If you love the art of the 20th and 21st century, you must visit this fabulous centre.
The museum was founded in 1931, shortly after the great crash of 1929, by the artist and philanthropist, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney. Miss Whitney came from a very wealthy family and received the very best education; moreover, she married a highly influential banker and investor, so she could devote herself to work and invest in the art world. If you want to know some of her works, you can admire the monument to Peter Stuyvesant, which was created in 1939, on Stuyvesant Square, north of East Village.
The Whitney Museum building was built by Marcel Breuer, a Hungarian architect and designer of Jewish origin, known for his passion for modular construction and simple lines, which are typical of the Bauhaus style.
As for the content of the museum, we can tell you that it is a selection of modern and contemporary art, which shows Miss Whitney's strong personality and nonconformity. Among its more than 600 paintings, sculptures, graphic arts and films, you will find authors like Josef Albers, Paul Strand, Man Ray, Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, Franz Kline, Edward Hopper, Keith Haring, Robert Mapplethorpe and Stuart Davis.
Of all its great works, we recommend you spend some time with the photographs from the early 20th century, such as "The Steerage" by Stieglitz, from 1907, and "Wall Street" by Paul Strand, from 1915, until those of the end of the century, such as the famous flower "Calla Lily" by Mapplethorpe, from 1988. Of course, you should pay special attention to the all over, which means that it covers the entire canvas, "Number 27, 1950" by Jackson Pollock and the pop art silkscreens by Andy Warhol, such as "Green Coca-Cola Bottles," from 1962.
But our best advice is for you to visit its different rooms and carefully observe the different proposals. You will soon notice how provocative they are. In terms of content, form and message. Undoubtedly, they are artists who take risks and manage to keep the viewer enthralled. That is art. With capital letters.
Finally, if you are in New York during the summer, learn about the Whitney Biennial, a showcase of highly trendy American art that leaves no one indifferent and is a true benchmark within the art world trends worldwide.
