February is a month full of holidays and celebrations, and this particular week happens to be the center of it all. Museums and art centers are taking advantage of the celebrations and are offering special events for visitors young and old. From music and dance performances to exhibition tours, and fine dining to arts and crafts, there is an event for everyone on this list! So grab your boyfriend, best friend, son or daughter, or even Grandma and Grandpa, and experience the holidays at your local museum. The top events are listed below, but there are many more tours, craft sessions, and performances offered at museums all around town. Visit your favorite museum's website or stop by in person to learn more!
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Thursday, February 14, 7:00 p.m.
Folk legend Judy Collins will return to the Met for the third time in a special Valentine's Day performance. This concert will be streamed live and is supported by the estate of Kathryn Walter Stein. To purchase tickets to her concert, plase call the museum at 212-570-3949. Not only will ticket-holders be treated to a concert, they will also be invited to a wine-and-dine experience in the beautiful Member's Dining Room, offered either before or after the concert. The dinner, a three-course Perfect Pairs Dinner featuring classic food and wine pairings costs $75 per person or $100 with wine pairing. Reservations are suggested. For more information, please call 212-570-3975. If this doesn't sound like your type of meal, then try instead for a three-course prix fixe dinner in the Petrie Court Café and Wine Bar, which overlooks Central Park. There, your dinner will be paired with a glass of sparkling wine at a cost of $60 per person. Reservations are suggested. For more information, please call 212-570-3964.
Museum of Modern Art
Thursday, February 14, 6:00–7:30 p.m.
Also on Valentine's Day, the Museum of Modern Art will be offering their annual couple's event, this time special Valentine Tours for Two, combined with an entire evening of fine dining. According to their website, "Upon arrival you'll be greeted with a candlelit wine reception complemented by hors d'oeuvres such as miniature pepper tartlets, roasted carrot pancakes with goat cheese, and crispy shrimp with chili-lime dipping sauce. To complete this romantic evening, you'll receive a sweet treat before embarking on a private group tour after the Museum has closed to the public. In the company of a knowledgeable and engaging art historian, you'll explore such beloved masterworks as Henri Matisse's Dance (I) (early 1909), Claude Monet's Water Lilies (1914–26), and Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night (1889). A visit to the special exhibition Inventing Abstraction, 1910–1925 rounds out the tour." The night will set you back $200 per couple and tickets can be purchased online or at the museum. Call MoMA Group Services at (212) 708-9685 or e-mail groupservices@moma.org for questions and additional information.
Voelker Orth Museum
Saturday, February 16, 11:00 a.m.
Most people don't know it, but February is also National Bird-Feeding Month. The Voelker Orth Museum, a small historic house and garden in Queens, is celebrating with their monthly storybook arts and crafts session for families. This Saturday, bring the kids for Storybook Discovery: The Bird is the Word! According to the event-leader Karyn Mooney, "We'll read some bird related stories, learn about the Voelker Orth's bird sanctuary and create a bird feeder to take home." The special take-home project will certainly be one families (and their warbling outdoor friends) can use and enjoy for quite a while - says Karyn, "We will be turning pine cones and paper tubes, hung with string, into a bird feeder that each family can take home! We will be using Sunflower Seed Butter, so this project is safe for those with peanut allergies as well as the birds." The event is free, so feel free to bring the whole family!
El Museo del Barrio
Saturday, February 16, 11:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
Every month, El Museo celebrates Saturdays with their Target First Saturday events. This month, they are inviting families to join in on their annual Carnaval! celebration. The day will feature arts and crafts sessions, music and dance performances, and even storytelling. The galleries will also be open. The best part about this event? The entire fun-filled event is free! Here is what will be taking place throughout the day:
Art-Making
MANOS A LA OBRA!
12:00pm – 3:00pm, El Taller, 3rd floor
Explore the many masks in El Museo's galleries and make one of your own to celebrate Carnaval. Wear your mask to the dance workshop and make your character come to life!
Storytelling and Music
COLORIN COLORADO...with Marie Lily Cerat with Kongo-Haitian Roots
12:00pm and 2:00pm, El Café
Haitian-born storyteller Marie Lily Cerat brings the Haitian folktales “Magic Orange Tree” and “Tezen" to life with her interactive style and a bit of “Krik” and “Krak.” Kongo-Haitian Roots Music will add to the storytelling with singing, dancing, and congas!
Dance Workshop
CUBAN CARNAVAL DANCE...Yesenia Fernandez-Selier with Global Rhythms
1:00pm and 3:00pm, Blackbox Theater, 3rd floor
Join us for traditional Carnaval dancing with Yesenia Fernandez-Selier and Global Rhythms. Get ready to move your body as you learn ancestral Yoruba Orisha dances and Cuban conga music and dance.
Mount Vernon Hotel Museum
Sunday, February 17th, 1:00-3:00pm
We can't let this week go by without honoring the father of our country, a man who contributed a great deal - at least in name - to the Mount Vernon Hotel Museum, a historic house built in 1799 and located just one block from the East River. To celebrate the first president's birthday, the museum will host a family-friendly dance party - they note: "Nineteenth-century New Yorkers celebrated Washington’s birthday with live music and dance. All ages will enjoy this reenactment as costumed dancers perform and teach traditional country dances with everyone encouraged to join in. Museum tours and light refreshments are included in the festivities. Families are invited to participate afterward in a Presidential scavenger hunt. Reservations are recommended by calling 212-838-6878." Tickets to the event are only $10 per child or for members, and $15 for adults.
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