The new Whitney Museum is finally ready for its close-up. Fans of American art can now worship their idols in the Meatpacking district in a 9-story building designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano. Spanning 220,000 square feet, the new digs feature both indoor and outdoor galleries with spectacle views, a 170-seat theater, a study center for works on paper, a conservation lab, a library reading room, a street-level restaurant, and a cafe. We were never terribly found of the 80-year-old institution’s Marcel Breuer-designed building on Madison Avenue, but we see ourselves making many pilgrimages to this new cultural mecca. 

Running People at 2,616,216 (1978–79) by Jonathan Borofsky installed on the West Ambulatory, 5th floor, the inaugural exhibition, America Is Hard to See (May 1–September 27, 2015). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Photograph © Nic Lehoux

For their inaugural exhibit, America is Hard to See, the Whitney raided their own closets. Showcasing more than 600 works by 400 artists, the show provides an overview of American art from 1900 to today. You’ll find all the greats represented, from Basquiat and Calder to Louise Nevelson and Jasper Johns. The exhibit, which occupies 4 floors, is chronological with the earliest works on the 8th floor and the most recent on the 5th. Within the time periods, the curators have organized the works into 23 themes or “chapters”. All art forms are represented and intermingle like old schoolmates ripe for a reunion. The result is a riveting narrative that you’ll likely want to re-read over a number of occasions. The exhibit is on view through September 27, 2015.  

Also on display is a Mary Heilmann’s site-specific project, Sunset. Residing in the outdoor gallery on the 5th floor, the work has three components: a video of the meatpacking district that the artist made with Kembra Pfahler in 1982, two large pink geometric forms that scale the building, and forty brightly colored chairs. Museum visitors are invited to sit back, commune with friends and enjoy the view, or they can reflect on what the neighborhood used to be through Heilmann’s video.

The Whitney will celebrate its reopening in grand style. On opening day, May 1st, there will be an art-inspired light show illuminating the Empire State Building. World-renowned lighting designer Marc Brickman has created something spectacular based on works by Georgia O’Keeffe, Edward Hopper, Andy Warhol, Peter Halley and Barbara Kruger, among others. It will begin at 8pm and run until 2am on Saturday, May 2.

Le1f & Boody. Photo: Courtesy of Boysnoize Records

The celebration doesn’t stop with the light display, on Saturday the museum will offer free admission (advance reservations required) and host a creativity-driven block party on Gansevoort Street. Artists including Ryan McNamara, K8 Hardy and Trisha Baga will be on hand to engage visitors in a variety of activities. If you like karaoke, you’ll definitely want to cozy up to what Baga has planned. There will also be performances throughout the day by the likes of Jacolby Satterwhite, Mark Beasley, the Eichelburglers, and Camp & Street, which is a music collective whose members include DonChristian, Le1f, Rahel and Boody. The festivities, which are sponsored by Macy’s, run 10:30am-10pm. For a complete schedule visit the Whitney Museum of American Art’s website. 

(The new Whitney Museum of American Art is located at 99 Gansevoort Street, New York, NY 10014, 212-570-3600)