Press Release: Fall 2026 Season
Museum of the City of New York Shares Details of Fall 2026 Season
Highlights include the artists selected for New York Now: After Dark, the opening of the Puffin Foundation Center for Social Activism, a call for bakers for Gingerbread NYC, and the return of the Louis Auchincloss Prize
Contact: Chris Gorman | PressOffice@mcny.org | 917.492.3482
NEW YORK, NY (June 24, 2026) — Building on a landmark year in which the Museum of the City of New York is playing a central role in the nationwide America250 commemoration, the Museum today announced details of its fall 2026 season. The schedule brings new exhibitions, a new permanent home for civic education and engagement, and the return of beloved traditions — all reflecting the Museum's commitment to exploring the people, places, and ideas that shape our city’s iconic character.
“Our fall exhibitions root us in history, remind us that change is possible, and fill us with the wonder and awe that fuel hope and optimism — not just for New Yorkers, but for everyone who feels connected to the city's stories," said Stephanie Hill Wilchfort, Ronay Menschel Director and President of MCNY.
"From the Lenape people to the photographers capturing New York after dark, our fall exhibitions ask who gets to tell the story of this place — and insist that the answer is everyone. These are not just New York stories. They are American stories, and they are still being written," said Elisabeth Sherman, Robert A. and Elizabeth Rohn Jeffe Chief Curator and Deputy Director.
New This Fall
Halumii Ktapihna: Lenape Legacies and Futures
Press Preview: Tuesday, September 22
Public Opening: Friday, September 25
Created in collaboration with the Éenda-Lŭnaapeewáhkiing Collective — a group of Lenape/Lunáapeew leaders from the U.S. and Canada — Halumii Ktapihna explores the Lenape/Lunáapeew today by bringing together the work of more than 30 contemporary artists alongside artifacts and archival materials. The exhibition illuminates the living culture of the Lenape/Lunáapeew people and their ancestral homeland, Lenapehoking/Lunaapeewáhkiing — which includes present-day New York City. Highlights include wampum belts, tools, and textiles; historic documents and maps; and new works by Lenape/Lunáapeew artists that speak to identity, sovereignty, and belonging.
Raise Your Voice: New York Activism | The Puffin Foundation Center for Social Activism
Press Preview: Tuesday, September 22
Public Opening: Friday, September 25
On July 23, the Museum's long-running exhibition Activist New York will close temporarily to make way for an exciting new chapter. On September 25, concurrent with the opening of Halumii Ktapihna, the Museum will unveil Raise Your Voice: New York Activism, a new permanent exhibition exploring the tactics New Yorkers have employed to make change in their city. The exhibition is the cornerstone of the newly established Puffin Foundation Center for Social Activism — a permanent home at MCNY dedicated to the history and ongoing legacy of civic engagement and social movements in New York City.
New York Now: After Dark
Press Preview: Tuesday, November 17
Public Opening: Friday, November 20
The Museum's triennial of contemporary photography returns with a focus on New York City after the sun sets — where work, leisure, ambition, community, and escape converge. The exhibition brings together 33 living artists, established and emerging, including Adam Pape, Anh Nguyen, Ashley Gilbertson, Avion Pearce, Charles Hamilton James, D'Angelo Lovell Williams, Darryl DeAngelo Terrell, David Johnson, Destiny Mata, Dina Litovski, DRIFT, Elle Peréz, Guarionex Rodriguez Jr., Hiroyuki Ito, Janette Beckman, Kate Vitali, Ken Schles, Kia Lebeija, Landon Nordeman, Liz Deschenes, Luis Carle, Lynn Saville, Mahka Eslami, Matthew Pillsbury, Melanie Einzig, Michael McWeeney, Reuben Radding, Saint Piñero, Susannah Ray, Theo Wenner, Todd Heisler, Tomiko Jones, and Tommy Kha, among others, offering a nuanced visual narrative of New York's nocturnal landscape.
