Unveiling a new era: the New Museum’s bold expansion to showcase contemporary art and innovative architecture

This March marks the reopening of the New Museum, Manhattan’s only dedicated contemporary art museum and one of the city’s most forward-thinking cultural institutions. Located on the Bowery, the museum is internationally recognized for spotlighting emerging artists and presenting bold contemporary art from around the world. 

On March 21, 2026, the building expansion opens with New Humans: Memories of the Future, an exhibition featuring over 150 artists, writers, filmmakers, architects, and scientists who consider how technological developments inspire evolving definitions of our species. Uniting the existing building by SANAA with a new design by OMA, the New Museum is a rare melding of the work of two living Pritzker Prize-winning architects. With innovative architecture, fresh exhibitions, newly unveiled commissions, and renewed energy, the reopening marks a major moment in NYC’s cultural calendar.

Founded in 1977, the New Museum is a center for exhibitions, information, and documentation about living artists from around the world. Unlike encyclopedic collecting institutions, the New Museum focuses on living artists and new ideas, often giving major early exhibitions to creatives who later become globally influential. What began in a one-room office on Hudson Street later evolved into its first flagship building on the Lower East Side, designed by SANAA in 2007, which has now been expanded by OMA / Shohei Shigematsu and Rem Koolhaas in collaboration with Cooper Robertson. 

“Our new 120,000 sq ft building on the Bowery signals our redoubled commitment to new art and new ideas, and to the museum as an ever-evolving site for risk-taking, collaboration, and experimentation,” says Director Lisa Phillips. Whatever its size, the museum has always been a hub of innovative art by pioneering practitioners.

What’s new at the museum?

• An expanded footprint with double the gallery space, thanks to a design by OMA that seamlessly integrates with the existing building
• A triangular Plaza, forming a public space for art and gatherings where the old and new building meet
• Enhanced venues for public programs and special events, including an enlarged seventh-floor Sky Room and a new 74-seat Forum
• The glowing green Atrium Stair, where Klára Hosnedlová’s new commission is installed
• The museum’s first full-service restaurant features a plant-based menu in an art-filled space, with a commission by Ian Cheng and furniture by Minjae Kim
• The new and enlarged museum shop is launching a suite of artist-made objects created to celebrate the reopening

What’s on view at the museum?

• Spanning the entire museum, New Humans: Memories of the Future features the work of over 150 creatives who consider our sense of humanity in a time of technological change
• Grouped into themes such as Prosthetic Gods, Dream Machines, and Animacies, the exhibition features works by contemporary creators, including Wangechi Mutu, Philippe Parreno, Hito Steyerl, and Anicka Yi, alongside 20th-century trailblazers such as Francis Bacon, Salvador Dalí, Ibrahim El-Salahi, and Germaine Richier
• New commissions can be spotted throughout the building, including Tschabalala Self’s Art Lovers, created for the museum façade; Klára Hosnedlová’s Shelter, a monumental textile sculpture for the Atrium Stair; and Sarah Lucas’ VENUS VICTORIA for the new public plaza at the building’s

How can you get involved?

The New Museum is offering free admission for its opening weekend on March 21 and 22, 2026, welcoming local neighbors and international visitors to explore and enjoy the new space. In the longer term, the museum is expanding its programs for families, teens, and the local community. 

To delve deeper into the New Museum’s expanded offerings, you can follow a building highlights tour hosted by actor Chloë Sevigny, take the family-friendly version with comedian and children’s author Julio Torres, and hear about the New Humans exhibition from Artistic Director Massimiliano Gioni – all on Bloomberg Connects. While in New York City, you can also visit the recently reopened Studio Museum in Harlem, the 82nd edition of the Whitney Biennial, or Robert Rauschenberg’s centennial exhibition at the Guggenheim.