The mission of The National Arts Club is to stimulate, foster, and promote public interest in the arts and to educate the American people in the fine arts.
The National Arts Club is a private club founded in 1898 to stimulate, foster, and promote public interest in the arts and to educate the American people in the fine arts.
Operating as usual
VIRTUAL: Dr. Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell, author of “Skirts: Fashioning Modern Femininity in the Twentieth Century," traces the shifting roles of women over the 20th century through the era’s most iconic dresses on Friday, January 27 at 3 PM (ET).
Dr. Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell traces the shifting roles of women over the 20th century through the era’s most iconic dresses.
See Greg Colson’s “Snap Shot” in our galleries through January 28.
In “Snap Shot,” Colson explores the tension between different kinds of gestures, conflicting notions of intention and accident, the big picture and small details. His “Pie Chart” paintings draw out the humor and rhythm in our social patterns, reflecting our obsession with efficiency, data, and analysis—which are typically seen in the sleek nonmaterial setting of the computer screen. These woks convey a sense of distraction that is, in Colson’s words, “the condition of our lives in the information age, where the trivial and significant are put on an equal footing.”
To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions.
It's time to talk fashion! Erin Beatty, founder of Rentrayage, will discuss how her fashion label sources its materials to create beauty and value. Join The National Arts Club on Wednesday, January 25, at 6 PM (ET). This is a virtual event. To register for free, please follow the link in our bio.
Inspired by Louise Bourgeois, Rentrayage is a French word to mend and to “make whole again.” In today’s world, fast fashion is a major contributor to landfill waste. Creating sustainable fashion addresses the need to limit our footprint by creating style from that which already exists.
Rentrayage (), based in Brooklyn, NY, was created out of this concept as a company dedicated to sustainable fashion. Erin Beatty, founder of Rentrayage, will discuss how her fashion label sources its materials to create beauty and value from what has been discarded.
Examine the ideal–or not-so-ideal–Greek woman on Wednesday, January 25 at 6:30 PM (ET).
Jenifer Neils, Elsie B. Smith Professor emerita of Liberal Studies at Case Western Reserve University and former Director of American School of Classical Studies in Athens, discusses how by viewing the imagery of ideal and less than ideal women, Greek artists portrayed females within a misogynist society.
This program is presented in collaboration with the American School of Classical Studies at Athens.
Jenifer Neils, Elsie B. Smith Professor emerita, discusses how Greek artists portrayed females within a misogynist society.
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Strout visits the National Arts Club on Tuesday, January 24 at 6:30 PM (ET) with her latest novel “Lucy by the Sea.”
With her trademark spare, crystalline prose, Strout follows the indomitable heroine of “My Name Is Lucy Barton” through the early days of the pandemic in “Lucy by the Sea.”
Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Strout follows the indomitable heroine of "My Name Is Lucy Barton" through the early days of the pandemic.
Our annual one-act play festival returns on Monday, January 23 at 6:30 PM (ET).
For this year’s festival, we present a series of short, compelling, meaningful works that reveal heightened interactions among people—not only for the characters involved in the story, but also for all of us out there in the audience.
For the National Arts Club’s fourth annual One-Act Play Festival, we present a series of short, compelling, meaningful works.
Today's the day; honor MLK!
On Friday, January 20, we present the National Arts Club Medal of Honor to fashion designer Naeem Khan.
Born and raised in Mumbai, Khan () cultivated a vast knowledge of textiles under the watchful eyes of his grandfather and father, both of whom designed intricate clothing worn by Indian royal families. Khan moved to the United States as a teenager and launched his career as an apprentice for legendary American designer Halston where he immersed himself in the ethos of modern restraint and learned the craft of draping and cutting fabric to create a clean, elegant and timeless silhouette.
Khan launched his eponymous label in 2003, and since that time his collections have adorned glamorous women around the world including Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez, Taylor Swift, Rachel McAdams, Michelle Obama, Queen Noor of Jordan, and the Princess of Wales, when she was the Duchess of Cambridge. In 2008, he was inducted as a member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.
Enjoy a performance by young pianists Ryan Lu and Yidi Ding on Wednesday, January 18 at 7 PM (ET).
The evening includes traditional Chinese music in contemporary arrangements, works by African-American legend Florence Price, and virtuoso showpieces by Tchaikovsky, Chopin and Liszt.
Young pianists – Ryan Lu and Yidi Ding – present a program including traditional Chinese music in contemporary arrangement and more.
On view: “Psycho!Geo!Graphic: Melvin (Grave) Guzman”
Melvin (GRAVE) Guzman is a mixed media and performance artist. Balancing abstraction and mysticism, Grave transforms the mundane, constantly experimenting with fragments of what is close at hand and of the city to transcend both his and our collective states of being.
