Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

In an area of Manhattan not typically frequented by tourists lies a museum that is truly one of a kind. The Cooper-Hewitt Museum located on the Upper East Side is the only institution in the U.S. that focuses exclusively on contemporary and historic design, including graphics, decorative arts, wallpapers and textiles. A subsidiary of the Smithsonian Institution, this unique attraction is situated in the 64-room Andrew Carnegie Mansion (former home of the industrial pioneer) at 5th Avenue and 91st Street.

The mansion, built from 1899 to 1902 and designed in the style of a country house, features one of the largest private gardens in Manhattan. This space can accommodate weddings for up to 500 guests, even allowing access to the museum's collections. The museum was founded in 1897 by the three granddaughters of industrialist Peter Cooper, and the collection displays over 250,000 design objects. Furniture plans by Frank Lloyd Wright, woven European silks and laces, costume accessories from the 17th to 19th centuries and Chinese hand-painted wall coverings are just some of the remarkable items one can find here. The museum's world-class library is open to the public by advance appointment. Here, visitors can view a collection of over 6,500 rare books, a World's Fair collection of materials (books, journals and guides) and the archives of some of the most well-known design moguls in history.

Various exhibitions, book signings and lectures take place at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum. The annual National Design Awards are sponsored by the Cooper-Hewitt, honoring inspirational contributions in American design. The museum also offers a Master of Arts program in conjunction with Parsons the New School for Design. Look out for National Design Week – a program founded in 2006 that allows for free museum admission and promotes educational programs to draw public attention to the different components of both modern and historic design.

- Lauren DeFilippo