One thing about the Whitney Museum of American Art is that visitors will never quite know how or where they will see or even hear art.
It’s been that way since sculptor Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney found it in 1930 — featuring art from 1900 through the present.
“This is where you go and see what’s happening in art in real time,” Adam Weinberg, the Alice Pratt Brown director of the museum for nearly two decades, said.
The Whitney Museum has been at 99 Gansevoort St. in the Meatpacking District since 2015, after years on the Upper East Side. The museum’s influential Whitney Biennial, entitled "Quiet As It’s Kept," is currently on display through Sept. 5, featuring the work of 63 artists.
“There’s immersive environments, there’s paintings, there’s sculpture, there’s digital art, there’s a lot of handmade works, it’s a totally experiential show and something that you absolutely dive into and I promise you you you go in one end and you come out the other end as a changed person,” Weinberg said.
The permanent collection features renowned artists like Jasper Johns, Georgia O’Keefe, Andy Warhol and Edward Hopper.
In October, there will be an entire show devoted to Hopper’s creations.
“It’s the first time to ever focus an exhibition on Hopper’s work here in New York City. He lived in New York City almost his entire life,” Weinberg said.
There’s art all over the Whitney Museum, along with views of the Hudson River and the Manhattan skyline, looking both north and south.
“The great thing about the Whitney is it’s an indoor and outdoor museum with lots of outdoor terraces with art and incredible views, and a great collection of historical American art as well as contemporary American art,” Weinberg said.
The Whitney Museum offers Friday night “pay what you wish” from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.. Admission for visitors under 18 years old is free, and on Saturdays, the museum features drop-in programs for kids and families.