The New-York Historical Society Sets May 2014 Exhibitions

The New-York Historical Society has announced its May 2014 exhibitions. Details below!

The museum is located at 170 Central Park West, New York, NY. Call (212) 873-3400 or visit www.nyhistory.org for more information. *All exhibitions are presented at the New-York Historical Society unless otherwise noted.

TEMPORARY EXHIBITIONS

Bill Cunningham: Facades

March 14, 2014 - June 15, 2014

In 1968, photographer Bill Cunningham embarked on an eight-year project to document the architectural riches and fashion history of New York City. Scouring the city's thrift stores, auction houses, and street fairs for vintage clothing, and scouting sites on his bicycle, Cunningham generated a photographic essay entitled Façades, which paired models-in particular his muse, fellow photographer Editta Sherman-in period costumes with historic settings. Although by turns whimsical and bold, Cunningham's project also was part of the larger cultural zeitgeist in New York City, during an era in which issues surrounding both the preservation and the problems of the urban landscape loomed large. The photographer donated 88 silver gelatin prints from the series to the New-York Historical Society in 1976, and now, almost four decades later, Cunningham's work will be reconsidered in a show that will highlight the historical perspective the photographs suggest-not just of the distant past, but of the particular time in which they were created.

The Black Fives

March 14, 2014 - July 20, 2014

This exhibition covers the pioneering history of the African-American basketball teams that existed in New York City and elsewhere from the early 1900s through 1950, the year the National Basketball Association became racially integrated. Just after the game of basketball was invented in 1891, teams were often called "fives" in reference to their five starting players. Dozens of all-black teams emerged during the Black Fives Era, in New York City, Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Chicago, Atlantic City, Cleveland, and other cities where a substantial African-American population lived. The Black Fives Era came to an end in the late 1940s with the growth in stature of black college basketball programs combined with the gradual racial integration of previously whites-only collegiate basketball conferences and professional basketball leagues. The overarching significance of the Black Fives Era is that it is as much about the forward progress of black culture as a whole as it is about the history of basketball. This history is relevant today not only as a realization of our collective basketball roots but also as a search for identity.

Audubon's Aviary: Parts Unknown (Part II of The Complete Flock)

March 21, 2014 - May 26, 2014

Audubon's Aviary: Parts Unknown, Part II of the highly successful tripartite series Audubon's Aviary: The Complete Flock, will continue showcasing masterpieces from the New-York Historical Society collection of John James Audubon's preparatory watercolors for the sumptuous double-elephant-folio print edition of The Birds of America (1827-38), engraved by Robert Havell Jr. Parts Unknown will consider Audubon as an established artist-naturalist, a world citizen, and a celebrity in an expanding nation-no longer the young Frenchman who created the "early birds" displayed in the first installment. This once-in-a-lifetime exhibition follows Audubon into unchartered territories-geographic, artistic, and scientific-as he encountered and mapped new species and grappled with the disappearing illusion of America's infinite wilderness.

Homefront & Battlefield: Quilts & Context in the Civil War

April 4, 2014 - August 24, 2014

To mark the 150th anniversary of the Civil War (1861-1865), the New-York Historical Society presents a groundbreaking traveling exhibition, Homefront & Battlefield: Quilts & Context in the Civil War, organized by the American Textile History Museum. The exhibition uses quilts, textiles, clothing, and other artifacts to connect deeply moving and insightful personal stories about the war, its causes, and its aftermath with the broader national context and public history.

SPECIAL INSTALLATIONS

DiMenna Children's History Museum

Explore 300 years of New York and American history through the eyes and lives of children of the past! The DiMenna Children's History Museum is a museum-within-a-museum and occupies the New-York Historical Society's entire lower level. It includes character-based pavilions, a children's library, a Whiz Bang Quiz Machine, and interactive exhibits and games. The DCHM encourages children to identify with the people whose enterprise and creativity changed the course of our history. All ages can enjoy and learn in DCHM, but the exhibits are targeted at age 8-13.

The Robert H. and Clarice Smith New York Gallery of American History

Dedicated to telling the story of America through the lens of New York, this new gallery features such works as a piece of ceiling from Keith Haring's "Pop Shop;" Here is New York, a rotating selection from the approximately 6,200 photographs taken by the people of New York City on September 11, 2001, and immediately afterward; History Under Your Feet, an educational scavenger hunt for visitors featuring our "history manholes;" and Liberty/Liberté, an installation by New York-based artist Fred Wilson. This permanent installation provides an overview of New-York Historical's diverse collections and orients visitors to the experiences and exhibitions waiting deeper in the Museum.

The Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture

The Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture on the fourth floor provides public access to nearly 40,000 objects from the New-York Historical Society's permanent collection. In the Luce Center, visitors can see art and artifacts spanning four centuries, ranging from masterworks of American painting, to the nation's premiere collection of Tiffany lamps, to historical touchstones such as the draft wheel that played a role in one of the worst urban riots in United States history.

MUSEUM AND STORE HOURS:

Tuesday - Thursday: 10 am-6 pm
Friday: 10 am-8 pm (pay as you wish from 6 pm-8 pm)
Saturday: 10 am-6 pm
Sunday: 11 am-5 pm

MUSEUM ADMISSION:

Buy your ticket to the New-York Historical Society and reserve a timed ticket to see The Armory Show at 100 at no extra cost up to 30 days in advance. New-York Historical Society members can skip the line and enter at any time. No need to reserve your ticket in advance!

Adults - $18
Teachers and Seniors - $14
Students - $12
Children (5-13)- $6
Children (4 and under) -free