The Hottest Event in New York Summer 2022: The Museum Mile Festival

[Video] Exciting Footage from the Museum Mile Festival

Every year on the second Tuesday of June from 6 to 9 PM, the Museum Mile Festival takes place on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan’s Upper East Side, stretching from 80th Street for thirty blocks. During this three-hour event, all participating museums offer free admission, the street is closed to traffic, and it transforms into a family-friendly art celebration with artist graffiti.

In 2022, eight institutions participated in the festival. The first is the Metropolitan Museum of Art, one of the world’s three greatest museums, currently hosting popular exhibitions such as “Homer: A Retrospective” and the “2022 Costume Institute Gala.”

At 86th Street, the Neue Galerie houses Gustav Klimt’s masterpiece “Woman in Gold.” The line is always long each year, with visitors eager to see it.

At 88th Street, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, designed by renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright, boasts a unique structure. In 2008, Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang held a major retrospective here.

At 91st Street, the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum occupies the former mansion of philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. The museum hosts the prestigious annual “National Design Awards.”

At 92nd Street, the Jewish Museum is also housed in a historic mansion, showcasing Jewish history and art.

Although New York’s history is short, a visit to the Museum of the City of New York at 103rd Street reveals the city’s rich past.

Near 104th Street, El Museo del Barrio greets visitors with lively Latin American music as they approach, with many dancing passionately in front of the museum.

After walking thirty blocks, you reach the Africa Center at 110th Street, already in the predominantly African American neighborhood of Harlem. Here, you can also feel the passion through energetic singing and dancing.

Walking thirty blocks took two hours, offering a glimpse of New Yorkers’ enthusiasm for museums. The pandemic, which has lasted over two years, is nearing its end, and New York is fully revived!

(Text, photos, and video by Chen Rubin)