Fall 2020 Programs at Cultural Institutions Group (CIG) Organizations Throughout the City
The programs provided by the CIG organizations include virtual and physical exhibitions, youth and family programs, student and educator programs, and adult programs.
NEW YORK, NY (October 2020) – The Cultural Institutions Group is pleased to announce a range of opportunities to virtually and physically experience and engage with art, science, and culture in New York City this fall through their variety of organizations. The selections highlighted below feature details on a mix of educational and entertainment offerings ranging from exhibitions, afterschool programs, and workshops to live streamed galas, films, festivals, and performances.
Exhibitions Opening:
Bronx Museum of the Arts
José Parlá: It's Yours
September 9, 2020 – January 10, 2021
José Parlá: It’s Yours will be the first solo museum exhibition of the internationally renowned artist in New York City. The new paintings evoke the artist’s personal connection to the Bronx, as well as the borough’s influence, which have helped to shape how Parlá views painting history and cities around the world. José Parlá: It’s Yours is organized by guest curator Manon Slome.
Sanford Biggers: Codeswitch
September 9, 2020 – January 24, 2021
Sanford Biggers: Codeswitch is the first survey of quilt-based works by the New York-based interdisciplinary artist. The solo show features over 50 quilt-based works by the artist that seamlessly weave American history into a broader context of global traditions and styles.
Brooklyn Museum
Carrie Mae Weems: Resist Covid Take 6!
September 16, – November 8, 2020
Brooklyn Museum Plaza
RESIST COVID TAKE 6!, a public art campaign by artist Carrie Mae Weems, brings awareness to the greater impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Black, brown, and Indigenous communities, a result of economic and social inequities. Weems uses the visual language of advertising, combining photographs, text, and bold graphics, to dispel myths about COVID-19 and promote known preventive measures.
John Edmonds: A Sidelong Glance
October 23, 2020 – August 8, 2021
John Edmonds: A Sidelong Glance is presented as part of the inaugural UOVO Prize for an emerging Brooklyn artist. John Edmonds is best known for his use of photography and video to create sensitive portraits and still lifes that center Black queer experiences and reimagine art historical precedents. This is the artist's first solo museum exhibition and features new and recent photographic portraits and still lifes of Central and West African sculptures alongside friends and acquaintances from Edmonds's creative community in New York. These works explore the intersections of representation, modernity, and identity in the African diaspora.
El Museo del Barrio
Taller Boricua: A Political Print Shop in New York
September 12, 2020 – January 17th, 2021
In celebration of Taller Boricua’s 50th anniversary, El Museo del Barrio is pleased to present Taller Boricua: A Political Print Shop in New York, the first monograph exhibition in three decades about the East Harlem-based Nuyorican collective workshop and alternative space. Best known for its cultural empowerment and political activism, the organization commonly known as ‘The Puerto Rican Workshop,’ which began as a printmaking studio, produced and circulated hundreds of prints by artists.
Studio Museum in Harlem at MoMA PS1
This Longing Vessel: Studio Museum
December 10, 2020 – March 14, 2021
In the second year of a multi-part collaboration, The Studio Museum in Harlem will present its annual Artist-in-Residence exhibition at MoMA PS1. This Longing Vessel will feature new work by the 2019–20 cohort of the Studio Museum’s foundational residency program, artists E. Jane (b. 1990, Bethesda, MD), Naudline Pierre (b. 1989, Leominster, MA), and Elliot Reed (b. 1992, Milwaukee, WI). With practices spanning new media, performance, and painting, this collaborative exhibition enacts a radical intimacy: a “vessel” to hold and be held as we stand within the museum space. In “longing,” the works shown here find the intersection between queerness and blackness as a waypoint: one to yearn from, to reach toward, to leap beyond. This Longing Vessel troubles and excites ways of seeing, seeking new language for the building of extraordinary futures.