Gingerbread NYC: The Great Borough Bake-Off
Press Preview: Monday, November 2
Public Opening: Friday, November 6
A beloved holiday tradition, Gingerbread NYC: The Great Borough Bake-Off returns in 2026 with an all-new celebration of the city's boundless creativity. Showcasing gingerbread structures crafted by leading bakers and designers from across all five boroughs, the exhibition highlights New York as the creative capital of the United States. Bakers and designers interested in participating are encouraged to submit their applications beginning on July 6th.
The Louis Auchincloss Prize
The Museum is pleased to announce the return of the Louis Auchincloss Prize, which celebrates distinguished literary contributions to the story of New York City. This year's recipient will be announced later this year. Details to follow.
Continuing This Summer and Fall
The following exhibitions remain on view as the fall season begins:
He Built This City: Joe Macken's Model (through September) celebrates Queens-born Joe Macken's remarkable 21-year effort to handcraft a 50-by-30-foot architectural model of New York City — displayed for the first time in the city that inspired it.
The Occupied City: New York and the American Revolution (through May 1, 2027), the Museum's signature contribution to America250, immerses visitors in Revolutionary-era New York across a sweeping 7,000-square-foot exhibition on the Museum's third floor.
Another Wonderland: Abram Champanier's Alice Mural (through September 27) celebrates the rescue and decades-long restoration of a major New Deal–era mural cycle created for the children's ward at Gouverneur Hospital, reimagining Lewis Carroll's beloved characters across 1930s New York City.
New York at Its Core (ongoing) brings New York City's history and future alive through the stories of immigrants, politicians, tycoons, dreamers, master builders, and ordinary New Yorkers across generations.
Timescapes (ongoing) explores how New York City grew from a settlement of a few hundred Europeans, Africans, and Native Americans into the metropolis we know today and features animated maps and archival photographs, prints, and paintings from the Museum’s collections.
About the Museum of the City of New York
The Museum of the City of New York explores the people, places, and ideas that shape New York’s iconic character. Serving 250,000 visitors annually, including 40,000 students and educators, the Museum invites New Yorkers and visitors alike to discover their place in the city’s evolving story through history, art, popular culture and civic life.
Visitor Information
The Museum is located at 1220 Fifth Avenue. Public hours are Monday–Friday, 10:00 am–5:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 am–6:00 p.m. Learn more at mcny.org.
The Museum is grateful to the supporters of its exhibition program.
He Built This City: Joe Macken’s Model is made possible with lead support from Todd DeGarmo | STUDIOS Architecture. Thank you to sponsors Amazon, Matt and Marisa Brown, and RUDIN. Additional support provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
The Occupied City: New York and the American Revolution is made possible by presenting partners, the Andrew Carnegie Foundation, an Anonymous Family Foundation, Kenneth C. Griffin and Griffin Catalyst, and The Hearthland Foundation. Special thanks to our benefactors, Elizabeth K. Belfer, Matt and Marisa Brown, The National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and The Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation. Additional support provided by advocates, The Achelis and Bodman Foundation, Chris Brown, Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), and Heather and William Vrattos.
Another Wonderland is made possible with leading support from the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund. Special thanks to advocate, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Thank you to sponsors, Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Knapp Family Foundation, M&T Bank, and New York State Council on the Arts.
New York Now: After Dark is made possible by our sponsors, Elizabeth K. Belfer, the William Talbott Hillman Foundation, the Grace Mayer Conservation Fund, and the Abbott Circle, founded by Trustee Jennifer Marrus.
Halumii Ktapihna: Lenape Legacies and Futures is made possible by Valerie and Jack Rowe and The Puffin Foundation. This exhibition is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and New York State Council on the Arts.
Activist New York is made possible by The Puffin Foundation.
New York at Its Core is made possible through major support from James G. Dinan and Elizabeth R. Miller, Pierre De Menasce, The Thompson Family Foundation, Jerome L. Greene Foundation, Heather and William Vrattos, Charina Endowment Fund, National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
