Art Exhibits NYC: The Best Shows to See Now

07.09.2023 - 22:45 / cntraveler.com / Art

Of all the art exhibits NYC has to offer, some of the best come not from the permanent collections of storied establishments but instead, the temporary shows at museums, galleries, and other more unconventional spaces. As summer comes to its inevitable close, several new shows are opening around the city—some celebrating great masters, others with an eye for the contemporary and/or the unsung. Plus, some of summer's tentpoles—Africa Fashion at the Brooklyn Museum, for example—will run all the way into October, so if you haven't made your way to them yet, there's still time. Of the myriad options, we've rounded up some of the best to hit now or in the coming weeks—we're certain you'll find something to your liking. 

Manet's On the Beach, Boulogne-sur-Mer comes to the Met September 24. 

Coming September 7 is Art for the Millions: American Culture and Politics in the 1930s, which will present the various approaches and mediums—paintings, sculptures, prints, photographs, film, dance, fashion, and more—artists used nearly a century ago to express and explore their political ideas. On its heels, Manet/Degas opens September 24 with 160 paintings and works on paper from the two French painters—contemporaries and rivals. It's going to get personal—the Met promises to examine the two “in the context of the family relationships, friendships, intellectual circles, and sociopolitical events that influenced their artistic and professional choices.” 

Ebony G. Patterson's …things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…. has been extended through October 22 at the New York Botanical Garden.

Through October, the New York Botanical Garden will be populated in part by a flock of iridescent sculptures of vultures. The avian artworks are part of artist Ebony G. Patterson's …things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…, the closing date of which has just been extended to October 22. Other features of the installation, which looks unflinchingly at all parts of the life cycle, include glass replicas of extinct flora and reverent works of collage from gardening guides. Patterson crafted the exhibit during a period of deep immersion in the Botanical Garden's premises—these pieces were conceived on its very grounds.

Astoria’s fabulous Museum of the Moving Image launched Cinema of Sensations: The Never-Ending Screen of Val del Omar in March—this is the first major stateside exhibition of Spanish photographer José Val del Omar’s immersive cinematic works. Open through October 1, this exhibit functions almost as a deconstructed film—museumgoers effectively step through the camera and into scenes, moving amid Val del Omar’s photographs, archival materials, films, and inventions. International contemporary