Tours

Exhibition Tours

Exhibitions Tours Thumb

In partnership with AIA New York, the Center for Architecture offers tours of its rotating exhibitions on a wide range of topics in architecture and design.

Since its opening in 2003, the Center for Architecture has partnered with independent curators, city agencies, non-profit organizations, cultural institutions, and private companies to create exhibitions that attract diverse audiences and influence how the public experiences architecture and design.

Exhibition tours can offer opportunities for the general public or private groups to engage with New York City’s built environment. Questions? Please reach out to our Exhibitions and Programs team here.

See Calendar

Exhibition Programs

Wed, Oct 21 8:30 am

DMU x Office Hours: Building Civic Power with Preeti Sodhi of Hello Voter

Register
In-Person - AIANY Member: Free
In-Person - Student with Valid ID: Free
In-Person - General Public: Free

Presented alongside the Dark Matter U: Justice, Pedagogy, Design exhibition, this inaugural in-person Office Hours draws inspiration from the peer-to-peer conversations that have defined DMU’s virtual exchanges for years. Together, we’ll explore civic engagement, voting, and the unique role planners, architects and designers play in shaping public life.

The midterm elections are fast approaching! Before early voting begins in NYC, start your morning with a clear, engaging conversation about voting and civic engagement. Learn more about who and what is on the ballot. We’ll demystify the process, explore how everyday participation shapes our communities, and discuss what you can do to support the crucial efforts to protect the vote across the US. All are welcome, and questions are encouraged!

Speaker:
Preeti Sodhi, Founder, Hello Voter

 

Wed, Oct 21 6:00 pm

Exhibit Opening – Change Preservation

Register
Free

Join us at 6:00 PM for the opening of Change Preservation!

Curated by architects Wes Hiatt and Violette de la Selle, the exhibition brings together the material of Changing Change, a research project shown in two chapters at Citygroup in 2024 and 2025 on how buildings in Manhattan’s Lower East Side and Chinatown endure through constant alteration. Patterns of Change layers current conditions over 1940s tax photographs and permit application drawings held at the Municipal Archives, documenting blocks and buildings as they were and as they are. Keep the Change illustrates that history with articulated composite drawings that present each building’s many lives at once.

Presented at the NYC Department of Records & Information Services, where the source information is held, the drawings read as both evidence and argument. The drawings advocate that the centuries-old buildings of the Lower East Side stand as manifestos for a mode of preservation that contrasts with the one in effect: unconstrained by a particular historical appearance — pristine and immutable — they contribute meaningfully to their communities, taking on different aspects as they adapt to the changing circumstances that keep them in use. What if preservation frameworks could embrace and even facilitate degrees of change rather than requiring high-fidelity restorations?

At 7:00 PM, immediately following the opening, there will be a live podcast interview with Shawn(ta) Smith-Cruz, the commissioner of the NYC Department of Records & Information Services (DORIS).

More Tours