Museums in Manhattan: 7 off-the-beaten path options

New York City is known for its monumental marble bastions of art, culture, sciences and more!

However, look beyond the "main" museums in Manhattan, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art of the American Museum of Natural History and you'll find many intriguing alternative options.

NYXT offers these 7 options to get you exploring off-the-beaten path:

  1. Visit The Rubin Museum to experience the life, art and ideas of the Himalayas and neighboring regions including india in the heart of Manhattan's vibrant Chelsea. The Rubin emphasizes cross-cultural connections through a variety of exhibitions such as one you can view right now focusing on different perspectives of what makes a devotional space. Find The Rubin Museum at 150 West 17th Street.
     

     
     
  2. Folk art from a little closer to home can be found in the American Folk Art Museum on the Upper West Side. Beginning in the 18th century, this premier collection also highlights contemporary creative artistic expressions from self-taught American Artists. Plus, as a bonus, this museum is FREE! Visit 2 Lincoln Square.
     
  3. The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum is found aboard a World War 2-era aircraft carrier. The National Historic landmark which survived multiple kamikaze attacks and a torpedo strike, then went into a Vietnam and Cold War service and was also a recovery vessel during the space race, it is docked at Pier 86, West 46th at 12th Avenue. The battleship also houses the retired NASA space shuttle Enterprise on its flight deck.
     
  4. There aren't many museums where the visitors might care about calculating the floor space. Yet those who go to the Museum of Mathematics may want to know the interactive educational venue is 19,000-square-feet. MoMath features a range of hands-on experiences on its two floors of immersive applications of mathematical concepts. Visit the Museum of Mathematics found at 11 East 26th Street between Fifth and Madison Avenues.
     
  5. Preserving and presenting the history, heritage, culture and diverse experiences of the people of Chinese decent in the United States, the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) invites visitors to interact with Chinese American narratives. The museum also features original scale models, sketches and photographic reproductions of sets by the influential designer Ming Cho Lee. Free the first Thursday of each month, found at 215 Centre Street.
     
    MOCA Exhibit

     
  6. With its works spanning back to 1,000 B.C.E., the Asia Society promotes Asian-American understanding stretching even further back. Founder John Davidson Rockefeller and his wife donated much of the 300 arts works collected in the society's museum, now in its 60th year. Visit the Asia Society located at 725 Park Avenue.
     
  7. Finally, for a fashion fix, do your best strut on the catwalk at The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology. This free Chelsea museum is dedicated to fashion and runs year-round exhibitions about leading designers, fashion innovations and award-winning style. Don't miss it on Seventh Avenue at 27th Street.
     

This is, of course, only a taste of all of the varied Manhattan museums you can visit. Enjoy your explorations!

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