What to See At MoMA in NYC: Complete Guide to Visiting The Museum of Modern Art
Thinking about visiting MoMA in New York City but not sure what to see? I absolutely loved visiting MoMA (and I don’t even like art that much)! In this post I will show you some of the most famous paintings and cool artworks at the Museum of Modern Art that you can’t miss.
The Museum of Modern Art is one of the most popular world-class museums in New York City. As a NYC local, I get the chance to visit these museums for free (more on that later) and MoMA is definitely one of my top 3 museums in New York City.
I don’t know about you, but before I visited, I was under the impression the entire museum would be full of modern art that I wouldn’t understand. But in fact there is a huge collection of art works by super famous contemporary artists like Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Henri Matisse, etc. I am no art expert (in fact I only took one art class in college) but if you know the artists I mentioned above, you would love the MoMA.
This blog contains occasional affiliate links, where I receive a small commission on sales of the products/hotels that are linked at no additional cost to you. In addition, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Where is the MoMA and how to get there?
MoMA’s address is 11 W 53rd St in Manhattan. It is literally about half a block away from the famous Fifth Avenue and like 3 blocks away from Rockefeller Center. Honestly MoMA is probably the most centrally located museum in New York City, so that’s another reason why you shouldn’t miss it.
Depending on where you are coming from, you can take the train or just walk to MoMA:
- From Times Square: It’s a 0.5 mile (12 minute) walk; walk up (north) on 7th Avenue and turn right on 53rd Street
- From Central Park: It’s a 0.5 mile (10 minute) walk down 5th or 6th avenue
- From Financial District: Take the E train to 5 Av/ 53 St, that’s the closest subway station to MoMa
If you are looking for directions, just use CityMapper (or Google Maps) to get subway/ bus/ walking directions. I personally only use CityMapper when it comes to subways and buses because it shows you when the next train or bus is coming. It is WAY MORE ACCURATE than Google Maps when it comes to the time.
How much does the MoMA cost (and how to get free tickets to the MoMA)
MoMA general admission is $30 for adults and $22 for seniors 65 and over (with ID). There are various discounts for students and persons with disabilities.
Children 16 and under can visit the MoMA for free.
If you have one of the New York City passes, then you can enter MoMA in NYC with your pass.
How to visit the MoMA for free
- Corporate members: if you happen to work for a company that is a member, then you can enter for free (you will need to check with your company)
- Members: if you are a member of MoMA, you can get in for free
- First Fridays 4pm to 8pm is free for New York City residents (you need to reserve the tickets in advance)
- Culture Pass Holder (NYC residents): If you live in New York City, you can use your library card (from New York Public Library, Brooklyn Public Library and Queens Public library) to reserve a pass for 2 people once a year. This is how I get to visit all these New York City museums for free
- Cool Culture Pass Holder (NYC residents): If your child is enrolled in a school that participates in Cool Culture Pass, then you can visit NYC museums and zoos for free.
How big is the MoMA and what’s on each floor
The MoMA has 5 floors of exhibits, plus a basement floor with the MoMa store as well as a rooftop cafe on the 6th floor.
- Basement: museum store and bookstore
- Lobby level: tickets, coat check, access to the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden, and 2 exhibits.
- 2nd Floor: 1920s – Present artwork, including paintings by Joan Mitchell, Ken Okiishi, etc and photographs. There is also video installations by Issac Julien, a post-atomic abstraction gallery and nuclear fallout shelter, a Creativity Lab, museum store, cafes, and a rest lounge where you can sit and charge your devices and other interesting art installations
- 3rd Floor: This floor is only half the size of the other floors and there are rotating exhibits on this floor.
- 4th Floor: 1950-1970s artwork, paintings, sculpture, photographs, and other forms of art
- 5th Floor: 1880 – 1940s paintings and some sculptures. This is the most famous floor at the MoMa with world renowned paintings by Picasso, Monet, Dali, van Gogh, and Matisse. If you only have time to explore one floor at the MoMa, this should be the floor you visit
- 6th Floor: Terrace Cafe and museum store. Only accessible by the west elevator and stairs
How long do you need at the MoMA?
