There’s no limit to the number of things you can do on a visit to New York City. One of the more popular activities is spending time exploring some of the many museum’s Manhattan has to offer. 

Now, while you might be ready to make a beeline for the big names like the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the American History Musem or the Museum of Modern Art, the truth is there are tons of interesting smaller museums worth a visit in the city too. 

One of them is The Frick Collection. 

In this post, we’re going to highlight what you need to know about this hidden gem.

What is The Frick Collection?

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JUST ANNOUNCED—the Frick will reopen to the public in early 2021 in the modernist Marcel Breuer building, the former site of the @whitneymuseum and the @metbreuer. The temporary location, called Frick Madison, will house the Frick’s collections, programs, and staff during the renovation and expansion of our historic building at 1 East 70th Street. From early 2021 through 2022, Frick Madison will present an installation of masterworks in the permanent collection, inviting new perspectives while still offering the intimate experience for which the Frick is known. Frick Madison will also include a reading room with resources of the #FrickLibrary available to the general public. We cannot wait to welcome you through the doors of #FrickMadison!

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The Frick Collection is the name of a huge art collection once owned by a man named Henry Clay Frick. Frick was a wealthy industrialist during the Gilded Age. He knew and worked with famous names including the Rockefellers, Carnegie’s, and Vanderbilts.

When Frick wasn’t working, he used his free time and vast wealth to collect art, which was a huge passion of his. Today, it shouldn’t come as any surprise, the collection is worth millions of dollars. Before he died, Frick intended for his collection to someday be highlighted as a museum.

The Collection

Many experts consider The Frick Collection to be one of the best small art museums in the country. Much of the main focus of the collection is on Old Master works, featuring famous Dutch artists including Vermeer, Rembrandt, Frans Hals, and van Ruisdael. There are also works by the famous British painter J.M.W Turner and American artist James Whistler. 

There are more than just paintings in the collection as well. Frick, and his family, acquired other decorative pieces and arts including furniture and sculptures too.  

What makes this museum special is you’re getting an up-close and personal view of the art as well as the mansion. The home is so large the art is displayed across 15 smaller galleries. Many of the pieces are still displayed just the way Frick originally set them up before his death in 1919. 

In addition to the permanent art collections, there are also exhibitions, as well as monthly programs and events. Visitors can enjoy lectures and talks, concerts, and salon evenings. The museum also offers First Friday events where admission is free from 6-9pm.

Getting There

The collection is housed in what was once Henry Clay Frick’s home. Frick built the mansion, which was once the location of a New York City Public Library branch, in 1912. It’s located between East 70th and 71st Street and Fifth Avenue, on the Upper East Side. It overlooks Central Park. 

If you’re taking the subway to get there, you have a few options. You can take the N, R, W to the 5th Avenue stop at E60th Street and walk 10 blocks uptown right along Central Park. Or, for a more direct route, take the 6 to 68th Street and Lexington Avenue and walk toward the park until you hit Fifth Avenue. You can also take one of many bus routes that run uptown along Madison Avenue or downtown on Fifth Avenue.