The Children’s Museum of Manhattan is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded by Bette Korman, under the name GAME (Growth Through Art and Museum Experience), in 1973. The museum became the Children’s Museum of Manhattan in the 1980s and moved to its current location on West 83rd Street in 1989. In 2018, the museum announced a plan to relocate to a larger space on 96th Street and Central Park West.
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| Established | 1973 |
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| Location | 212 West 83rd Street Manhattan, New York, United States |
| Director | Dava Schub |
| Public transit access | Subway:  at 86th StreetBus: M7, M11, M86, M104 |
| Website | cmom.org |
History
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Subsequent to its founding as GAME (Growth Through Art and Museum Experience), in 1973,[1] With New York City in a deep fiscal crisis, and school art, music, and cultural programs eliminated, a loosely organized, group of artists and educators set up a basement storefront to serve Harlem and the Upper West Side. With a challenge grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, a city-owned courthouse was renovated into a small exhibition, studio, and workshop and renamed the Manhattan Laboratory Museum. The museum expanded exhibit and programming space adding a media center, an outdoor environmental center and an early childhood center. CMOM’s visibility and audience grew with the World of Pooh exhibit, created through a partnership with Disney. Wordplay, the first exhibit designed specifically for children 4 and younger opened. CMOM’s Executive Director, Andy Ackerman, served as president of the Association of Children’s Museum’s and hosted the 1999 ACM annual conference. In 2000, CMOM completed construction to add a new entrance, lobby, and supplement exhibit space.
In 2005, it was among 406 New York City arts and social service institutions to receive part of a $20 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation, which was made possible through a donation by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.[2][3]
In 2019, Andrew Ackerman, the museum's director for nearly thirty years stepped down. Aileen Hefferren is Director as of 2021.[4]
As of 2021, it reaches approximately 350,000 visitors a year at the museum, an increase of 25,000 over the prior decade.[5][6] It was also one of the founding organizations of the New York City Museum School, part of its outreach efforts that date back to its founding as a community organization.[7]
Central Park West building
editIn January 2018, the Children's Museum of Manhattan announced that it had acquired the former First Church of Christ, Scientist building at 96th Street and Central Park West, and planned to move to the new facility after making renovations.[8][9] The church building cost $45 million, and the city provided $5.5 million for a renovation of the church.[9] FXCollaborative was hired to renovate the church.[10] The original plan for the church was controversial, as residents opposed the addition of a penthouse on the roof and the removal of windows,[11] but FXCollaborative's proposal was ultimately approved in June 2020.[12][13] The museum publicly presented renderings of the renovated church building in 2020, in which it planned 41,300 square feet (3,840 m2) for galleries and exhibitions.[14][15]
In conjunction with the relocation, the Children's Museum of Manhattan began raising $300 million as part of a capital campaign. By 2024, the museum had raised $200 million and was planning to relocate in 2028.[16]
References
edit- ^ Newsom, Barbara Y.; Silver, Adele Z. (1978). The Art Museum as Educator: A Collection of Studies as Guides to Practice and Policy. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 373. ISBN 9780520032491.
- ^ Roberts, Sam (July 6, 2005). "City Groups Get Bloomberg Gift of $20 Million". The New York Times. Retrieved March 12, 2008.
- ^ "Carnegie Corporation of New York Announces Twenty Million Dollars in New York City Grants". Carnegie Corporation of New York. July 5, 2005. Archived from the original on March 10, 2008. Retrieved March 12, 2008.
- ^ "Children's Museum of Manhattan Announces Executive Director Andrew Ackerman to Step Down After Three Decades of Distinguished Service" (Press release). Children's Museum of Manhattan. June 4, 2019.
- ^ "About CMOM". Children's Museum of Manhattan. Archived from the original on March 9, 2008. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
- ^ "About Us – Children's Museum of Manhattan". Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ Takahisa, Sonnet (2000). Transforming Practice. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315416496-20/laboratory-museum-learning-new-york-city-museum-school-sonnet-takahisa. ISBN 978-1-315-41649-6.
- ^ Warerkar, Tanay (January 2, 2018). "UWS church once slated for condos will now hold Children's Museum of Manhattan". Curbed NY. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ a b Graeber, Laurel (January 4, 2018). "Historic Church to Be New Home for Children's Museum of Manhattan". The New York Times. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ "FXCollaborative to Transform Beaux Arts Church Into the New Children's Museum of Manhattan". Interior Design. November 7, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ Ricciulli, Valeria (March 4, 2020). "Upper West Side church-to-museum conversion spurs heated debate". Curbed NY. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ Gunts, Edward (June 12, 2020). "FXCollaborative wins approval to convert Carrère and Hastings church into children's museum". The Architect’s Newspaper. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ "FXCollaborative to repurpose historic NYC church into children's museum". Construction Specifier. June 22, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ Hilburg, Jonathan (December 15, 2020). "Children's Museum of Manhattan reveals new renderings, programming announcements for its future home". The Architect's Newspaper. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- ^ Saraniero, Nicole (December 22, 2020). "New Designs Revealed for Children's Museum of Manhattan". Untapped New York. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
- ^ Pogrebin, Robin (October 1, 2024). "New Children's Museum of Manhattan to Open in 2028". The New York Times. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
External links
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