Studio Museum in Harlem at MoMA
Projects: Garret Bradley
November 21, 2020 – March 21, 2021
According to the Library of Congress, around 70 percent of all feature-length films made in the US between 1912 and 1929 no longer exist. In America (2019), artist and filmmaker Garrett Bradley imagines black figures from the early decades of the twentieth century whose lives have been lost to history. A multichannel video installation, it is organized around twelve short black-and-white films shot by Bradley and set to a score by artist Trevor Mathison and composer Udit Duseja. Bradley intersperses her films with footage from the unreleased Lime Kiln Club Field Day (1914), believed to be the oldest surviving feature-length film with an all-black cast.
Museum of the City of New York
The Stettheimer Dollhouse: Up Close
Opens November, 20 2020
On December 18, 1945, the Museum of the City of New York held an usual event: a house-warming for a doll’s house. Among the invited guests were Georgia O’Keeffe and other artistic luminaries of the day. They gathered to celebrate the unveiling of a one-of-a-kind three-dimensional piece of art made by Carrie W. Stettheimer, who had passed away the year before.
Seventy-five years later, the Museum celebrates the anniversary of this extraordinary gift with a reinstallation of the famous Stettheimer dollhouse. This November, the Museum will debut a dedicated gallery – The Stettheimer Dollhouse: Up Close – an artistic model made over the course of nearly two decades between 1916 and 1935 – and one of the great treasures of the Museum of the City of New York. Visitors will be able to view the house, learn about its features, view enlarged images of the tiny details, and discover rarely seen additional miniature works by some of the leading lights of early 20th century modernism, among them a miniature George Bellows, Louse Bouché, Gaston LaChaise, Margaret and William Zorach, and many others. A particular highlight is a miniature version of Marcel Duchamp’s famous Nude Descending a Staircase.
Youth & Family Programs:
Brooklyn Academy of Music
BAMboo!
Saturday, October 31, 2pm
Free
Bring your Halloween best to this virtual family-friendly party! BAM's beloved block party transforms for the digital space into an action-packed afternoon of revelry for families everywhere. Join us for a lineup of Halloween tricks and treats, including a magic show, professional pumpkin carving, story time, and dance party. Best of all, delight in wild, wacky, and adorable costumes from near and far—and have the opportunity to win prizes with your own entry at the annual costume contest.
El Museo del Barrio
Coquí Club
November 7 & 17 and December 5 & 15, 11am
Free (RSVP required)
El Museo is excited to bring Coquí Club, our bilingual program for our tiniest visitors, into your casita. Coquí Club Is a live interactive program facilitated by our museum educators and includes storytelling, discussion and an art making project. Be sure to bring your Coquí crowns and get ready to have fun! Recommended for children ages 1-5.
New York City Ballet
A Series of Movement – Access Workshops for Children
Saturdays at 12pm
Free (Registration required)
Each 45-minute workshop will be taught by an NYCB Dancer and will include a warm-up and choreography inspired by some of the Company’s most treasured ballets. Movement options will be offered throughout, and young movers of all abilities and their siblings are welcome.
Queens Botanical Garden
Halloween at the Garden
October 31, 12–4pm
Free with admission
Halloween at the Garden is back! Little ones can show off their Halloween costume, walk our trick or treat trail, and enjoy performances, including a magic show!
Queens Museum
Volunteer Landscaping at the Ridgewood Reservoir
November 1, 10am–12:30pm
Ridgewood Reservoir
Free (RSVP required)
In conjunction with the current Community Partnership Exhibition Ridgewood Reservoir for the 21st Century situated around the historic Watershed Model at the Queens Museum, please join NYC H20 for 2.5hrs of volunteer landscaping at the Ridgewood Reservoir. NYC H2O and the NYC Parks Department will help guide volunteers in how to pull invasive weeds and plant native flowers on the causeway between Basins 2 and 3.
Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden
Ghost Tour: Tale of the Matron
October 24, 7pm – 8pm
Meet at the Visitor Info Booth
Members & Students $13.50, GP $15
The Tale of the Matron is an outdoor historic walking tour that tells the story of true events that took place at Snug Harbor in 1863. You’ll be guided past our spookiest buildings and landmarks: the Matron’s House, the Butcher’s Cottage, the former Surgeon’s House (now known as the Governor's House), and the grave of Snug Harbor’s founder Robert Richard Randall. Each space has its own unique connection with history, life, and the afterlife.
Porch Plays
October 24, 12pm & 6pm
Members $12, GP $15
Spoken word poetry celebrating black artistry and history. New short plays by fresh young artists. A veteran tells his story. Original acoustic guitar inspired by a single light. Interpretive dance about street harassment. An artist with a disability lifts up those who paved the way.
Staten Island Historical Society
Pumpkin Picking at Decker Farm
Saturdays & Sundays in October
11am – 5pm
Online $6, At the Gate $8
Pumpkin Picking at Historic Richmond Town’s Decker Farm returns Saturday, October 3, with all of your favorite autumnal activities! Search the patch for the perfect pumpkin, learn about 19th century farm life, and indulge in delicious fall food favorites, all without leaving Staten Island!
Halloween in Richmond Town
October 31, 11am – 5pm
Online $6, At the Gate $8
This year, come and enjoy a pumpkin picking experience at Decker Farm with a few extra added spooky features created just for Halloween, at no additional cost! Come dressed in costume and snap a photo on our fall photo ops. See the farm decorated in spooky fashion! Watch an expert pumpkin carver work their magic. Enjoy Halloween-themed educational activities.
Christmas in Richmond Town
December 6, 11am – 5pm
Online $6, At the Gate $8
Christmas in Richmond Town returns just in time to ring in the season! Visit our nostalgic historic village all dressed up for Christmas! Take an old-fashioned carriage ride down historic Center Street and immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of winter in the country. Partake in warm apple cider, old fashioned Egg Nog, and hot mulled wine as a classic bell choir fills your heart with comfort and joy! Visit with Santa, make an ornament, string popcorn garland and experience a classic Christmas in the country.
Staten Island Zoo
Spooktacular 2020
October 23–25, 6 – 9:30pm
Child (3-14) & Adults $25
Join us for Spooktacular 2020! See the following information regarding what-to-expect and policy changes to ensure your family’s safety during your Spooktacular visit! The Staten Island Zoo adheres to all city, state, and CDC safety guidelines. Because of this, Spooktacular will look a little different this year from years past.
Wave Hill
Family Art Project: Dia de los Muertos
Saturday, October 31 and Sunday, November 1, 10am – 1pm
Free
Celebrate this special Mexican cultural holiday when the spirits of loved ones come home to visit. Learn the traditional use of the four elements to adorn nicho boxes, small shadow boxes filled with meaning and purpose that honor a lost loved one. Decorate your box with objects and find natural materials, adding a photo of your dear one. Using branches and brush from trees that have been felled during recent storms at Wave Hill, we will create an altar to honor the gifts these trees have given us during their lives.
Skyhunters in Flight
November 8, 12:30–1:30pm
Child (8-18) $12, Adults $20
Back by popular demand, master falconer Brian Bradley and his beautiful and beloved raptors are here for a live bird presentation! Watch trained birds of prey sharpen their hunting skills during an exciting outdoor flight demonstration. Hear about the ancient sport of falconry and see live raptors from around the world.
Weeksville Heritage Center
Sensing History
October 24 & 25
Free (Registration required)
Weeksville Heritage Center’s Legacy Project invites you to Sensing History, a virtual experience exploring how Black practitioners have been using history and archival practices as road maps for navigating our present-day realities. As Black communities continue to be impacted by the current pandemic and national political uprisings, October 24th and 25th we are employing active and innovative alternatives in looking to the past as a source for sustaining ourselves.
