This is a big weekend for museum-goers. The Met’s most anticipated spring exhibition opens its doors on Sunday — and it’s a show that’s been generating conversation since the Met Gala announced the theme. Plus, MoMA’s Frida and Diego blockbuster is still running strong, the Brooklyn Museum is doing something genuinely sweet for Mother’s Day, and the Museum of Arts and Design is serving up one of the stranger, more compelling shows in the city right now. Here’s where to point yourself this weekend.
🌟 Don’t Miss: “Costume Art” Opens at The Met — Sunday, May 10
This is the one. The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute opens its major spring exhibition, Costume Art, on Sunday, May 10 — and it runs through January 10, 2027, so you have time, but there’s no reason to wait. The show takes over nearly 12,000 square feet of brand-new galleries adjacent to the Great Hall, and its premise is genuinely fascinating: it juxtaposes garments from the Museum’s fashion collection with works of art from across the entire Met collection — paintings, sculptures, antiquities — to examine how clothing and the dressed body function as artistic subjects across history and culture.
The Met Gala officially opened the show earlier this week (co-chaired by Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, and Venus Williams), so the red carpet moment is over — but that means Sunday is your first chance to see what all the fuss is actually about. Met Members get an exclusive 9–10 AM preview window before general admission opens. If you’re not a member, aim for an early general admission slot to beat the crowds that will absolutely be forming by midday.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave at 82nd St, Manhattan. Opens Sunday, May 10. General admission applies (Members free). Open daily except Tuesdays, 10am–5pm (Fri–Sat until 9pm).
🎨 Frida Kahlo & Diego Rivera at MoMA — Still Running
If you haven’t made it to MoMA’s pairing of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera yet, this weekend is a perfectly good excuse. The exhibition — which runs through September 12, 2026 — brings together five Kahlo paintings and over a dozen Rivera works from MoMA’s permanent collection, presented in conversation with each other and with the broader context of Mexican modernism. It was conceived in conjunction with the Metropolitan Opera, which staged a Rivera-inspired production this season. The show is deeply personal, politically charged, and visually rich. Worth every minute.
MoMA, 11 W 53rd St, Manhattan. Through September 12, 2026. Admission: adults $30, members free. Open daily 10:30am–5:30pm (Fri until 8pm).
💐 Brooklyn Museum: Give Them Their Flowers — Mother’s Day Weekend
The Brooklyn Museum is doing something lovely this weekend: the Brownstone Botanical flower truck is setting up on the plaza for Mother’s Day, as part of a “Give Them Their Flowers” programming series. It’s a reason to make the Brooklyn Museum your Sunday destination — and while you’re there, the museum’s permanent collection and current exhibitions make for an excellent full-morning visit. The museum is one of the city’s most underrated major institutions, and its free First Saturdays program (the first Saturday of each month, 5–11pm) is one of the great recurring free events in all of New York.
Brooklyn Museum, 200 Eastern Pkwy, Brooklyn. Open Wednesday–Sunday, 11am–6pm. General admission applies; some programming is free.
🌿 Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Weekends in Bloom
Yes, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden technically straddles the line between garden and museum — but in May, it’s as much a visual experience as any gallery in the city. The Weekends in Bloom programming runs through the spring, and with cherry blossom season having just passed, the Garden is now settling into its full spring palette. If you have out-of-town guests this Mother’s Day weekend or just want to spend time somewhere genuinely beautiful, this is your answer.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn. Open Tuesday–Sunday, 10am–6pm. Admission: adults $22, members free.
🪴 Museum of Arts and Design: The Haas Brothers in “Uncanny Valley”
If you want something weirder and more challenging than the mainstream museum circuit, head to the Museum of Arts and Design on Columbus Circle for Uncanny Valley, the Haas Brothers’ exhibition that invites visitors directly into the minds of the Los Angeles-based design duo. The Haas Brothers work at the intersection of craft, surrealism, and pop — their pieces tend to be simultaneously beautiful and deeply strange in ways that are hard to explain and easy to fall in love with. MAD is a frequently overlooked museum that consistently programs some of the most interesting work in the city.
Museum of Arts and Design, 2 Columbus Circle, Manhattan. Open Tuesday–Sunday, 10am–6pm (Thursday until 9pm). Admission: adults $20, members free.
Weekend Museum Strategy
Sunday is Mother’s Day, so the city’s major museums will be busier than usual in the afternoon. For the Met’s Costume Art opening, go early — Member preview runs 9–10 AM, and general admission opens at 10 AM. MoMA is best on a Friday evening (open until 8pm, noticeably less crowded). Brooklyn Museum on a Sunday morning gives you the plaza, the flower truck, and the galleries without the afternoon surge.
For more on what’s on in NYC this month, check out the full May 2026 events guide.
