Having recently moved to Manhattan, I’ve discovered that one of my favorite aspects of this city is its rich culture and devotion to the arts. I am constantly inspired by the artists that surround me, whether in my classes at F.I.T., while waiting on a subway platform or at a performance. Over the past eight months I have made a conscious effort to dive into the community by attending musicals, symphonies, ballets, modern dance performances, as well as museums and art galleries. Out of these experiences, the one that stands out in my mind was the Art After Dark event held at the Guggenheim Museum last Friday night.

As it was my first visit to the Guggenheim, I was blown away by the building’s exquisite architecture and the unique artwork on display. The main exhibit was John Chamberlain’s Choices. The collection was composed of recycled car metal, urethane foam and galvanized steel, reformed into three-dimensional structures. While some of the pieces were difficult to interpret, the car metal structures seemed to tell a story, beautiful in their subtle imperfections of rust and distress.

Moving on to other exhibits, my friends and I discovered the Francesca Woodman presentation. A visionary artist who began photography at the age of 13, Woodman took her own life at 22. Nearly 30 years after her death, her collection of photographs that explore femininity and raw emotion still remain relevant and moving. The highlight of our evening came when a woman interjected our group discussion and shared that she was a subject in one of Woodman’s photos. Flipping through a large book of the collection, she stopped at a photograph of a young girl at a summer cabin in Washington State. This was where she met Woodman; she gave a glowing review of the artist’s character.

Art After Dark events take place seasonally at the Guggenheim, are open to the public and are very reasonably priced. I highly recommend this fantastic event to any art lover.  It’s a New York City must-do!