WCS Bronx Zoo
Boo at The Zoo
Thursdays–Sundays, through November 1, 110am – 4pm
Members Free, Child (3-12) $29.95, Adults (13 & Up) $39.95
Our annual Halloween tradition is back at the Bronx Zoo. We have family-friendly activities and have taken all safety precautions for you to have a great experience. Come dressed in your Halloween best and enjoy!
Student & Educator Programs:
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
Exploring Learner Engagement through Online Platforms
November 17, 6 – 7:30pm
Free (Registration required)
Join experts Jeremy Birnholtz (Associate Professor of Communication Studies, Northwestern University) and Justin Reich (Director, MIT TSL) as we explore what research can tell us about how learners actually engage with, and learn through, digital platforms. How can we design learning for online spaces with cognitive and behavioral understandings in mind? This is an opportunity for you to ask and explore questions about your projects to optimize learning. Discover possibilities you haven’t considered and factors you might otherwise overlook.
Museum of Jewish Heritage
Music on the Brink of Destruction
Sunday, November 1, 1pm
An extraordinary range of musical activities, both forced and voluntary, took place in the Nazi ghettos and camps, from the earliest internment centers established in 1933 until liberation in 1945. In this talk, Professor Shirli Gilbert will introduce teachers to original songs from this period, including some rare post-war recordings.
This program is open to school educators only. Participants will earn CTLE hours. This online program is free.
Museum of the City of New York
“For The People’s Health”: Advocating for the Accessible Healthcare
November 12, 5–6:30pm
Free (Registration required)
Learn how Puerto Rican activists mobilized for free, accessible healthcare for communities of color in East Harlem and the South Bronx in the 1970s and explore the impact of their work on today’s movements for equitable healthcare. Analyze sources from the online exhibition Activist New York; learn how students, teachers, and parents mobilized for change; and leave with stories, resources, and ideas for your digital classroom.
Staten Island Zoo
Virtual Education Classes
Mondays – Fridays, 9am–4pm
Virtual Ed (40 users) $175, Title 1 (40 users) & Special Ed (40 users) $150
Virtual Animal Presentation $125, Title 1 & Special Ed $100
Take your class on a trip to the zoo–VIRTUALLY! Also perfect for camps and libraries. All Education programs are available from September through June and include the following: experienced educators that generate excitement and create a positive learning environment, option to customize lessons to help you reach your learning goals, and accessible through the Zoo’s Zoom account or a platform of your choosing.
Weeksville Heritage Center
The Legacy Project: Oral History Workshop in the Age of Covid-19
October 28, 6 – 7:30pm
Free (Registration required)
What can the future hold if we are not informed of our past? October 28th, learn the tools, techniques, and methods for starting a family or community oral history project. Join us from 6:00 - 7:30 PM for The Legacy Project: Oral History Workshop in the age of COVID-19, a virtual workshop providing you with the tools needed to be a part of documenting this unprecedented time and preserving a historically informed future.
Adult Programs:
Carnegie Hall
Live with Carnegie Hall: Opening Night Revisited
October 29, 7:30pm
Take a closer look at Opening Night 2020—our first-ever virtual celebration—as we kickoff a new season of Live with Carnegie Hall. In celebration of 130 years, we revisit archival footage of several acclaimed artists who have graced our stages. Get a behind-the-scenes peek of how the event came together across three continents, including a full, unedited performance by 2020–2021 Perspectives artist Rhiannon Giddens with Our Native Daughters.
El Museo del Barrio
ESTAMOS BIEN | Curator’s Conversation on El Museo’s La Trienal 20/21
October 28, 6pm
Join La Trienal curators Rodrigo Moura, Susanna Temkin, and Elia Alba in conversation about El Museo’s first national survey of contemporary Latinx art, ESTAMOS BIEN – LA TRIENAL 20/21. Moderated by Rocío Aranda-Alvarado, Program Officer, Creativity and Free Expression, Ford Foundation, the curators will address the curatorial process and its focus on an intersectional approach to Latinx identity; the evolution of the Museum’s renowned [S] Files series to today’s national focused survey; and how the exhibition has been reconceived in times of COVID-19.
