The Whitney Museum of American Art

945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street

New York, NY 10021

1 (800) WHITNEY

Written by Scott Messmore

The Whitney Museum of American Art was the first museum that devoted its collections entirely to modern American artists while they were still alive.

Founded in 1930 by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney with her own art collection of 600 pieces. Whitney's collection of non-traditional American artists had been turned down by other art museums, so she promptly started her own. The Whitney Museum of American Art was launched in Greenwich Village

with works by George Bellows, Edward Hopper, John Sloan and Thomas Hart Benton. Along the way, the Whitney assumed a vast collection of art and was among the first art museums to recognize video as a new art form. In 1970, Edward Hopper's widow, Josephine, donated his entire artistic estate to the Whitney Museum of American Art. The Hopper collection includes 2,000 pieces ranging from paintings to prints and watercolors. Today, the Whitney Museum of American Art owns more than 12,000 works of art and a research library of 30,000 volumes.

Present Exhibitions

Many summer-time art exhibits will be continuing into the fall. An Edward Steichen Retrospective

will show the work of the master photographer to Jan. 4, 2001. Two hundred works from Steichen's days as a fashion photographer with Vanity Fair and Vogue will be shown.

Hours of Operation and Location

The Whitney Museum of American Art is located at 946 Madison Ave. The Whitney is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Wednesday; Thursday from 1 to 9 p.m. and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the weekends. Admission to the Whitney is: adults, $10; seniors and students, $8. For group tours of 10 people or more, call 212-570-7720. Visit the Whitney's web site at www.whitney.org.