“Psycho!Geo!Graphic” examines a two-year acclimation to a new type of existence in New York during which the artist assembled a collection of compartmental cartographies—fragments of places—part of the whole he endeavors to convey employing a sort of nomadology of techniques, gestures, and tools. Objects infused with the entropy of the city modulate this contained reality, much like they do the topography and existential possibility of the city, in a holistic, hopefully graphic, expression of a metaphysics of subsistence.
This exhibition is on view through January 28. To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions.
Joan of Arc is believed to have been born (January 6) in 1412. This sculpture of the famed heroine sits atop a mantle in our historic parlors. It was created by Anna Hyatt Huntington (1876-1973), a leading sculptor of the early 20th century and an Artist Life Member of the National Arts Club.
📸: Evan Joseph
Internationally-renowned dance photographer Costas shares photos and talks about his new book, “Dancing Women,” on Thursday, January 12 at 6 PM (ET).
A dance lover's dream, the book reflects Costas’ commitment to taking photos of dancers in action rather than posed-for studio settings. His subjects range from the Ailey Company to the Bolshoi to New York City Ballet.
Internationally renowned dance photographer Costas shares photos and talks about his new book, Dancing Women.
Vodka expert Harold Joyce dives into the 600-year evolution of the spirit on Thursday, January 12 at 6 PM (ET).
Learn about the distillation process and various types of vodka currently being made. Sharing from Joyce’s personal collection of bottles, guests will experience a variety of versions of the spirit.
Harold Joyce, veteran of adult beverages and partner in Idaho’s 44North Vodka, shares the over 600-year evolution of vodka.
A belated look back at our NYE party.
It's going to be a great year at the NAC!
📸: Kyle Wagner
Learn about the Bronx’s rich musical and cultural heritage on Wednesday, January 11 at 6:30 PM (ET).
Folklorist Elena Martinez and jazz musician and educator Bobby Sanabria, artistic directors of the Bronx Music Heritage Center, introduce the vision of the venue using slides and videos.
Artistic Directors Folklorist Elena Martinez and Jazz musician and educator Bobby Sanabria introduce the vision of the venue.
Greg Colson’s “Snap Shot” opens in our galleries on January 7.
In “Snap Shot,” Colson explores the tension between different kinds of gestures, conflicting notions of intention and accident, the big picture and small details. His “Pie Chart” paintings draw out the humor and rhythm in our social patterns, reflecting our obsession with efficiency, data, and analysis—which are typically seen in the sleek nonmaterial setting of the computer screen. These works convey a sense of distraction that is, in Colson’s words, “the condition of our lives in the information age, where the trivial and significant are put on an equal footing.”
This exhibition is on view through January 28. To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions.
Cheers to 2023! 🥂
We look forward to welcoming you back in the new year—for our 125th anniversary.
Some of our favorite scenes from 2022.
Thank you, Mr. Eramo! This week marks the end of John Eramo's official duties as our esteemed general manager, following 11 years at the helm of the National Arts Club. Thanks to his leadership, the NAC now offers an improved member experience, is in good financial standing, and has completed major renovations and restorations—to name only a few of his accomplishments. We wish him all the best in his retirement!
We look forward to welcoming our new general manager Chris McAllister in the new year.
Put on your best western wear and giddy up to the National Arts Club on Friday, January 6 at 7 PM (ET) for a lecture from fashion historian and author Sonya Abrego.
Abrego, author of “Westernwear: Postwar American Fashion and Culture,” explores westernwear’s place in midcentury America.
Westernwear fashion is highly encouraged!
Sonya Abrego, author of Westernwear: Postwar American Fashion and Culture, will explore westernwear’s place in midcentury America.
Discover the architectural practice of formgiving on Wednesday, January 4 at 7:30 PM (EST).
Formgiving, the Danish word for design, means to give form to that which has not yet been given form: create a world to the world we would like to find ourselves. This concept is now more critical than ever, as humans are the greatest force shaping the planet today.
Kai-Uwe Bergmann, FAIA, a partner at BIG, explains Formgiving, the Danish word for design, means to give form.
We wish you warmth and togetherness this Kwanzaa.
🎨: "Abundance" by Synthia Saint James
See how artists interpret the theme of fermentation through the dual lenses of art and science in our galleries through January 3.
In the conventional sense, fermentation is a technological process in the food industry. However, if we give it some thought, practically everything that happens over time–to animate, inanimate and even strictly material objects–falls under this definition. In “CYFEST-14: Ferment,” artists explore fermentation’s versatility as a biological process and its more extensive metaphorical meaning.
This exhibition brings together artists practicing different media including paintings, drawings, prints, photography, video, new media, and interactive installations–who are interested in evoking a wide range of responses to contemporary cultural and historical contexts and social environments.
This exhibition is organized by Cyland Lab in collaboration with the Kolodzei Art Foundation.
