Clear your Thursday evening and skip the museum admission entirely, because this week the Guggenheim is bringing the party outside.
This Thursday, August 20, the world-famous museum is taking over 88th Street for Late Shift: Block pARTy, a free, end-of-summer send-off packed with live music, art-making, games, and enough classic block party food to make you forget you’re standing next to one of the most iconic buildings in New York.
Here are all the details about this week’s big event and how you can be a part of it!
What’s actually happening on 88th Street
This isn’t a quiet gallery stroll!
The Guggenheim is turning its front stoop into a full-blown street festival, running from 5 to 8:30 pm, with museum galleries closing early to make room for the takeover.
Expect a lineup of games and activities inspired by the museum’s new Guggenheim Pop: 1960 to Now exhibition, think chess, Connect 4, Jenga, and art trivia, plus a round of badminton inspired by Claes Oldenburg.
There are communal puzzle tables built around Frank Lloyd Wright designs, drop-in art making, a sun-print station inspired by artist Lucia Hierro, and a classic photo booth stocked with Pop-art props.
Hungry? Head to the Wright Restaurant for summer mocktails, popcorn, jumbo pretzels, and hot dogs.
And if the August heat gets to be too much, duck into the Peter B. Lewis Theater for a screening of Barbie, because apparently even the Guggenheim knows a good excuse for air conditioning when it sees one.
Three acts, three totally different vibes
The music lineup is doing some serious range-testing, and it’s genuinely one of the more interesting bills you’ll find at a free event this month.
- Debit kicks things off from 5 to 6 pm with bass-heavy electronic grooves layered over Latin-inspired percussion
- A.B.E.L.A., a percussion collective, takes over from 6 to 7 pm with an improvised set blending electronic instrumentation and ancestral rhythms pulled from across the Global South
- Fogo Azul, an all-women samba reggae drumline, closes out the night from 7 to 8 pm with Brazilian percussion and marching-band energy that’s built to spill straight into the crowd
By the time Fogo Azul wraps, you’ll likely have a full crowd dancing in the middle of 88th Street, which is not typically how a Thursday night spent near the Guggenheim goes.
Why this block party exists
The whole event ties into Guggenheim Pop: 1960 to Now, the museum’s sprawling new exhibition tracing Pop art’s influence from Andy Warhol through contemporary artists still riffing on its legacy today.
The block party essentially takes that spirit and dumps it onto the sidewalk, turning the whole street into a playable, photographable extension of the show upstairs.
It’s also the kickoff for the museum’s broader Late Shift series, which usually charges $30 for after-hours access to the rotunda.
This block party version is free, and RSVPing gets you $5 off a ticket to a future Late Shift date this fall, so it doubles as a preview for anyone who’s been meaning to check out the after-dark museum experience anyway.
The details
Late Shift: Block pARTy runs Thursday, August 20, from 5 to 8:30 pm, right outside the Guggenheim on 88th Street.
It’s free with RSVP, open to all ages, and museum galleries will be closed for the duration, so if you want to see Guggenheim Pop: 1960 to Now itself, plan to visit before 5 pm.
🎨 RSVP here to grab your spot and lock in that discount for fall!