I'm surprised I'd never heard of this place prior to getting an ad on social media for a Keith…read moreHaring retrospective. First off, it's an impressive and imposing building, a former ConEd electrical substation so you've got a sturdy building with high clearances. Then you take on the fact that Walter De Maria (whose installations are still on view elsewhere in the city) used this building as his home and studio, and as a De Maria fan that's worthy of note. So whatever art is on, you have a unique setting. As for the art, there are 4 viewable galleries (shop at the ground floor), and the top floors have windows that give great views of the city. (An elevator will take you between floors so it is accessible though stairs are available too.) As mentioned, there was a Haring show happening when I visited. I wasn't terribly sure about the $20 price, unable to discern if it was going to be more like a gallery than a museum exhibition. But it was a museum-quality show and it took me about 45 minutes to make it through. The setting worked especially well for Haring - some of the art on show was subway chalk drawings he had made, and when they were paired with the brick backing of the room it looked authentic to the subway station where he created the work originally. Well worth the money. For this show at least there was a timed admission but it was not crowded and despite the respectable attendance you can still have an intimate experience.

I visited the Brant Foundation last Sunday to see their current exhibit on Keith Haring (which…read morecloses on May 31). It was my first visit, and I was really blown away by the space. It kind of falls somewhere between a gallery and a museum - their full name is "The Brant Foundation Art Study Center" - so what exactly are you in for? It's an exhibition space - no permanent collection - so they are open for exhibits and closed while the next exhibit is being installed. And it has a hefty admission price (I paid $20 for my admission to the Keith Haring exhibit). But if there's an exhibit you're interested in, there's nothing like the Brant. The space is incredible. The Brant is located in a former Consolidated Edison substation, so it has 7,000 square feet of space that looks industrial and loft-like, yet has incredible ceiling height and light. They also have two adjacent gardens. It's one of the most incredible spaces I've seen an art exhibit. On top of that, the exhibit was incredible. By scanning a QR code, you could pull up each of the pieces in the exhibit by floor of the Brant and read about them. As almost all of Keith Haring's work was untitled, I do wish they had included more context and information about the works included, but I was still floored by the exhibit and the works they were able to put together for the show. When I was shopping in their gift shop before leaving, I realized just how many incredible exhibits they've put on in their history. As soon as I got home, I signed up for their email newsletter so I don't miss their next great exhibit.

I visited Lévy Gorvy Dayan last Saturday for the first time after reading about their current…read moreexhibit in the New York Times. The gallery is located in a very grand, very beautiful Beaux-Arts townhouse on East 64th. It's so beautiful, the building itself is a highlight of any visit to the gallery. But the exhibits when I visited were great, too. I was able to see two exhibits during my visit on Saturday. "The Adventure of Domenico Gnoli," the exhibit I read about in the Times, closes on May 23, 2026. It's the largest exhibit of the artist's works in the United States in more than 5 decades (since his solo show in NYC in 1969). (Gnoli died of cancer at age 36 in 1970, so he only produced ~ 150 paintings in his short life.) The other exhibit I saw (you have to take an elevator from the second floor) was Armig Santos: Baladas, which closes on June 13. I appreciate the clean look of the galleries, which they are able to achieve by not having any wall labels by the pieces. They do have a few printed gallery guides at the desk where you enter that you can grab or you can scan QR codes on the wall as you enter each gallery. But I did miss the additional context and information that other galleries and museums include at the beginning of and throughout an exhibit. Still, the galleries are beautiful, and the works were very interesting. The Gnoli works surprised me and made me smile. And I appreciated learning about Armig Santos, a very young artist from Puerto Rico. It's a beautiful gallery with some great exhibits. I enjoyed my visit and have already signed up for their email list so I can visit upcoming shows!

It's only been about four months since my last visit to this (free!) gallery, with the gorgeous…read moretile and beautiful architecture, but they managed to come up with another riveting show that I just had to check out. This time the show focuses on New York art in the 80s, highlighting Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, and over 20 more artists. Some things you can expect--Basquiat's pieces bursting at the seams with color, accompanying dark social undertones. Andy Warhol's pop art portraits of himself. Keith Haring's chunky shapes and figures. There are paintings, sculptures and multi-media pieces, as well as photographs (some a little alarming, like how old is that naked person, were they old enough to give consent?!). All the pieces are edgy, raw, colorful, just like the 80s. While there is a virtual guide to tell you which artist created which piece, there is not history or explanation, and that's a little frustrating for some of the more abstract or controversial pieces. This gallery has now impressed me twice in a short period of time, so it'll be on my regular rotation list to check out every time I'm on museum row.

I visited Di Donna last Saturday to see their current exhibit and was blown away. So what is it? Di…read moreDonna Galleries specializes in museum-quality exhibitions and sales of European and American art from 1900 to 1970, with an emphasis on surrealism. They were founded in 2010 and moved into their current space on Madison Avenue at East 64th in 2016. (Love to visit art museums when you visit NYC? Don't sleep on the city's art galleries. Because Di Donna's exhibits are as museum-quality as they promise on their website.) Here's how it works. It's free to visit. (FYI they are closed on Sundays.) You'll walk up to a white door on Madison Avenue (it's marked to let you know you're in the right place) and press a call button. Then you'll be let into a hallway and you'll walk down it to the elevator which you take to Di Donna's floor. Then you walk into a small but intimate and modern gallery space (about three separate gallery rooms). It's free to visit, and there were a few staff members at a desk to answer questions and selling an exhibition catalogue. The exhibit I saw on Saturday (which closes on June 13, 2026) was Dalí: The Great Years. The exhibit was great. Many of the pieces were on loan from the Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida. Since I've never been there, I probably hadn't seen any of them before unless they'd been loaned out for other exhibits I saw in the past. The exhibit was well-organized (it is chronological so it was easy to know where to start, where to go next, and where to finish) and had helpful information to read while exploring the galleries. I had a great time at Di Donna, and I've already signed up for their email list so I'll know when their next great exhibit opens!

