Why has the Queens Museum been chosen as the 2015 ILICA CE* Gala site?

Why has the Queens Museum been chosen as the 2015 ILICA CE* Gala site?

The Queens Museum is the chosen site for this year’s Gala partly due to its rich history as the home of the first United Nations, as well as its unique link between the past and present: it has been the site for two major World’s Fairs and the backdrop for countless iconic movies.

The History of the Museum

The Queens Museum is an art museum and educational Meadows-Corona Park in the borough of Queens in New York City, United States. The museum is housed in the New York City Building, which was originally built for the 1939 New York World's Fair.

One of the proudest periods in the history of this New York City Building was from 1946 to 1950 when it housed the General Assembly of the newly formed United Nations. Until the site of the UN’s current home in Manhattan became available, Flushing Meadows Corona Park was being considered as the organization’s future permanent headquarters site. During the early post-war years, almost every world leader spent time in the New York City Building and many important decisions, including the partitioning of Palestine and the creation of UNICEF, were made here.

The Queens Museum Today

The museum itself was founded in 1972, and has, among its permanent exhibitions, the Panorama of the City of New York: a scale model of the five boroughs built for the 1964 New York World's Fair which was also held here. The Unisphere, located in the gardens surrounding the Museum, can best be remembered as the famous setting for the alien encounter in the 1996 film, Men in Black.

After a recent 70 million dollar renovation which was completed in 2013, the Queens Museum is now the seat of a contemporary exhibition and educational center, a unique hub that reinvigorates both art and culture. It should be on everyone’s list to visit when in New York!