“Elizabeth Catlett: A Black Revolutionary Artist and All That It Implies”
Where: Brooklyn Museum
When: September 13, 2024–January 19, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: An unsung hero of American art history, Elizabeth Catlett was a mid-20th-century printmaker and sculptor who saw no separation between the personal and political. Catlett was not shy about her desire to amplify the voices of Black women, with much of her output focused on the everyday experiences of Black life in the United States.
Know Before You Go: Catlett moved to Mexico in her 30s and was influenced by the socially-minded ethos of the Mexican muralists, including Diego Rivera.
“Energies”
Where: Swiss Institute
When: September 11, 2024–January 5, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Ecologically-minded works by past and present community members including ABC No Rio co-founder Becky Howland, Gordon Matta-Clark, and Ruth Nazario are installed alongside works from around the world, such as Jean Katambayi Mukendi’s sculptures that reference renewable energy practices in the DRC and Ximena Garrido-Lecca’s film documenting the destruction caused by U.S.-supported mining in Peru.
Know Before You Go: The starting point for “Energies” was a two-kilowatt wind turbine installed atop an East Village co-op in the 1970s, providing the building with energy during the then-common power cuts throughout the city. The co-op was sued by Con-Ed, and unexpectedly won the case, initiating an important step in the development of green and renewable energy.
“The Socrates Annual 2024”
Where: Socrates Sculpture Park
When: September 14, 2024–April 6, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Large, outdoor sculptures dot a waterfront park with the Manhattan skyline in the background. This year’s edition of the annual features “living” and site-specific works by Socrates Fellowship participants—younger artists who rarely have opportunities to present large-scale works and therefore tend to go all-out for this show.
Know Before You Go? Socrates was founded under the leadership of sculptor Mark di Suvero and is most fun to visit via ferry! The Astoria Landing stop is a mere five-minute walk away.
“Steve McQueen”
Where: Dia Chelsea
When: September 20, 2024–January 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: If the name Steve McQueen, OBE, isn’t enough to get you there on its own… The show features a new work alongside the British polymath’s film Sunshine State, originally commissioned by the International Film Festival Rotterdam and inspired by a story McQueen’s late father shared on his deathbed.
Know Before You Go? Sunshine State features clips from The Jazz Singer, 1927, the first feature-length film to include sound.
“Edges of Ailey”
Where: Whitney Museum of American Art
When: September 25, 2024–February 9, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Never before has there been a large-scale exhibition dedicated to the legendary artist and choreographer Alvin Ailey. With archival materials, visual art, performance, a large-scale multi-screen video installation, and music by more than 80 artists, including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Alma Thomas, and Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, this is an exhibition for the ages.
Know Before You Go? For one week each month, AILEY will be in residence at the Whitney, offering visitors the opportunity to see rarely-performed pieces as well as the classics.
“Thomas Schütte”
Where: Museum of Modern Art
When: September 29, 2024–January 18, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Düsseldorf-based Thomas Schütte holds one of those special places of respect reserved for artists from a certain time and place in Germany. Here, MoMA presents the largest-ever stateside exhibition of his work—everything from watercolors to the monumental sculptures for which he is most well-known.
Know Before You Go? Schütte brought home the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennial in 2005.
“Make Way for Berthe Weill: Art Dealer of the Parisian Avant-Garde”
Where: Grey Art Museum, NYU
When: October 1, 2024–March 1, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Before there was Paula Cooper, or even Peggy Guggenheim, there was Berthe Weill. The first woman dealer of modern art, Weill showed some of the most important artists of the 20th century, including Pablo Picasso and Amedeo Modigliani, from her gallery in the ninth arrondissement.
Know Before You Go: Weill gave Modigliani the only solo exhibition of his lifetime—which was immediately shut down because of nudity.
“The Way I See It: Selections from the KAWS Collection”
Where: The Drawing Center
When: October 10, 2024–January 19, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: KAWS, aka Brian Donnelly, is known for his cartoonish large-scale sculptures and collabs with everyone from Uniqlo to Travis Scott. His mainstream popularity sometimes belies the seriousness of his thinking—from making to collecting. On view here are more than 200 works on paper by artists including Willem de Kooning, Robert Crumb, and Gladys Nilsson.
Know Before You Go: Donnelly’s personal collection includes more than 3,000 works!
“FLOW STATES – LA TRIENAL 24”
Where: El Museo del Barrio
When: October 10, 2024–February 9, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: The second iteration of El Museo’s triennial, Flow States, includes Latinx artists based in the United States and Puerto Rico as well as diasporic artists living in the Caribbean, the Americas, Europe, and Asia.
Know Before You Go: The exhibition’s title is a double entendre, referencing the flow state that happens in deep creative thinking as well as the amorphous quality of borders and culture itself.
“Who Wants to Die for Glamour” by Jasmine Gregory
Where: MoMA PS1
When: October 10, 2024–Spring 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Working somewhere between painting and sculpture, and firmly within satire, Jasmine Gregory’s work is as much about her materials as it is social commentary. Often appropriating touchpoints from popular culture, Gregory's pieces work as a sharp lampooning of American consumer culture, though this is her first institutional exhibition stateside.
Know Before You Go: The American-born, Zürich-based artist's show will consist of a selection of new works, including a large-scale, site-specific installation.
“Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian's Legacy”
Where: The Morgan Library
When: October 25, 2024–May 4, 2025
Why It’s Worth a Look: Born in 1879 to a Black family in Washington D.C., Belle da Costa Greene spent her adult life passing as white and working as the personal librarian to J. Pierpont Morgan and his son—helping to build their collection of books and manuscripts into the unparalleled library and research center it is today.
Know Before You Go: The exhibition is part of the Morgan’s centenary celebration, marking its 100 years as a public institution.