At the very minimum, you need 2-3 hours to explore the MoMA, considering how many floors there are. If you are the type to read all the descriptions of art works, then you will need more than 3 hours (possibly the entire day). Ultimately it really depends on how much you like art. For the average visitor who is not well versed in art, I would say 2-3 hours, longer if you plan to eat at the museum and charge your phone at the 2nd floor lounge.
There is a LOT to see at the MoMA, but if you are really short on time, or simply trying to cram in as many things as you can in your New York itinerary, then you should spend most of your time on the 5th floor. In the section below, I will show you the most important (or simply cool) art works you should not miss.
What Paintings to see (and not miss) at the MoMA
Most of the art works that are world renowned are located on the 5th floor of MoMA. So this section is dedicated to the 5th floor only. Scroll down and I will show you other cool things to see on other floors at the MoMA.
The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 501
The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh is probably one of the most famous art works in the MoMA and many people from all over the world come just to see it.
Created in 1889, this iconic painting depicts a night sky filled with vibrant stars, a bright Venus and a crescent moon high above a sleepy village. It is said that Van Gogh painted The Starry Night from the window of his asylum room at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence in Southern France.
Since it is one of the most recognizable works in the world, you can imagine how crowded it gets! When I visited on a weekday, there was a huge crowd gathered in front of this painting (when the rest of the museum wasn’t even that crowded).
Dance (I) by Henri Matisse
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 506
Commissioned in 1909 by a Russian collector, Henri Matisse’s Dance (I) initially created much controversy with its use of bold colors and nudes. The painting features five nude figures holding hands and dancing in a circle against a vivid green landscape and a deep blue sky.
His use of simplified forms and striking color (3 in this case) contrasts reflects his Fauvist style. Henri Matisse’s interest in dance started long before this painting, and it is also reflected in another painting of his (not at the MoMA).
Water Lilies by Claude Monet
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 515
Created between 1897 and 1926, Water Lilies series is another highlight to not miss at the MoMA. Spanning across Gallery 515, Water Lilies is not just a single painting, rather a series of 250 paintings in a few years.
The particular piece of art on display at MoMA is the reflection of Clouds on the Water Lily, but there are actually other ones depicting water lilies in other museums such as Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris. Overall, the Water Lilies series are inspired by Monet’s flower garden in Giverny, where he cultivated a pond filled with water lilies.
Just a note on Gallery 515 itself… It is actually very hard to find since it’s at a small corner. The entire 5th floor was like a maze to me, and I literally went around and around 3 times before I found this gallery.
Girl Before A Mirror by Pablo Picasso
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 517
MoMA has no shortage of Picasso’s paintings and this is just one of the many on display on the 5th floor.
Painted in 1932, Pablo Picasso’s “Girl Before a Mirror,” is a captivating and complex portrait that depicts a young woman, often identified as Picasso’s muse Marie-Thérèse Walter, gazing at her reflection in a mirror. The duality of the image presents a stark contrast between the woman’s perceived self and her mirrored reflection, which appears more abstract and distorted.
Apparently Picasso said it himself that he prefers this painting over any of the others. Since he thinks very highly of this photo, you certainly cannot miss this painting at the MoMA.
Another very famous artwork by Picasso, Les Demoiselles D’Avignon, is also on display at the MoMA in gallery 502. If you are a Picasso fan, be sure to look out for that painting as well.
Hope, II by Gustav Klimt
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 504
What captured my attention is the use of colors and the different symbols and elements in this painting. Painted in 1907-1908, Hope, II, shows a pregnant woman, with her eyes closed and head bowed, cradling her rounded belly. Under her beautifully adorned robe are 3 women also with their heads bowed and eyes closed.
Even if you are not familiar with Klimt (like me), you would still enjoy this colorful and complex painting at the MoMA.
Self-Portrait With Cropped Hair by Frida Kahlo
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 517
If you’ve been to Mexico (or simply like art), then you should be no stranger to Frida Kahlo. To be fair, I only know Frida Kahlo because I went to her museum in Mexico City.
Frida Kahlo’s “Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair,” painted in 1940, is a deeply personal work that explores themes of identity, gender, and autonomy.
