No matter what age we are, autumn is inevitably associated with academics, education, the start of a new school year. This sextet of talks, activities and lectures makes for a stimulatingly mixed curriculum, celebrating the joys of learning for its own sake. Read more
Film fans in NYC have a lot to get excited about this fall, as the New York Film Festival returns to Lincoln Center from September 25 through October 11. Hosted by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, the festival celebrates films and filmmakers both past and present, with a diverse slate of features, documentaries, live events, and more. Read more
Labor Day has come and gone, and chagrined drivers know that school parking zones are back in effect. But not all is lost in Manhattan. As he has every autumn since 1999, Eustace Tilley will descend on NYC, friends in tow. Tickets for the 2015 New Yorker Festival, which takes place the first weekend in October, go on sale this Friday, September 11th at 12 noon. Our picks for the ten best events at The New Yorker Festival follow. Read more
Though NYC is always a byword for Style Central, our town will be especially sartorially sensitive—and full of modish events—for New York Fashion Week 2015 (February 12–19). Of course, nothing beats a front-row seat at Ralph Lauren’s runway show (don’t worry, your invitation is bound to arrive any day now), but we trust you’ll find these upcoming talks, tours and activities equally to die for.
It wasn’t called the Gilded Age for nothing. See how the local 1% lived around the turn of the 20th century at the Museum of the City of New York‘s refurbished display of clothes, jewels and household objects. The ongoing exhibit kicks off with A Gilded Age Salon, featuring the best in Belle Époque music (think Debussy, Fauré and Charles-Édouard Lefebvre), Feb. 5. You can view the exhibit and then take part in a brooch-making workshop (BOYD—Bring Your Own Diamonds) on Feb. 15, Feb. 28 and Mar. 7; or fashion your own fan (feathers provided!) on Feb. 21 and Mar. 29.
It’s no surprise that the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology is in full regalia this month. Haute couture devotees should attend to a pair of author talks and book signings. Dana Thomas’ Gods and Kings, which details how the high price of fashion fame impacted the careers of designers Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, Feb. 11; Rhonda Garelick’s Mademoiselle focuses on the woman whose career practically spanned the 20th century—Coco Chanel—on Feb. 19. Rather watch than read? Those interested in inner workings can follow the creation of an elaborate 2011 Christian Dior coat-dress in the documentary Passage #5, which chronicles each stitch, Feb. 24; the troupe Ballets with a Twist performs excerpts from a contemporary dance piece, punctuated by comments from its costume designer, Catherine Zehr, Feb. 26.
A panel of fashionistas and sartorial experts converses about The Exquisite and Enduring Style of Harlem Men, from hep jazz cats to hip-hop artists. Dress sharp—you might get to be part of a fashion shoot that’s part of the event. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Feb. 12.
Before it tiptoes out of our lives Mar. 1, take a docent-guided tour of the exhibit Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe. It’s a pain-free way to appreciate the looks and construction of elevated footwear, from 16th-century chopines to mid-20th-century stilettos to contemporary wedges. Brooklyn Museum. Feb. 12 and 25.
Over the centuries, the human body hasn’t changed—but the ideal shape certainly has. The Bard Graduate Center: Decorative Arts, Design History, Material Culture unveils a new exhibit (Apr. 3–July 26) that displays the accessories, devices and undergarments men and women have used to push, prod, elevate or flatten their silhouette to conform with fashion; a symposium, Fashioning the Body: An Intimate History of the Silhouette, on Mar. 27, precedes the show.
Tim Gunn, guru to aspiring couturiers on the TV show Project Runway, appears live and dishes some designer dirt with clothing authority Fern Mallis (best-known as the creator back in the 1990s of the current New York Fashion Week). 92nd Street Y, Mar. 31.
See how clothing mannequins are made in this recreation of a studio—with a designer sculpting onsite from live models —of mannequin-manufacturer Ralph Pucci. Museum of Arts and Design, Apr. 2.
If anyone knows how the clothing biz works, it’s Donatella Versace, who took over the flamboyant Italian label Versace after her brother’s death. She talks design, art and industry with another style-conscious femme, ex-CNN fashion correspondent Alina Cho, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Apr. 30.
Just as we’re dealing with the post-Labor Day onset of autumn, along comes New York Fashion Week 2015 (Sept. 9-17), highlighting warm-weather garb—for next year. Until the clothes hit the stores, satisfy your sartorial sweet tooth with these delicious style-oriented symposia, special events and exhibits.
The rise of global music, Islamic craftsmanship and an opening at the Holocenter Summer Museum highlight our picks for the best smart things to do in NYC this weekend.
Get deeper into Islamic art as an expert at the Metropolitan Museum of Art leads a gallery experience examining objects from varied places and times for “In the Details: Craftsmanship and Islamic Art.”
Learn how the diverse sounds of ’20s and ’30s streets and dancehalls made their way into collective hearing as cultural historian Michael Denning comes to Interference Archive in Gowanus to talk son, samba, jazz, tango, flamenco, tarab, marabi, kroncong and hula.
Hip-pocket park Gil Hodges Community Garden between Park Slope and Gowanus hosts a dance-theater-music performance as sunset falls on Saturday night, with a second act devoted to characters suspended in time. Part of the free public programs of Arts in the Gardens.
Celebrate two new installations at the Holocenter Summer Museum during an afternoon picnic on Governors Island. Holographic pioneer Ken Dunkley has one show, his complete holographic works, joined by the lumographic projections of Matt Brand.
Dance up an electronic storm at the Electric Zoo Festival, rockin’ art installations and DJ-spun tunes on five different stages. Randall’s Island.
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Don’t be misled by the phrase “oh, that’s ancient history.” Despite the distance of the centuries, aspects of Greece, Rome and other bygone civilizations can prove fascinatingly apt for our modern age—as shown by these antiquity-related talks, screenings and events coming to NYC. Read more
“I’m bound to say that New York’s a topping place to be exiled in,” P.G. Wodehouse once claimed. If you happen to be feeling exiled in an emptying city during these summer days, don’t sweat it. Embrace it, with activities in and/or centering on buildings, places and institutions that capture the essence of the city. Our town may seem quiet—but it never sleeps. Read more
One way to beat the heat is to keep moving, and what better move than a guided tour around the thought-provoking nabes of New York City? From historic skyscrapers to ghost-ridden haunts, there’s an eclectic array of paths to choose from in the coming weeks. And if walking seems just too draining, we’ve even thrown in a couple of tours that provide their own transport. Read more
On Sunday, November 15th, One Day University will host a special morning double lecture. Read more