Flushing Town Hall
Artist Professional Development Conversations
October 28, 7–8pm
Free (RSVP required)
Join Jessica and Jay as they discuss an overview approach to fundraising tailored for individual artists. Learn strategies for getting financial and other types of support for your art practice from friends, family, & other sources not in your network! The conversation will be followed by a Q&A.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
ETHEL & Friends: Balcony Bar from Home
Fridays, through November 6, 5 – 5:30pm
Free
Fix yourself a drink and experience The Met's Balcony Bar from home with ETHEL, one of the most acclaimed string quartets in the contemporary classical field. With an eye on tradition and an ear to the future, ETHEL is a leading force in concert music's re-engagement with musical vernaculars, fusing diverse traditions into a vibrant sound. Expect familiar classical tunes mixed with a fair share of the group's signature cutting-edge repertoire. Guest artists and collaborators also make periodic appearances.
Museum of the City of New York
Another City: New Meanings in New York’s Public Spaces
Wednesdays October 28 and November 11, 7pm
Tickets: $25; $20 Members per program
Join The New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham and some of the city’s sharpest observers for an intimate virtual symposium examining how, in the midst of 2020’s ongoing upheavals, we might newly see and interpret New York’s evolving cityscape. Each session will explore a new topic with guest speakers offering insights from a variety of perspectives and a curated list of readings and visual links.
When the Garden was Eden
November 17, 7pm
Museum $25; $20 Members
On May 8, 1970, the New York Knicks won their very first NBA championship, defeating the Los Angeles Lakers four games to three. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of their momentous win, reflect on the team that reigned supreme during a tumultuous era in NYC history with 1970s Knicks team members Bill Bradley and Walt "Clyde" Frazier. They will be joined by Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, who played opposite the Knicks on the Baltimore Bullets in the playoffs. The conversation will be moderated by author and journalist Harvey Araton.
New York City Ballet
A Series of Movement – Access Workshops for Teens & Adults w/ Disabilities
Thursdays at 6pm
Free (Registration required)
Each one-hour workshop will be taught by an NYCB Dancer and will include a warm-up and choreography inspired by the Company’s vast repertory. Modifications and movement options will be offered throughout, and movers of all abilities are welcome.
2020 Fall for Dance Festival
Viewable through November 1, 2020
Program 1 & 2 – October 21 & 26, 7:30pm
Per Program $15
The 17th Fall for Dance Festival invites audiences around the world to experience this annual sold-out “highlight of New York City’s cultural calendar” (The New York Times) in our first-ever digital dance celebration—with all the palpable energy of a live performance right from our stage to your home. Alicia Graf Mack and David Hallberg host two stunning programs showcasing the resiliency of extraordinary New York City artists coming together—as we take the first crucial steps to returning to our stage.
Public Theater
A Pre-Election Night Public Forum: We The People
November 2, 8pm
Free (Registration required)
Public Forum continues a beloved Election Night tradition with a new twist, and a new date! This season, WE THE PEOPLE will take place online the night prior to the election and will feature performances and commentary. Celebrate the democratic process and unite virtually with the community through music and poetry by The Public’s family of artists and enter election day galvanized and ready to use your voice!
Toshi Reagon’s Post-Election Concert
November 4, 7pm
Free (Registration required)
Toshi Reagon is a singer, musician, composer, producer and curator, who has been described by Vibe magazine as "one helluva rock n roller-coaster ride" and by PopMatters.com as "a treasure waiting to be found, Reagon is a one-woman celebration of all that is dynamic, progressive and uplifting in American music." At her quadrennial Post-Election Day show, Reagon will be joined by special guests to address the future of America.
