- Tove Jansson and the Moomins: The Door Is Always Open
- Heatwave
- Instinct and Reason
- ‘Forma & Estetica’
- Rashid Johnson: ‘A Poem for Deep Thinkers’
- Pablo Picasso ‘Still Life’
- Takashi Murakami
- Rosa Barba The Ocean of One’s Pause
- Christine Sun Kim: All Day All Night
- Amy Sherald: American Sublime
- Shining a light on The Subway Sun
- Songs of New York
- Pirouette
- Shifting Landscapes
- 'In the Shadow of the American Dream: David Wojnarowicz'
Art offers an element of escapism. A welcomed distraction that, at times, is definitely needed. Heading into the peak of summer, New York continues to host an eclectic assortment of exhibitions this July. Tove Jansson’s whimsical Moomin characters take the city in a first-ever US exhibition, while American artist Will Cotton explores pop culture and ‘new American mythology'. Edwynn Houk Gallery presents ‘Heatwave’ which looks at the physical effects of warm temperatures on society and the shared feelings this brings. New York is a powerhouse of creativity – don't miss a thing with our monthly updated guide to the best exhibitions to see around the city.
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The best New York art exhibitions: what to see this month
Tove Jansson and the Moomins: The Door Is Always Open
Brooklyn Public Library From 28 June until September 30, 2025
Making its US debut, the playful cartoon characters known as Moomins take over the Brooklyn Public Library in a new exhibition. Finnish artist Tove Jansson is one of Scandinavia’s most celebrated cultural figures, whose distinct characters echo a similar charm and popularity of Miffy, and Snoopy. Jansson’s first Moomin story was The Moomins and the Great Flood in 1945, which opened a whole world of playful creatures who live in Moominvalley. The characters explore themes of adventure, nature, friendship and courage.
Read the full review here
Heatwave
Edwynn Houk Gallery until 8 August
‘Heatwave’ is a group exhibition that explores heat and its impact on people throughout generations. It moves beyond climate and temperature, and focuses on its physical effects. From urban summers, to the breezy countryside, the exhibition unites works by Lillian Bassman, Elliott Erwitt, Lalla Essaydi, Robert Heinecken, Sally Mann, Joel Meyerowitz, Abelardo Morell, Erwin Olaf, and Herb Ritts.
Instinct and Reason
Templon Gallery until 31 July
In an explosion of sugary pastels and magical figures, American painter Will Cotton presents his first exhibition with the galley. The artist is inspired by pop culture and a ‘new American mythology’, with backdrops of sweet treats and pink unicorns, juxtaposed with the hypermasculine cowboys. The new series welcomes a new figure, dainty yet dangerous mermaids. The series is fun and playful with an interesting interpretation of renaissance-esque paintings with a contemporary twist.
‘Forma & Estetica’
Carpenters Workshop Gallery until 16 August
The ‘Dondolo’ rocking chair was designed by the duo of architects Leonardi and Franca Stagi in the late 1960s.
Taking respite from conventional art exhibitions, it would be rude not to acknowledge ‘Forma & Estetica’, a new exhibition which explores contemporary Italian design. The exhibition features works by Vincenzo De Cotiis and Giacomo Ravagli alongside iconic 20th-century designers such as Gio Ponti, Gabriella Crespi, Emilio Lancia, Cesare Leonardi, Franca Stagi, Mario Gottardi, Studio BBPR, and Ico and Luisa Parisi. ‘Forma & Estetica’ explores the intersection of beauty and functionality and how this applies to industry and urbanisation.
Rashid Johnson: ‘A Poem for Deep Thinkers’
Guggenheim until 18 January 2026
Chicago-born artist Rashid Johnson presents his first major solo show which spans almost 90 works inspired by history, philosophy, literature and music. Exploring Johnson’s immersive contemporary works the exhibition features black-soap paintings and spray-painted text, to large scale sculptures, film and videos, highlighting the artist’s vast portfolio.
Pablo Picasso ‘Still Life’
Almine Rech until 18 July 2025
In collaboration with Fundación Almine y Bernard Ruiz-Picasso, Almine Rech New York presents a collection of Picasso’s still-life work. The artist is best known for portraying his personal life and relationships through his abstract paintings, yet his still-life work is somewhat overlooked. Here, the focus is on his dynamic depiction of everyday objects in various mediums throughout his career.
