In December 2018, I visited the Museum of the City of New York with my public history classmates from the CUNY Graduate Center. We has spent the semester studying how to make effective exhibits and engage with the public. Our main focus was to see ‘Rebel Women: Defying Victorianism‘ which was a great little exhibit. One thing I really love about MCNY is that they make use of all available space in their museum; for example: the stairwells are covered in old photographs of NYC and quotes about NYC. In ‘Rebel Women’s’ case, the exhibit resided in a hallway between two larger exhibits – a space that may be overlooked in other institutions. The set up of the exhibit allowed anyone to jump into it at any point of the hallway, and the exhibit mainly featured profiles that highlighted incredible New York women of the 19th century who bucked Victorian expectations. See some photos below:
This museum is one of my favorites, ever. And, of course, I had to stop by some of their permanent exhibits like ‘Activist NY‘ and ‘NY at it’s Core‘.
Learn more about MCNY and plan your own visit by clicking here.
History Is Important 