Morgan Library & Museum Garden

For the first time in its 116-year history, the Morgan Library & Museum in Midtown Manhattan has opened its garden to the public. Part of a six-year $13-million “century renovation “, the garden was originally designed in 1912 by Beatrix Jones. Watch videos of subject experts on the renovation of the building’s exterior, including the bronze doors, night lighting, and even pigeon control, here.

Colin B. Bailey, director of the Morgan Library & Museum, recently said, “It’s not a very quiet garden. But already, people are going to be excited by how beautiful the building is. Just think Rome now — because you’re noisy, you’re gritty, you’re urban — but you are also walking around very monumental; classical. It’s going to be the first time in our history that people are going to be out in this space. My hope is that it would be like an additional exhibition.

“I think we have a sort of sleeping beauty here. This street is busy and quite noisy. We’ve always maintained the building, but we’ve cleaned it now. And we’ve also added lighting just to give it much more presence. So, in a way, many people who walk around Midtown and Murray Hill, and many people who come to the Morgan, have not been able to get much closer than standing outside the fence. It’s adding something a little unusual in New York — feeling like you’re in Rome. You feel you’re in this small space with objects, flowers, plants, and a beautiful building with a lot of noise.”

Currently on view: Writing a Chrysanthemum: The Drawings of Rick Barton
through September 11.  Above: Rick Barton, "Untitled sketchbook," detail (1962), brush and ink on accordion-folded book, 28 panels, 11 × approx. 231 inches unfolded. More

The Morgan Garden: On Fridays and Saturdays, ticket holders will be able to relax and enjoy the greenspace on their own from noon to closing, weather permitting. Tuesday through Thursday, as well as Sunday tickets holders can only experience the Morgan Garden and view the exterior of J. Pierpont Morgan’s Library as part of the tour that takes place at 12:30 pm. Free Fridays: 5 to 7 pm every week Visitor Info.   

Black Atlantic at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Public Art Fund’s new group exhibition beside the Brooklyn Bridge addresses how one waterway connects all of Africa with New York City. Black Atlantic brings together site-specific installations by diaspora artists Leilah Babirye, Hugh Hayden, Dozie Kanu, Tau Lewis, and Kiyan Williams. Located directly across from the original Wall Street slave market, the towering works stand as monuments to Black self-determination and challenge Brooklynites to engage with their own history. Above: Kiyan Williams, “Ruins of Empire” (2022) (image courtesy the artist; photo by Nicholas Knight and courtesy Public Art Fund, NY)

Through November 27 at Brooklyn Bridge Park, 334 Furman Street, Dumbo, Brooklyn Info

Around the Table: Stories of the Foods We Love at New York Botanical Garden

Food justice is at the center of recent discussions on global supply shortages. As such, the New York Botanical Garden is exploring the diasporic origins of common household foods through planting and cooking traditions that date back millennia. Above: "Tossed Salad" by Ruth Marshall, one of 30 tables designed by Bronx artists for "Around the Table:

"Some of these plants have been cultivated for food for thousands and thousands of years,” said Marc Hachadourian, NYBG’s Director of Glasshouse Horticulture and Senior Curator of Orchids. "They originated in one part of the world, and then moved to another, and the way they’ve moved is through the movement of people, as they brought their food plants with them."

The idea is that visitors can explore the rich cultural history of what we eat and learn about global dietary staples such as rice, beans, squash, and corn, as well as regional spices and flavors of peppers, greens, and tomatoes, to name a few. One message of this expansive exhibition that resonates across NYBG’s 250 acres is that plants and their movements are at the base of all culinary customs. There are hundreds of varieties of edible plants on display, including installations in and around the Haupt Conservatory.

Through September 11 at New York Botanical Garden, 2900 Southern Boulevard, The Bronx, NY 

August 18, noon-1pm: Wildlife Walk at Madison Square Park

Join urban naturalist Chris Kreussling on this tour of Madison Square Park to discover the wildlife that makes our urban greenspace so ecologically rich. Chris is an avid native plant and habitat gardener: his garden contains over 200 species of plants native to NYC, and hosts over 400 insect species, all recorded on iNaturalist, and documented on his blog, Flatbush Gardener. He has led numerous pollinator walks and workshops, including events for NYC Wildflower Week, Wave Hill, and the High Line. Above: Photo by Chris Kreussling

Madison Square Park, Fifth Avenue at 23^rd Street, New York, NY Meet at the south entrance of the Oval Lawn, near the fountain. RSVP kindly requested.

Closing August 28: Water Scarcity: Perpetual Thirst at Wave HIll 

Featuring  artworks by Tahir Carl Karmali, Cannupa Hanska Luger and Lucy + Jorge Orta, artists using a range of approaches to raise awareness about the issue of access to clean water. Water is essential for life and is crucial for ecological cycles on the planet. Above: Lucy + Jorge Orta, “OrtaWater –Antarctica”, 2013

With water covering more than 70% of the earth’s surface, it can be hard to imagine that there is a global water crisis, yet billions of people experience a lack of available water. Only 3% is fresh water, including that which is encased in glaciers, and only half of that is usable for drinking and other necessities. While water scarcity is a worldwide problem, different regions face different challenges, including resources that are being polluted or drying up.

Although the projects on view in Water Scarcity: Perpetual Thirst represent far-flung sites from Africa to Antarctica to the American Southwest, water scarcity is an issue that affects communities on both a global and a local scale. Info

Wave Hill, 4900 Independence Avenue, Bronx, NY

Our Streets! Our City! Self-Determination and Public Space in NYC at Interference Archive

This installation explores various struggles over public space in New York City since the 1960s, and engages with past and contemporary strategies used by activists to reclaim or reimagine urban infrastructures. This exhibit is a tribute to those who have resisted top-down city-planning processes; its purpose is to honor collective fights against displacement, privatization, and municipal overreach in NYC. Above: Photo © Harvey Wang

Through August 21 at Interference Archive (314 7th Street, Park Slope, Brooklyn Info

Continuing through August: I Dreamed a Garden: Inspired Gardens | Remembered, Observed, Imagined, online at New York Artists Circle

The New York Artists Circle presents “I Dreamed A Garden: Inspired Gardens — Remembered, Observed, Imagined,” an exhibition of visual art by 45 NYAC artists, together with the great literature that inspired them. Creating a kaleidoscopic gallery, these artists have gathered their interpretations of their Garden Dreams from memory, observation and imagination. Curated by Lois Bender, it’s on view May 15 - August 31, 2022 on the NYAC website

Above: Persephone’s Gate by Peggy Roalf; monoprint on paper, 2022. I love the lawlessness of gardens that are grown primarily for pollinators. Within the chaotic light and color of this vegetation I find an energy lacking in precisely ordered beds and borders. The title of the artwork above refers to the Greek divinity identified as the gatekeeper of Spring who bestows everlasting life through Nature. @peggy.roalf