Celebrating the City Main Gallery

Introduction

New York City may always be in flux, but shared activities and experiences connect New Yorkers across time and space. For more than a century, many of the world’s best photographers have used their cameras to capture iconic scenes of New Yorkers in action—from mundane daily routines to special events of gathering and ritual. They have sought out the deeply personal moments that occur within this city of millions and have captured both the “New Yorkiness” of its inhabitants and the ways New York experiences are linked to the larger human condition. 

The photographs in this gallery are arranged into themes that capture these quintessential New York moments without consideration to chronology. The images allow us to see a range of photographic styles applied to experiences that are common to so many New Yorkers, while also highlighting the ever-changing state of the city over many decades.