Sandwiched between two ultra high-end retailers (Loro Piana & maybe Tom Ford?), the space was small…read morebut well-done. They did an amazing job of pulling together a collection of Dali's from private collections and museums, to showcase some truly striking works that you likely would not see anywhere else. Bravo.

Great space, great lighting, and the exhibition I went to was excellent! Definitely one of my…read morefavorite galleries from a recent Chelsea Thursday. And, if you get there early enough, legend has it they may even have beer and/or wine available. We saw the remnants and it wasn't even 7:30pm when we arrived. Luckily, the kindly gentleman at the door let us bring in our PBRs from a neighboring gallery. Classy. Hot tip: don't miss the upstairs area. It's small but it's a good one.

This gallery is great. It is not a small space and features some good shows. I will say that they…read moreare on ground level on the street level so do not go in the elevator and try to press the button that says C24 Gallery. I got confused saw the C24 gallery button pressed it which is their offices or something. I came for the Robert Montgomery exhibit which I am a HUGE FAN of his work and got to see a small solo show in Paris in May and a few installations in Berlin in June, now to see his solo show in NYC which is a nice one was amazing. If you are a fan of street art and poetry then Check out Roberts show before it comes down in October 2013.

West Chelsea is booming with cool galleries. Everywhere you look there are new ones opening. Jacob…read moreLewis Gallery is a small gallery but throws quality contemporary art exhibitions. The gallery is brilliant white and tasteful. It's a stop when you make your gallery rounds and they open on Saturdays. I happened to visit during their opening night reception for Appropriate Disruption, a show with 7 artists including the standout twins How and Nosm exhibiting their latest fascinating joint endeavor (see my photo). Prices for the various art were not displayed. If you have to ask, you can't afford it LOL. It was cool that Jacob Lewis offered at least beer. So many galleries are going cheap with nothing or maybe some water. What happened to the good old days of wine and cheese?

A spacious and friendly gallery that did a beautiful job of displaying Shepard Fairey's recent…read moreshow. Not super apparent where your headed when you first arrive - but just take the elevator to the 4th floor and you'll be all set!

Came here for a community art event with a friend and two middle schoolers. The event was outdoors…read moreon a hot Sunday and they had popcorn and water available for folks. They ended the day with live musical performance. There was face painting, a make art station, and a couple more other activities. The museum as also open so we went inside and looked at the current exhibit as well as the giant mural (pictured). It was a great day and we all had fun. I highly recommend the art events.

I visited the Hispanic Museum & Library last weekend for the first time. It's a museum and…read morereference library for the study of the arts and cultures of Spain, Portugal, and their former colonies in Latin America, the Spanish East Indies, and Portuguese India. It was founded in 1904 and expanded into the former home of the Museum of the American Indian (adjacent to the museum's original building) in 2021. Their collection includes 18,000 works, including works by Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, El Greco, and Joaquín Sorolla. When I visited last weekend, the largest space of the museum was closed as they set it up for a new exhibit. Unfortunately, that meant only two small spaces were open to view. Luckily, one of the spaces I was able to see was the Sorollo Room. It displays 14 paintings painted by Joaquín Sorolla. Together, the paintings depict different provinces of Spain and total 227 feet in length. It's incredible and worth a trip to the museum on its own. It's free to visit the museum, so if you're in the area it's well worth stepping by. If you get lucky, you'll get to see more than I did (bad timing!), but even if you see nothing more than the Sorolla Room, it's worth it. I'll probably return one day to see more of their space and different exhibits!

Earlier today I saw one of the artists I follow on IG was having a solo showing at a gallery close…read moreby. Was suprised to find no listing on yelp for the place...maybe it just opened? Figured I would brave the cold and walk the dozen blocks. Arrived and waited outside of a locked door with a few others for about five minutes. Place was small and crowded. Had a bar in the back that seemed to only sell small cans of yuengling? or something similar. I definitely was not expecting a Manhattan gallery so not dissapointed but others may be. Will say I respect the place for not being put off at hosting a talented graffiti artist opposed to strictly "street" artist. Enjoyed what the artist (mutz a.k.a. moody) was doing and met a few cool people so I'll give 4 stars instead of three. Hope they host more Graff artists.

The building is in a very unassuming location on a residential street. I attended a multi arts show…read morein the space, it is a nice multi purpose venue. The acoustics in the back room are really great considering how small it is. The bathrooms are really small and don't have properly locking doors which was a con for me considering they open into the main area. The ceilings are high enough for stage lighting which was being used while I was there. There is alslots of on the street parking on the block.

Kenkeleba House Garden, is a local outdoor gallery that contains wrought iron and steel sculptures…read morewielded by local emerging artist(s). Despite the space name "house garden" it is really used as a outdoor art gallery enclosed by a wrought iron fence that is locked. Visitors can only enjoy the viewing behind the wrought iron fence. This space bears a striking resemblance of usage for art sculptures as Grounds For Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ. Although the art pieces are no contender for any award wining prize or title, I prefer renown quality artists Tom Otterness and John Seward Johnson II.