The Met is hosting a daylong Opening Festival for The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing on Saturday, May 31
The celebration will feature performances, live music, food, art making, and more to commemorate the Museum’s new galleries for the Arts of Africa, the Ancient Americas, and Oceania
The day will begin with a ribbon-cutting ceremony from 9 to 10:30 am, and festival activities will take place across the Museum from 12 to 6 pm, marking the public’s first chance to view the new wing, which has been closed since 2021 to undergo a transformative renovation
Photo: Met Museum
The festival celebrates the public’s first chance to explore the newly reimagined galleries for the arts of Africa, the Ancient Americas, and Oceania, following a multiyear renovation, and will feature live music, art-making activities, performances, film screenings, artist demonstrations and workshops, food experiences, and more across the Museum’s Fifth Avenue location and outside on The Met’s plaza. The event is for all ages, and programming will be offered in multiple languages. All outdoor events are free; indoor events are free with Museum admission and no registration is required.
Opening day begins with a ribbon-cutting ceremony from 9 to 10:30 am, and festival activities will take place across the Museum from 12 to 6 pm Festival highlights will include:
Queens Night Market: Vendors and independent chefs from Queens Night Market will participate in the festival, offering specially curated pre-colonial menus inspired by the wing’s collections and histories. Chefs with indigenous ancestries or deep local roots will each present carefully researched dishes from Sierra Leone to Nigeria, Ethiopia to Hawaii, New Zealand to Peru, and beyond. Made-to-order meals made mainly without post-colonial ingredients will be served from 1pm to 6 pm, giving visitors a rare opportunity to taste culinary history.
Art making with contemporary artists: Renowned visual artist Manny Vega will host a workshop on the David H. Koch Plaza, in partnership with The Clemente, responding to artwork from The Met collection to craft mosaic and personal emblems. These creations will form a large-scale communal artwork designed by Vega, capturing the diverse and personal diasporic pathways that intersect in New York City. Additionally, artists Nilda Callañaupa Alvarez and Teokotā’i Paitai will demonstrate weaving techniques from Peru and Oceania, inviting visitors to create their own work. Other activities will include drum-making workshops and a collaboration on a community mural.
Community Hub: Outside on the plaza, visitors can engage with New York City’s diverse communities through the work of community-based organizations that celebrate cultural heritage and creativity, including Artistic Noise, Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU, Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI), Cetiliztli Nauhcampa, Hālāwai NYC, FORGOTTEN LANDS, Pachamama Peruvian Arts, and Pacific Island Film Festival of NYC.
Global rhythms throughout the Museum: Visitors will experience music and dance from Africa, the Americas, and Oceania, including a spirited showcase of traditional Hawaiian and Tahitian dances by Te Ao Mana; the electrifying beats of MAX Percussion’s Senegalese drumming; Asase Yaa Cultural Arts Foundation’s Youth Ensemble in a spirited performance of traditional West African dances; and the rich, soulful melodies of Mariachi Real de México. The day will also feature lively music and engaging dialogue about Hawaiian hula dance with renowned hula instructor Snowbird Bento; a performance by Famoro Dioubaté, one of West Africa’s balafon maestros; dance workshops with Cumbe: Center for African and Diaspora Dance; and a talk by Mario Ulibarri and performance of the canción bolero by José Adán Pérez (voice), Ulibarri (guitarrón), Ramon Ponce (guitar), and Jairo Marín (Requinto).