The Whitney Museum of American Art

The Whitney Museum of American Art was founded by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney in the year 1930 and was opened in Greenwich Village in 1931. The museum was originally called the Whitney Studio, where Mrs. Whitney aimed to showcase artists whom were considered unconventional. Her studio was a success and eventually caught the attention of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, leading Mrs. Whitney to change her small studio to a museum. 

As the museum expanded, it began to outgrow its cramped building. In 1954, the museum expanded to West 54th street. By 1966, the museum purchased a building on Madison Avenue and 75th street. The museum uses a new building, which was acquired and opened in 2015 on Gansevoort Street. 

The new building of the museum was designed by architect Renzo Piano, taking a space next to the iconic High Line and the Hudson River. Though the original building is located on Gansevoort Street, The Whitney Museum has several installments of exhibitions throughout Manhattan.

The museum features a variety of artwork and exhibits. Permanently, The Whitney Museum is the host of more than 21,000 works and features over 3,000 artists. Along with these works, the Whitney provides a series of exhibits which are only open for a small time frame for the public to view. One of these exhibits, the Laura Poitras: Astro Noise exhibit, is currently open from February 5th to May 1st. 

Sources: whitney.org