Public Art & Free Pop-ups
See art you can touch, climb and sometimes taste at NYC’s many site-specific art installations in parks, galleries, libraries and stores, all free.
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List of Events
Friday, November 1
DiMenna Children’s History Museum
Ride an orphan train, play a newsies video game and explore lots of other interactive exhibits in the awesome hands-on DiMenna Children's History Museum. Search for items on printed scavenger hunt or just explore the many installations covering centuries of New York history. Lots to learn for older kids and lots to touch including a train table for tots. Find tales of New York City past and present in a cozy Children’s History Library with a great selection of history-themed books,…
Tuesday, November 5
Hall of Ocean Life
A 94-foot-long blue whale hangs over an assortment of sea creatures in this giant hall, lit to evoke being underwater. See dioramas of the ocean's diverse and complex web of life including coral reefs, giant squid and awesome bioluminescent swimmers. Lots to touch, tons of info, and a movie on a big screen - a good place to relax while kids run around the lower level. The bathrooms in the corner are usually less crowded than those in the main…
The Rose Center for Earth and Space
Explore the vast range of sizes in the cosmos, the 13-billion-year history of the universe, the nature of galaxies, stars, and planets, and the dynamic features of planet Earth. Find your weight on different planets, touch an actual meteorite, learn about all sorts of stars, walk along a ramp showing the vastness of time and see the stars in magical planetarium show sin a striking sphere.
Oceans: Our Blue Planet
Meet fascinating creatures in the largest and least understood habitat on earth. Explore the coastal shallows to deeper, more mysterious worlds with stunning 3D footage of clever dolphins, cunning octopus, resourceful tusk fish and more biological wonders. Buy tickets in advance at the admissions desk. 2D screenings also available.
Monday, November 11
Etazin Sculpture Chair
Sit/lie/play on an interactive outdoor lounge chair, designed by a local mom, with steel rings that turn for multiple views of this bus city block.
Staten Island Ferry
Take a free ferry ride from Whitehall Terminal in Lower Manhattan to Staten Island and back for great views of The Statue of Liberty and the Mnahattan & Brooklyn skylines. 25 minutes long trips (1 hour round trip) depart every half hour (every fifteen minutes during rush hour).
10th Annual Welling Court Mural Project
Walk though multiple blocks of 100+ murals by artists from around the corner and around the world, providing new arrays of visual experiences that change how people interact with their environment. Mural map available online.
Uptown GRANDSCALE Mural Project
Uptown artists transformed three blocks of fencing located adjacent to the 125th Street Metro-North station into a canvas for murals that support and uplift the community.
Broadway Snow Globes
See "Show Globes,” large-scale Broadway snow globes decorating the theatre district featuring designs from favorite musicals Dear Evan Hansen, Wicked, Ain’t Too Proud, and The Lion King.
Nicolas Holiber: Birds on Broadway, the Audubon Sculpture Project
Ten oversized sculptures of New York City birds in danger of extinction roost on the UWS Broadway malls. Brookyln-based artist Nicolas Holiber painted but did not weatherproof reclaimed lumber, allowing for the city’s natural forces to affect it, highlighting the environmental challenges faced by each species.
Rumors of War
Kehinde Wiley’s monumental public sculpture of a young, African-American urban streetwear sitting astride a massive horse in a striking pose visits Times Square before its installation in Richmond, Virgina on a nationally landmarked boulevard lined with Confederate statues, including monuments to Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis, and Stonewall Jackson. An interesting update on these controversial monuments and good way to talk to kids about race and history (and/or just say hi to the big horse if they're not ready for…
Dubuffet Sculpture
An office tower plaza features a dynamic Jean Dubuffet sculpture and a peaceful Noguchi rock garden fountain.
Kobra Street Art Gandhi & Mother Teresa Mural
Humanitarians Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi Brazilian are depicted facing each other in street artist Eduardo Kobra’s colorful harlequin-pattern mural.
Hive
Watch rainbow lights dance across hexagonal honeycomb shapes on the ceiling of the Bleecker Street Station in a light installation by Leo Villareal.
Mural Outside Fluevog
Colorful florals decorate the wall outside a shoe store with fun funky shoes. A poster with a shoe telling us to ‘Choose Love’ might lead to philosophical questions about the emotional ability of footwear.
WTC Street Murals
Street artists from around the world vibrantly transformed the streets surrounding 3 World Trade Center with fun, colorful murals, bringing love and joy to a place of mourning.
Kobra Street Art Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein is a NY-loving graffitist in street artist Eduardo Kobra’s colorful harlequin-pattern mural.
Domino Park
Splash in fun fountains and find lots of cool details at this waterfront playground designed by the artist Mark Reigelman. Features like spinning valve wheels cast from Domino Sugar originals and a 26-foot-high silo with ladders, webbing and slides pay homage to the manufacturing process of the former nearvy Domino Sugar refinery.
NYC Winter Lantern Festival Pop Up
Immerse yourself in a preview of the NYC Winter Lantern Festival with twelve illuminated zodiac animals of the Lunar Calendar.
Eataly NYC Downtown
The downtown outpost of Italian marketplace Eataly is focused on bread, but you can also find delizioso pizza, fresh mozzarella, prosciutto, pasta, rotisserie chicken, chocolate, gelato and weekend kids cooking classes.
The Rink at Rockefeller Center
This urban rink is one of the smallest and most expensive in the city, but the iconic location is pure magic. Only 150 skaters are allowed on the ice at a time, so expect long lines around Thanksgiving and Christmas. Crowds depart with the giant holiday tree January to April. Admission is per 1.5 hour session, so check the schedule and don't come at the end of a session.
Time Out Market New York
Sample some of the best NYC food: fluffy pancakes from the venerable Clinton Street Baking Co., thin-crust pizza from Patsy Grimaldi’s Juliana’s, Middle Eastern bites from Miss Ada, fried chicken from Jacob’s Pickles, Japanese comfort food from Bessou, cookie dough scoops from DŌ and more amazing eateries—all cherry-picked by Time Out New York. 21,000 delicious square feet over two floors with incredible views of the East River, Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline.
Cafe Lalo
The extensive cheesecake-heavy dessert menu and charming Belle Époque decor lure locals to this cash-only tourist favorite. Dine on salads, sandwiches, pastries and all-day waffles, quiches and omelets or choose from exquisite desserts including 20+ cheesecake flavors, dozens of pies tarts and cakes (including 10 gluten-free options) and jumbo cookies a al a mode. So Parisian and pretty it was in a Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks romantic comedy.
Cowgirl
Wild-west decor charms cowboys and cowgirls of all ages at this friendly, casual sit-down West Village establishment. Texas-friendly grub with local fresh ingredients (except for the fritos on the fritos pie) includes an extensive, reasonable 9$7-$8) kids menu.
Shake Shack UWS
This location of Danny Meyers's fresh fast food empire is often a little crowded and hectic, so order your tasty burgers, hot dogs, fries and decadent frozen concretes (including a 'Natural History Crunch-stellation') with the Shake Shack App in advance and eat at on benches outside the Natural History Museum across the street or try to snag a table in the 'rec room' in the basement. Ask for a side of pickles and tell yourself your kids are getting their…