Public Forum
November 16, & December 14, 7pm
Free (Registration required)
The Public Theater’s PUBLIC FORUM is a space where art, ideas, and action collide. Public Forum creates exciting opportunities for communities to engage deeply with current events, original thinkers, and the most pressing questions of our time. We energize civic responsibility by inviting people from all backgrounds to share, converse, and connect.
Queens Theatre
New American Voices: Dirty Linen
November 18, 8pm
Free (Registration required)
A white female nurse at Methodist Hospital in Brooklyn, desperate to prove to her black female friend that she's not racist, meets her friend's husband in the laundry room… In this smart, provocative new play, cultural issues are explored and raw wounds exposed with savvy comic insight. Laced with political and sexual humor, the play’s surprises unfold continuously as it builds an unexpected climax.
Gifted
Beginning December 3, 7pm
Free (Registration required)
An original three part web series written and directed by Topher Payne, edited by Jef Holbrook. The series premieres on the Queens Theatre YouTube Channel on Thursday, December 3 at 7:00 PM, with new episodes on December 10 and 17. Matteo and Becca are spending their first Christmas together in their Queens apartment - and trying to honor each other’s family traditions in a socially-distanced holiday season. Their separate quests for the perfect gift require video calls with an ever-expanding collection of family and friends, who eventually forge new connections with each other - proving that even in most unusual times, there’s still magic to be found at the holidays. Told in the tradition of Hallmark-style holiday magic.
New American Voices: J’oy Vey
December 16, 8pm
Free (Registration required)
Gammy Leigh has big plans for her Christmastime over-nighter with her grandbabies, including a visit from Santa. But Bubbie Arlene unexpectedly shows up at the door armed with Chanukah gifts galore and a know-it-all attitude. Laugh your way into the holiday season with these two outspoken elders as they come to terms with aging, changes, and the ups-and-downs of blended, modern families.
Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden
Spooky Snug Harbor Tour
October 23 & 30, 8–9pm
Members, Students, & Senior $18, GP $20
Haunted history, straight from a local expert! On October 16, 23, and 30, join local “Spooky Staten Island” history enthusiast Michael Pelczar as he walks you through Snug Harbor and reveals what he’s discovered about its history and its own spooky place in Staten Island’s haunted past. Spooky Snug Harbor is an entirely outdoor historic walking tour and to ensure social distancing, tours are limited to 14 guests per tour.
Wave Hill
Bats: Friends – not Fiends!
October 29, 6–7:30pm
$15
Bats and Halloween go hand in hand. But do bats deserve their spooky reputation? Bat conservationist and community scientist Danielle Gustafson dispels the many myths about bats and sheds light on the diversity and value of these misunderstood creatures, both locally and worldwide. And if you enjoy mangoes, bananas or tequila, you have bats to thank!
Fall Birding
November 8, 9:30–11am
Free
Birding returns to Wave Hill, just in time to catch the fall migrants and welcome back the winter birds. Guest birders Alyssa Bueno, Wave Hill Educator and avid birder, and naturalist Tod Winston, Communications Content Manager and Birding Guide at NYC Audubon, explore the gardens and woodlands to look for birds that are attracted by Wave Hill’s diversity of habitats.
Studio Visit with Liz Shippam in England
November 10, 2–3pm
Free (Suggested donation & Registration required)
Join us virtually for a visit with ASBA artist Liz Shippam from her studio in West Sussex, England. Shippam will discuss her work, including the watercolor on view in the 23rd Annual International, and her practice. This visit will be hosted by Carol Woodin, Director of Exhibitions of the American Society of Botanical Artists and Eileen Jeng Lynch, Curator of Visual Arts, at Wave Hill.
Press
For media inquiries please contact CIG Communications Chair Sheryl Victor Levy at svlevy@mcny.org or reached at 917-747-5920.