. Check their website to find upcoming events, and treat the Teutonophile in you with a German film series, art exhibition, music concert, or theater performance.
Pier 86
W 46th Street
New York, NY 10036
intrepidmuseum.org
Experience the world’s first space shuttle, a nuclear weapons-carrying submarine, dozens of military aircraft, a supersonic spy plane, and the world’s fastest commercial airliner displayed in and around the legendary aircraft carrier, Intrepid—an awe-inspiring place for an unforgettable adventure.
1109 5th Avenue (at 92nd Street)
New York, NY 10128
thejewishmuseum.org
Take a deep dive into Jewish art, history, and culture with the Jewish Museum’s stunning collection of nearly 30,000 works of art, ceremonial objects, artifacts, and media reflecting the global Jewish experience over more than 4,000 years. Housed in the historic Warburg mansion, the museum offers education programs for people of all backgrounds, from talks and lectures, to performances, to hands-on art making and more. Works from Marc Chagall, Man Ray, Eva Hesse, and Eleanor Antin are the crown jewels of the museum’s collection of paintings, sculptures, drawings, and photographs.
1000 Fifth Avenue (at 82nd Street)
New York, NY 10028
metmuseum.org
What’s your pleasure: art from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, Oceania? Painting, sculpture, drawings, photographs, artifacts? Historical fashion, musical instruments, interior design, arms and armor? The Met Museum has it all, and more. Whether it’s your first visit or your five hundredth, with its immense collection containing over 5,000 years worth of art from around the world, there is always something new to be found. Current Columbia students, faculty, and staff receive free admission with a valid CUID.
22-25 Jackson Ave
Long Island City, NY 11101
moma.org/ps1
Want to see today’s most experimental, thought-provoking contemporary art? Then MoMA P.S.1 is your destination. P.S.1 isn’t your typical “white cube” museum—it’s housed in a Neo-Romanesque building that was once home to Queens Public School No. 1. Much of the school’s interior architecture was preserved, with the original classrooms and hallways now serving as gallery spaces.
25 W 52nd Street (between 5th and 6th Avenues)
New York, NY 10019
paleycenter.org
The Paley Center for media is a museum dedicated to television, radio, and film, examining the intersections between media society. Visit and watch any piece of media from its seemingly limitless collection of television and radio shows, commercials, news broadcasts, performing arts programs, and more. Before you go, check their calendar to see what’s playing in their theaters—maybe a David Bowie performance, Jim Henson’s work, or the short films from Saturday Night Live.
515 Malcolm X Boulevard (at 135th Street)
New York, NY 10037
nypl.org/locations/schomburg
Explore the richness of global Black history, arts, and culture through the Schomburg Center’s exhibitions and dynamic public programs, including live music, film screenings, discussions, and more. One of the New York Public Library’s research libraries, it was initially established in 1925 as the Division of Negro Literature, History and Prints with the collections of Arturo Alfonso Schomburg, a Puerto Rican-born Black scholar and bibliophile.
429 West 127th Street
New York, NY 10027
studiomuseum.org
The Studio Museum in Harlem has been a hub for artists of African descent and work inspired and influenced by Black culture since its founding in 1968. Its home on 125th Street is currently being rebuilt from the ground up. In the meantime, you can still engage with issues in contemporary art and black culture through their wide-ranging programs and exhibitions at their temporary space Studio Museum 127 and at partner sites around Harlem and the rest of the city.
For Faculty & Staff
The Metropolitan Museum of Art & The Cloisters
In addition to their participation in Passport to Museums, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Cloisters also provide free admission to Columbia University faculty and staff who present a current CUID at the admission desk.
Free admission is available only to the faculty or staff member (does not extend to family members or guests).
El Museo del Barrio
In addition to their participation in Passport to Museums, El Museo del Barrio also provides free admission to Columbia University faculty and staff who present a current CUID at the admission desk.
Free admission is available to the faculty or staff member plus one guest.
Images: Columbia students explore MoMA during a Columbia Night event | photos by Fadi Kheir