To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions.
Wishing you a very merry Christmas!
🎨: Katie Woodward (aka Rambling Sketcher)
Taking in the final days of the season in our parlors.
📸: Lucas Hoeffel Photography
Welcome winter with these snowy scenes from our permanent collection. ❄️
Scenes from our annual holiday concert.
Thank you to all who joined us, and a special thank you to the Gramercy Brass Band!
📸: Lucas Hoeffel Photography
TONIGHT: Join us for our annual holiday concert, featuring the Gramercy Brass Band’s Principal Quartet on Monday, December 19, at 6 PM (ET). Your favorite songs and carols are performed during this festive outdoor event on Gramercy Park.
Holiday Songs from the Stoop of the Tilden Mansion with the Gramercy Brass
Happy first night of Hanukkah! May your candles burn bright this season.
May your Friday be merry and bright. ✨
📸:
We celebrate the life and creativity of artist Will Barnet (1911-2012), a longtime member and resident, in our Project Space gallery through January 6.
Seen in this intimate exhibition are rarely-seen works on paper from the 1950s and ‘60s. The selection on view demonstrates the artist’s transition from representation to abstraction, creating a synthesis in which the two attain a precise balance. Barnet continued to challenge himself throughout his long career, never abandoning his simplification process, culminating in an inevitable return to abstraction in his last decade.
Barnet remains an inspiration as an artist whose values and intellect allowed him to stand alone without classification. Although his work has been extensively exhibited and published, the full range of his creativity is yet to be revealed.
To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions.
Our annual holiday concert once again features the Gramercy Brass Band’s Principal Quartet on Monday, December 19, at 6 PM (ET). Your favorite songs and carols are performed during this festive outdoor event on Gramercy Park.
This year's concert also marks the first night of Hanukkah.
Holiday Songs from the Stoop of the Tilden Mansion with the Gramercy Brass
Tuning into the finale tonight? Here’s actor F. Murray Abraham, who plays Di Grasso Family patriarch Bert, at the National Arts Club decades ago.
Abraham is an award-winning actor who, in addition to television, has worked in film and theatre since the 1970s. Some of his best-known roles include “Amadeus,” “Scarface,” “The Sunshine Boys,” and “Homeland.” He’s also appeared in numerous productions of Shakespeare, which he discussed during a visit to the Club in 2019.
One more week to see "Find Yourself" from artist Clarence James in our galleries.
A self-taught artist working in Washington, D.C., James brings his graffiti style into vibrant canvases using acrylic, aerosol, pastel, Krink markers, and found materials. Along with inspiration from Black Artists like Jacob Lawrence, Romare Bearden, and Kerry James Marshall, James takes on portraiture identity and communicates his experience in Basquiat-like hieroglyphics.
This exhibition is on view through December 17. It is presented in partnership with DTR Modern Galleries.
To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions.
Dr. Patrick Hunt explores the astonishing story of Ötzi, the Ice Mummy, from 5,300 years ago on Thursday, December 15 at 2 PM.
Dr. Hunt, an alpine archaeologist and National Expeditions Expert, looks at the perplexing life, medical condition, and demise of Ötzi, found by two hikers in 1991 at an elevation of 10,500 feet in a melting glacier on the Italian-Austrian border.
Returning lecturer Patrick Hunt explores the astonishing story of Ötzi, the Ice Mummy from 5,300 years ago.
Join us for a virtual conversation with the incomparable Steve Martin and “New Yorker” cartoonist Harry Bliss on Wednesday, December 14, at 6 PM (ET).
In “Number One Is Walking: My Life in the Movies and Other Diversions,” a memoir by Martin illustrated by Bliss, the legendary actor tells the story of his acting career for the first time, with the acclaimed cartoonist's incomparable artwork.
This memoir by Steve Martin, illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist Harry Bliss, tells the story of his acting career for the first time.
Congratulations to NAC Artist Fellow JoAnne McFarland, who has received a Support for Artists Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts. This grant supports McFarland’s upcoming exhibition “Affiliation,” to be held at the National Arts Club in Spring 2023.
For “Affiliation,” McFarland curates the work of more than two dozen artists. Most participating artists are artists of color or are from other historically marginalized groups. “In this way, I foreground those who struggle to be seen and heard. As a Black woman artist, poet, and curator whose career began in the early 1980s, I have firsthand knowledge of the willpower and clarity of vision required to survive as an artist in New York City and as a citizen of the United States,” states McFarland.
Through this exhibition, McFarland taps into several critical contemporary issues.
Additional exhibition details are forthcoming.
“Affiliation” is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
“CYFEST-14: Ferment” examines the theme of fermentation through the dual lenses of art and science in our galleries through January 3.