Takashi Murakami JAPONISME → Cognitive Revolution: Learning from Hiroshige
Gagosian until 11 July 2025
Murakami is a busy man. With the exhibition 'Stepping on the Tail of a Rainbow' currently on display at The Cleveland Art Museum, which explores outrage and escapist fantasy, the artist now showcases new and recent works at Gagosian. In ‘JAPONISME → Cognitive Revolution: Learning from Hiroshige’, he reworks prints by Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) with those of paintings by artists identified with 19th-century Japonisme. There are 121 canvases on show, which respond to Hiroshige’s series of ukiyo-e prints, 100 Famous Views of Edo (1856–58).
Rosa Barba The Ocean of One’s Pause
MoMA until 6 July
Italian visual artist and filmmaker Rosa Barba presents ‘The Ocean of One’s Pause’. The installation looks across 15 years of her work including film, sculpture and sound. At the heart of the exhibition is the newly commissioned work ‘Charge’ which examines light as a driving force of ecological change and scientific innovation.
moma.org
Christine Sun Kim: All Day All Night
Whitney Museum of American Art until 6 July
American sound artist Christine Sun Kim explores communication in various forms from musical notation to infographics, written English to American Sign Language (ASL). She responds with drawings, videos and sculptures, and in particular ASL, which has been translated into graphic form. She questions the societal assumption that spoken languages are superior to those that are signed.
Amy Sherald: American Sublime
Whitney Museum of American Art until 10 August 2025
Georgia-born artist Amy Sherald crafts an intricate narrative of American life through a series of portraiture of ‘everyday’ Americans going about their daily lives. With a focus on Black Americans, she adds a compelling individuality, highlighting the extraordinary within the mundane, as the subjects go about their daily routine. Within the exhibition, she couples ‘ordinary’ Americans with notable figures such as Michelle Obama, adding to the layers of American identity.
Shining a light on The Subway Sun
New York Transit Museum, ongoing
Historically on the New York subway, posters advised and informed users, encouraging correct etiquette and manners. For 'Shining a light on The Subway Sun', posters designed by illustrators Fred G Cooper and Amelia Opdyke Jones are celebrated, with the exhibition showcasing more than 40 examples from the museum's collection of approximately 120 original poster artworks and more than 100 vintage posters, most produced between 1936 and 1965.
Songs of New York
Museum of the City of New York, ongoing
LL Cool J with Cut Creator, E-Love, and B-Rock, Janette Beckman (1950-), 1986, Museum of the City of New York, 2016
Featuring music from 100 artists, ‘Songs of New York’ explores a full range of genres that have influenced the city from the 1920s through to the present day. Different genres explore different locations, from subways to apartments, nightclubs to neighbourhoods in this immersive, interactive exhibition.
mcny.org
Pirouette
MoMA until 18 October
Milton Glaser. Mahalia Jackson (Poster for an Easter Sunday concert at Lincoln Center, New York). 1967
The Museum of Modern Art explores iconography, objects and design that have impacted everyday life. The aim of the exhibition is to showcase the power of design and how it translates the human experience into ‘tangible forms’. Visitors will see icons such as the ‘I ♥️ NY’ logo and Telfar’s Shopping Bag, dubbed the ‘Bushwick Birkin’. Other items include technology, from the cassette player to the Macintosh 128K Home Computer. The exhibition is a fun dose of nostalgia while also looking towards the future.
moma.org
Shifting Landscapes
Whitney Museum of American Art until January 2026
LaToya Ruby FrazierLandscape of the Body (Epilepsy Test), 2011
‘Shifting Landscapes’ is a group show exploring how evolving political, ecological, and social issues motivate artists as they attempt to represent the world around them. The works are drawn from the gallery’s collection, and span various environments, from cityscapes to rural landscapes, bringing ideas of land and place into focus, and considering how society is shaped by the spaces around us.
'In the Shadow of the American Dream: David Wojnarowicz'
The Museum of Modern Art, ongoing
Wojnarowicz's work has been recontextualised by MoMA, which has presented it alongside that of the artist's contemporaries from the 1980s New York downtown scene, including filmmaker Marion Scemama, Donald Moffett, Agosto Machado and painter Martin Wong. Important works here include Wojnarowicz's's 1987 Fire, while Machado’s Shrine is a moving time capsule of ephemera. It includes a ‘Justice for Marsha’ sign, referring to questions around the suspicious death of trans activist Marsha P Johnson in 1992, as well as club flyers and memorial service cards.
Writer: Lauren Cochrane
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‘Her pictures looked like pictures everybody knew were the truth’: Diane Arbus at the Armory
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