Museum of Modern Art New York

The Museum of Modern Art houses a variety of contemporary artworks ranging from architecture and design to photography, paintings, and sculptures. Designed by Yoshio Taniguchi, the Museum of Modern Art reopened after renovations on November 20, 2004. Coinciding with MoMA’s seventy-fifth anniversary, the museum opened its redesigned space for exhibitions, education, and scholarly research. 

Due to expansion plans, MoMA closed in 2019. The $450 million expansion, planned by the architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with Gensler is about half the price of the 2004 project. We were lucky enough to experience the new MoMa at an exclusive press event and got a first look at the new MoMa in Midtown Manhattan.

Ticket information

Video from the new MoMA

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MoMA NYC Tickets

You can buy your MoMA NYC tickets and skip the line when you get there, here.

If you are the owner of a New York Pass, you’re in luck! The admission is actually included in the price of the pass. For more information on the New York Pass, click here.

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What’s new at the Museum of Modern Art?

MoMA, situated in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, welcomes approximately two and a half million visitors a year. MoMA has a reputation for displaying the world’s finest collection of modern and contemporary art. The MoMA reopening will bring new galleries and spaces for performances and events to the visitors. Visitors can expect a bigger, more diverse MoMA after the reopening. Masterpieces have been cleaned and touched up; galleries are completely reorganized.

They increased the space by 30% and added a new wing into a new skyscraper next door. This is an additional 40,000 square feet of gallery space. The reason for the massive increase in space was the permanent collection, that was left in storage. There was simply no space for it. Now the Museum of Modern Art is nearly 170,000 square feet.

While adding more physical space the architects made sure that the floor-to-ceiling windows allow ample natural light to flow through. White noise sounds fill the atmosphere when entering the second busiest museum in New York City.

More female artists at the new MoMA

The Museum of Modern Art hasn’t just changed from the outside. It’s the inside, the change of galleries and exhibitions is what amazed us. Furthermore, MoMA listened to the criticism that they should reflect a more diverse array of artists. MoMA will offer a deeper experience of art through all mediums.

Visitors will get to enjoy art from more diverse geographies and backgrounds than ever before. The renovated MoMA will now include roughly 28% of its works that were done by women, while 21% will have been created by lesser-known artists from outside of Western Europe, the U.S., and Canada which finally welcomes the Museum of Modern Art to the 21st century. We enjoyed the fact that you’ll now see photography, film, architecture and design, painting, sculpture, and new media all together whereas, before the renovation, everything was very isolated from each other.

New event spaces and creativity labs at the MoMA

When visiting the MoMA make sure to check out The Marie-Josée and Henry Kravis Studio which is a new space for live and experimental programming. Also, learn more about The Paula and James Crown Creativity Lab. It’s a new and experimental space to explore ideas, questions, and art processes that arise from MoMA’s collection and exhibitions. You can literally just step inside anytime and join inspiring conversations, talk to artists, create your own art and reflect your impressions at the MoMA.

Museum of Modern Art in New York free admission

Another fact that is new at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC is that MoMA is now allowing the public free access to the entirety of the ground floor, which includes the sculpture garden, certain galleries, and exhibitions. This was done to make art more accessible to those who cannot afford the $25 entry free. Also, the Museum of Modern Art in New York provides free admission every Friday night from 4 pm – 8 pm.

Recommended: The 27 Best Free Museums in NYC.

Museum of Modern Art New York exhibits

The Museum of Modern Art is considered by many to be the best of its kind. As it can be found near Central Park, it is easy to squeeze the museum into a day of sightseeing. The museum’s collection gives visitors a conclusive overview of modernist Western masterpieces of the 20th century. You can see the artworks from artists such as Monet, Hopper, Picasso, Mondrian, Kandinsky, Klee, and Miró. 

What’s new at the MoMA since its latest renovation is that while in the past you could only find these famous artists hanging close next to each other, you will now find Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon or Van Gogh’s Starry Night next to lesser-known artists. Those famous paintings will never leave their walls, whereas every 6 months the museum will rotate a selection of art in its galleries.

The best example we saw at the newly renovated MoMA for how 21st century MoMA has become, was the art of Faith Ringgold, an African-American artist born in Harlem, hanging right next to Picasso. Something that would have never been possible in the past. Knowing that Ringgold would come to the MoMA in the 60s looking at Picassos Les Demoiselles d’Avignon feeling inspired and now she is the one sharing a room with her monumental work, American People Series #20: Die (1967), at the MoMA with her idol, is incredibly beautiful.

The Museum of Modern Art New York holds more than 200,000 individual pieces in addition to approximately 22,000 films and 4 million film stills, 40,000 prints, a furniture collection, a wide collection of cinema films, sculptures, and videogames.

The Scream sold for $119.9 million

Edvard Munch’s famed 1895 pastel “The Scream” was sold for $119.9 million and through this became the world’s most expensive work of art ever to be sold at an auction. The price topped the previous record; the sale of Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust” sold for an amazing $106.5 million.

This happened in 2012 when a wealthy New York citizen bought the famous painting for his mansion in April 2014. Due to this, the pastel is no longer a part of the Museum of Modern Art’s collection. For many art lovers, this was one of the main reasons to visit MoMA. The image has become a universal symbol of anxiety and existential dread and has become almost as popular as the Mona Lisa.

Use the audio-guides for free

In order to get some information on the number of artworks in the museum, you can borrow one of the free audio guides. All you have to do is walk around with it and enter the number of the artwork you would like to hear about. The guide will tell you all about it in your chosen language. Children get their own guide, which is more child-friendly and gets them interested in the creative world.

Museum of Modern Art Restaurants

Since you can spend hours at the MoMA museum in NYC, there are a few places inside the museum, where you can grab a snack, have coffee or a drink.

• Please read here for more information about the Museum of Art restaurants

• The Modern (Restaurant and bar with views of the Sculpture Garden)
• Café 2 (Coffee Shop 2nd floor)

• Terrace Café (Café 6th floor)

Museum Shop at the MoMA

MoMA’s flagship store is, as you would expect, inside the museum. However, there are various other shops located throughout New York City. The MoMA store in the museum features a broad selection of art reproductions, design objects, and more than 2,000 book titles!

There is also the MoMA books store which is located on the museum’s second floor overlooking the lobby. The shop provides a tranquil environment for looking through a curated selection of the newest and most notable art & design books from around the world. Also, the MoMA Design Store is right across the street which is also worth checking out after your visit to the museum.