In this self-portrait, Kahlo depicts herself wearing an oversized dark suit, seated in a chair against a backdrop of swirling, disordered hair strands scattered on the floor. She holds a pair of scissors in her right hand, signifying the recent act of cutting off her long, traditionally feminine hair.
She was usually depicted in vibrant and colorful dresses with flowers so this is a completely different look. This dramatic change in appearance is often interpreted as a powerful statement of independence and defiance, particularly following her divorce from fellow artist Diego Rivera.
I And the Village by Marc Chagall
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 503
Created in 1911, I and the Village is a depiction of Marc Chagall’s childhood town (now in Belarus). This painting shows animals and people from his childhood village living in harmony.
The composition features overlapping and colorful images, including a green-faced man, a horse head, a woman milking a cow, and a series of houses and trees in the background. The painting’s bright colors and surreal forms convey a sense of nostalgia reflecting Chagall’s emotional ties to his childhood village.
Dynamism of a Soccer Player by Umberto Boccioni
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 503
Created in 1913, Dynamism of a Soccer Player is an example of Futurist art. In this painting, he uses bold, fragmented forms and a vibrant palette to depict the motion of a soccer player in action. Honestly if you ask me, I literally cannot tell it’s a soccer player. I only found out what this painting is about from reading the description. But what captured my attention is the vibrant colors and the geometric shapes.
The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 517
The Persistence of Memory, painted in 1931, is one of the most iconic works of Surrealism, renowned for its dreamlike atmosphere. This painting features a desolate, eerily calm landscape with melting clocks draped over various objects, including a tree, a ledge, etc.
Even if you are not familiar with Salvador Dali, this painting is probably something you’ve seen elsewhere. Even if you have never seen this piece before, I’m sure it will capture your attention when you are at the MoMA.
The Hunter by Joan Miró
Location in MoMA: 5th Floor, Gallery 517
Painted in 1923-1924, The Hunter is an abstract piece of art depicting a hunter in his homeland of Catalonia, Spain. This painting exemplifies the surrealism movement and Joan reflected the connection to land and nature through his use of a warm color palette.
Other cool artworks to see on other floors of MoMA
- Campbell’s Soup Cans by Andy Warhol (Floor 4, Gallery 412)
- Gold Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol (Floor 4, Gallery 412)
- Untitled by Lee Bontecou (Floor 4, Gallery 408)
- Seasons by Alex Katz (Floor 2, Atrium)
- Government Approved Home Fallout Shelter Snack Bar by Michael Smith (Floor 2, Gallery 204)
- Deodorized Central Mass with Satellites by Mike Kelley (Floor 2, Gallery 207)
- House of Hope by Montien Boonma (Floor 2, Gallery 211)
- Equal by Richard Serra (Floor 2, Gallery 210)
- Projects by Tadáskía (Ground Floor)
Tips on Visiting MoMA in New York City
- Get your tickets online ahead of time. When I visited there was a long line even outside of MoMA. If you want to save time, it’s best to just get your tickets beforehand. New York City passes also include the MoMA as an attraction.
- Start with the 5th Floor and work your way down. In my opinion, the most known artworks are on the 5th floor and it does take quite a while. If you get tired, skip the 4th and 3rd floor and go to the 2nd floor for more modern art pieces.
- Visit on a not so hot (or rainy) day to utilize the terrace cafes. There are a couple of different cafes with outdoor seating. But when I visited in the summer it was super hot so they closed off the outdoor section.
- Don’t miss the sculpture garden. This garden is free and it’s attached to the museum. There is a snack stand and outdoor seating. Unfortunately when I visited they were doing construction so I didn’t get to walk through it. But if you can, be sure to visit!
- Don’t miss the events at MoMA. Besides the exhibits, there are many events and drop-in sessions going on at MoMA for both adults and kids. Be sure to check the events calendar.
- Bring a wide angle lens. If you are bringing an actual camera, be sure to have a wide angle lens, otherwise you won’t be able to capture all the paintings up close.
- There are free phone chargers on the 2nd floor, so don’t worry if your phone runs low on battery!
- Don’t miss the MoMA museum store. There are some really cool gifts and souvenirs. The MoMA designs are so cool that there is a MoMA design store in Soho.