In the conventional sense, fermentation is a technological process in the food industry. However, if we give it some thought, practically everything that happens over time–to animate, inanimate and even strictly material objects – falls under this definition. In “CYFEST-14,” artists explore fermentation’s versatility as a biological process and its more extensive metaphorical meaning. This exhibition brings together artists practicing different media including paintings, drawings, prints, photography, video, new media, and interactive installations–who are interested in evoking a wide range of responses to contemporary cultural and historical contexts and social environments.
This exhibition is organized byCyland Lab) in collaboration with the Kolodzei Art Foundation.
To learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org/exhibitions
Ekep Nkwelle performs for our final Fine & Mellow concert of 2022 on Monday, December 12 at 7:30 PM (ET).
With her music, Nkwelle strives to display her deep knowledge of and passion for Black music, history, and culture to people worldwide.
Presented in partnership with The National Jazz Museum in Harlem.
A partnership and year-long concert series in collaboration with The National Jazz Museum in Harlem.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year in our historic parlors! 🎄✨❤️
15 Gramercy Park S
New York, NY
10003
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| Tuesday | 10am - 5pm |
| Wednesday | 10am - 5pm |
| Thursday | 10am - 5pm |
| Friday | 10am - 5pm |
| Saturday | 10am - 5pm |
| Sunday | 10am - 5pm |
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Visit us in November for one (or all) of our free events and exhibitions! Here's a peak. To register or learn more: http://ow.ly/72vk50LjjJE
📣 Join us on Saturday, September 24, 10 AM to 4 PM (ET), for our second annual Community Day! Guests are invited to our Club to view current exhibitions—including “Selections from Australia’s Western Desert” and “Enduring Brilliance!,” explore our historic landmark building, enjoy live music and family arts activities, and more! To register for free, please click here: http://ow.ly/rhBS50KPpBl Schedule of activities: 🖼️ All day - Galleries open for viewing 🔎 All day - Tours of the historic NAC parlors (with registration) 🎨 10 AM - 2 PM - Family arts activities 🎶 12 - 1 PM - Cuban music performance w/ Mari Bel Trio Please note: The music performance takes place outdoors. We are unable to provide seating.
See you in three weeks! To learn more about upcoming programs or register for free, please visit nationalartsclub.org.
Happy #NonprofitDay (August 17)! The National Arts Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with a mission to stimulate, foster, and promote public interest in the arts and to educate the American people in the fine arts. Annually, the Club offers more than 150 free programs—both in-person and virtually—to the public, including exhibitions, theatrical and musical performances, lectures and readings, attracting an audience of over 30,000 in-person visitors and thousands more online. Feature programs focus on all disciplines of the arts. The NAC is also a proud community partner, providing therapeutic art instruction to children in the care of the Administration of Children’s Services, regularly convening New York City art leaders to share ideas and collaborate, presenting a popular series of concerts in collaboration with the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, and more. To support the NAC or learn more, please visit nationalartsclub.org.
From holiday concerts to cookie and wreath making workshops to celebrations in our historic parlors, we have so enjoyed celebrating the season with our Members and guests. Please enjoy this video recap of all the festive fun we have had together.
Today’s #GivingTuesday! Contribute to ensure we are able to fulfill our mission and continue providing arts programming to a larger community: http://bit.ly/NACGT2021
On Saturday, October 23, the Metropolitan Opera's performance of "Fire Shut Up in My Bones," the first opera by a Black composer presented on the Met stage, will be shown in movie theaters across the globe. The opera tells a poignant and profound story about a young man’s journey to overcome a life of trauma and hardship. Learn more: https://www.metopera.org/season/in-cinemas/2021-22-season/fire-shut-up-in-my-bones-live-in-hd
Visit us on Sunday, September 12 for our first-ever Community Day! Guests are invited to our Club to take part in a variety of free activities featuring art and inspiration from 10 AM to 3 PM.
An evening with Claire Messud, the acclaimed author of "The Emperor’s Children" and "The Woman Upstairs."
Explore the pages of "C☆NDY Transversal," the first and only style magazine to focus on celebrating the transversal community. Get your copy of the book here: https://bookshop.org/books/the-candy-book-of-transversal-creativity-the-best-of-candy-magazine-allegedly/9780847865833
The mission of The National Arts Club is to stimulate, foster, and promote public interest in the arts and to educate the American people in the fine arts.
The East Village Art Collection
First AvenueThe Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation
Laguardia PlaceO'Toole-Ewald Art Associates, Inc.
Madison Avenue RmWhitney Museum of American Art
Westbury 06902
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
5th Avenue
MAD | Museum of Arts and Design
Columbus Circle
Whitney Museum of American Art
Gansevoort Street
Canvas Paper and Stone Gallery
Frederick Douglass Boulevard
ICP - International Center of Photography
Essex Street