Lines Between Living

I don’t know about you, but I’m excited that it’s October with that so much fun is coming up.

Lately, I’ve been keeping my eyes on what’s opening up in the city because honestly, the Fall into Winter stretch is one of the best times for museums.

The tourists thin out, the weather cools down, and suddenly all the galleries roll out the shows that feel like conversations you didn’t even know you needed.

So here’s what’s caught my attention because if I’m going, you might want to go too.

First off, Rashid Johnson at the Guggenheim (through Jan 20). The name alone feels heavy, like you know you’re about to get pulled into something that demands you sit with it. The show’s called A Poem for Deep Thinkers, and just from the images, it looks like layers on layers of history, memory, and maybe even a little healing.

Then there’s Man Ray at The Met (through Feb 1). Surrealism always plays with that dream/nightmare edge, and I’m curious to see how his work holds up in our world now. Photography, sculpture, film—he touched it all.

Lorna Simpson also has a show at The Met (through Nov 2), and she’s one of those artists who knows how to make memory feel sharp, like it’s cutting into the present.

Right after that, there’s Superfine: Tailoring Black Style (through Oct 26), which is all about fashion and identity—honestly, that one sounds like a whole mood.

Over at the Whitney, Sixties Surreal opened September 24, and that decade is already wild enough without adding surrealism to the mix. I think it’s going to be one of those shows that makes you see old photos and stories in a completely new way.

And then, Hilma af Klint at MoMA (through Sept 27). If you’ve never seen her work before, imagine paintings that feel like prayers in color—spiritual, abstract, and way ahead of their time.

Now, if you’re like me, you love art but you also love a free day (because this city will take your money in a blink). Here’s where it gets good:

• Monet at the Brooklyn Museum (opens Oct 11) → Free First Saturdays, 5–11 PM. That’s a whole evening to get lost in water lilies. I am most excited about seeing this for sure.

• Ruth Asawa at MoMA (opens Oct 19) → Free Fridays, 5:30–8:30 PM, but only if you’re a New York State resident. Her wire sculptures are like poetry floating in air.

• Robert Rauschenberg at the Guggenheim (opens Oct 10) → Pay-What-You-Wish Mondays and Saturdays, 4–5:30 PM. Not a huge window of time, but worth it.

• Anish Kapoor at the Jewish Museum (opens Oct 24) → Free all day Saturdays.

That’s a lot, I know. But think of it as a season-long treasure map. Pick one weekend a month and give yourself over to the art. Some of it will confuse you, some of it will stay with you forever, and all of it will remind you that New York is still one of the best places in the world to wander and wonder.

So where are we going first? Monet’s water lilies? Rashid Johnson’s walls of red? Or Hilma af Klint’s spirals of spirit?