Summer at the Whitney
A Seasonal Guide

It’s summer in the city—here are our favorite ways to beat the heat at the Whitney.

Two women clink glasses of rosé wine at a rooftop bar with a cityscape in the background.

Dine al Fresco
Studio Bar and Cafe, Floor 8

Enjoy outdoor dining at the renovated Studio Bar and Cafe on Floor 8, operated by Frenchette Bakery. The views from the top-floor terrace are unbeatable and we’ve set out tables and umbrellas for you to take in the city skyline—and an AR artwork by Nancy Baker Cahill—in the shade. (If it’s really a scorcher, we have indoor dining options, too!) The summer menu includes refreshing favorites like spritzes, iced tea, cold brew, matcha lemonade, and more. Snacks and a lunch menu are also available. We recommend the jambon beurre. Before you go, make sure to peep the floor-to-ceiling mosaic by artist Dyani White Hawk on the back wall of the cafe, which is just as breathtaking as the city views. You can find more al fresco dining and a full menu at Frenchette Bakery on the ground floor.

Two people stand on a rooftop terrace with a large, curved black sculpture. City buildings are visible in the background under a clear sky.

Biennial with a Breeze 
Whitney Biennial 2024, terraces on Floors 5 and 6

Every two years, our most famous exhibition, the Whitney Biennial, takes stock of art being made right now. This year’s edition spans Floors 1, 3, 5, and 6 and features seventy-one artists and collectives grappling with many of today’s most pressing issues. It is the survey of contemporary American art and not to be missed. Take refuge from the heat in our air-conditioned galleries or venture out onto one of our breezy terraces where you will find more Biennial artworks, including Torkwase Dyson’s Liquid Shadows, Solid Dreams, described by the artist as a “monastic playground,” on the fifth-floor. Traverse the enormous sculpture or rest within it and enjoy the spectacular city views. The Biennial also extends beyond the Museum to a billboard across from the Whitney’s entrance on Gansevoort Street. 

A woman with dark hair stands on a sandy beach, facing a city skyline across the water. Blue umbrellas and beach chairs are scattered around.

Riverside Oasis
Gansevoort Beach

It is a little-known fact that just steps from the Whitney is a white sand beach complete with electric blue beach chairs and umbrellas. Stop by this idyllic riverside oasis to wiggle your toes in the sand, soak up the sun, and catch the breeze off the river. Admire the huge but delicate sculpture hovering just offshore, Day’s End by David Hammons, which traces the silhouette of a pier that formerly occupied this site and was an important fixture to many artists and the neighborhood community. To learn more about this artwork and the history of the site, check out the Whitney’s podcast or take our self-guided walking tour. 

Two people walk through an indoor space with potted trees and a sign reading "Survival Piece #5 Portal."

A Taste of the Countryside
Survival Piece #5: Portable Orchard, Floor 8

There is a grove of eighteen live orange trees growing inside the Museum. Yes, you read that right! The small orchard budding in the galleries on Floor 8 is an artwork titled Survival Piece #5: Portable Orchard and will be on view through January 1, 2025. The work was conceived and designed in 1972 by artists Helen Mayer Harrison (1927–2018) and Newton Harrison (1932–2022), who imagined the need for a productive and sustainable food system in a future where natural farming practices are obsolete. Have a contemplative moment beneath a leafy canopy and breathe in the fresh summer scent of citrus. 

A woman in a blue top and white pants observes a painting of a skull with antlers in an art gallery. Other artworks are visible on the walls.

Georgia O’Keeffe’s Summer Souvenirs
Floor 7 

Summer is a time to travel and we all know the feeling of being so inspired by a place that we want to gather a bit of it as a souvenir. Before moving out west permanently, Georgia O’Keeffe collected sun-bleached bones during her summer sojourns to New Mexico to bring back to New York to remind her of the landscape she loved. “When I got to New Mexico that was mine,” she once said. “As soon as I saw it that was my country. I’d never seen anything like it before but it fitted to me exactly. Like something that’s in the air—it’s just different. The sky is different, the stars are different, the wind is different.” O’Keeffe’s paintings of the Southwest are now world famous and we can see why! This work captures the essence of the desert and beautifully communicates the artist’s tender regard for that place. Don’t miss Summer Days in the galleries on Floor 7. 

A woman in a white shirt and blue skirt looks at a painting with "JULY 4, 1967" in a gallery. A blue artwork is on the adjacent wall.

Fourth of July
Floor 7 

This painting was created by artist On Kawara on July 4, 1967, on a Tuesday in New York. This date feels significant to those of us planning our summer holidays, but to Kawara it was just the 114th out of more than 3,000 date paintings he made over nearly forty-eight years. What is truly amazing about this work, and all of Kawara’s date paintings, is that each was meticulously hand-drawn, took eight to nine hours to make, and was always completed within the span of one day. Knowing this, the artwork becomes a meditation on time itself—but try not to think about summer coming to an end!  

A woman stands in an art gallery, observing framed sketches of cats and people on the left wall and a painting of a nude woman by a window on the right.

Hopper-Style R&R
Floor 7 

Is there anything more summery than a deckchair, a good book, and a warm breeze? This classic scene of rest and relaxation was painted by Edward Hopper. The artist’s wife, Josephine Nivison Hopper, sat for the painting as she did for many of his works (including A Woman in the Sun on the adjacent wall). One of our favorite things about Hopper is that he was a native New Yorker and many of his paintings depict our favorite city. Early Sunday Morning, also in this gallery, is an iconic example of one of Hopper’s New York scenes: a view of Seventh Avenue without the usual hustle and bustle. Hopper’s relationship with the Whitney began in 1920 when the then-unknown artist received his first-ever solo exhibition. Today, the Whitney is the largest repository of Hopper’s artwork in the world. Check out these artworks and many others in our gallery dedicated to Hopper on Floor 7.  

People on a rooftop terrace admire a cityscape with modern and historic buildings, including a tall skyscraper in the background.

Free Tickets to the Whitney
Every Friday night and all day on the second Sunday of every month

The Whitney has two new free offerings: Free Friday Nights and Free Second Sundays. We’ve heard Free Friday Nights described as “the perfect start to a night out in New York City.” Every Friday evening from 5–10 pm, admission to the Museum is free for everyone. We’ve got music, cocktails, and terrace views—oh, and art! The Free Second Sunday vibe is family-friendly and also full of fun. There is always a lot going on and something for everyone, from artmaking and story hour with NYPL to gallery tours, classes, and more.

Plan your visit
What to know before you go.