Whitney Museum of American Art

Tickets, Renzo Piano Building & American Art Collection at the High Line

⏱ 2-3 hours👤 All ages$$

The Whitney Museum of American Art was founded in 1930 by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney to support living American artists at a time when most museums collected only European masters. In 2015, the Whitney moved from its longtime Upper East Side home to a new Renzo Piano-designed building at Gansevoort Street, at the southern foot of the High Line in the Meatpacking District.

The new building is a stepped, terraced structure with outdoor sculpture decks on multiple floors — each level has its own outdoor space with skyline views and quiet seating. The 5th floor is the largest column-free gallery in NYC, sized for contemporary installations that wouldn't fit in older museum buildings. The 8th-floor restaurant Untitled (by Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality) has Hudson River views and is one of the city's underrated museum restaurants.

The collection focuses on 20th- and 21st-century American art. The Hopper holdings (Edward Hopper's wife donated his entire estate to the museum) are unmatched anywhere. Other strong holdings include Georgia O'Keeffe, Jasper Johns, Alexander Calder, and a serious contemporary acquisition program. The Biennial — the museum's signature survey of contemporary American art, held every two years — is among the country's most important contemporary art events.

The Whitney pairs naturally with the High Line, which begins at the museum's doorstep. Many visitors do the museum then walk the High Line north toward Chelsea or Hudson Yards.