Hailed internationally as a grand architectural achievement, the highly anticipated opening of the Gilder Center, the spectacular new wing of the American Museum of Natural History, will open May 4th. A soaring space that connects to all the Museum has to offer, the Gilder Center features new exhibition galleries and one-of-a-kind experiences, including an new Insectarium, Invisible Worlds immersive experience, a Butterfly Vivarium, and stunning floor-to-ceiling collection facility that houses millions of specimens. The new center not only expands the museum enjoyed by millions of visitors each year, it will also serve as the home for next-generation scientific research and educational courses about the natural world and known universe.
An exciting new era for the museum, and New Yorkers! Read on as we discover the Gilder Center.
Behind the Arches – The Gilder Center Architecture
Being called “New York’s most exciting new building,” the 230,000-square-foot space was designed by the architecture group Studio Gang, the international architecture and urban design practice led by Jeanne Gang. Having an organic and natural texture, much of the Gilder Center was constructed by spraying concrete directly onto rebar (the technique known as “shotocrete”) without formwork, and then modeled into shape by hand to create a seamless interior of arching walls, bridges, and caverns.
The unique organic design of the Gilder Center was inspired by the natural paths wind and water carve into landscapes, as well as the forms that water etches in blocks of ice. The texture, color, and flowing forms were inspired by canyons in the southwestern U.S.
Inside this stunning architecture, the museum has added the exhibits:
Invisible Worlds
Being immersed in a world of science! Invisible Worlds is an extraordinary 360-degree immersive experience that offers a breathtakingly beautiful, scientific view into networks of life at all scales.
The experience begins in the Gallery, which highlights the vital ways in which, across thousands of miles, millions of species, and billions of years, all life on Earth is connected. Then the visitor enters the immersive venue, an oval space with 23-foot-high walls and 16 projectors, that provide a resolution of more than 100 million pixels to show each scene in stunning detail. The experience brings the viewer from the depths of the ocean to the pulsing networks of a human brain. More than just projections! The room has a sound system of 62 speakers, creating a slightly different soundscape in different locations in the gallery.
Ticket: Requires additional ticket for entry Location: Floor 3, Gilder Center
Butterfly Vivarium
There’s a flutter of excitement at the American Museum of Natural History!
Mingle with more than 1,000 free-flying butterflies among lush vegetation at the Butterfly Vivarium, a new permanent gallery inspired by the Museum’s beloved seasonal exhibit.
The year-round Vivarium is home to more than 130 species of free-flying butterflies, of which visitors will see up to 80 species on any given day. Don’t miss the pupae incubator to view chrysalises! The large glass window displays butterflies through several stages of their metamorphosis. If you’re lucky, you may even have the opportunity to witness a butterfly hatch.
Ticket: Requires additional ticket for entry Location: Floor 2, Gilder Center. Timed ticket required.
Insectarium
You can BUG OUT at the new Insectarium at the American Museum of Natural History. The new Insectarium features live insects, exhibits, larger-than-life models, and pinned specimens to highlight more than 100 types of bugs that make up this critically important animal group.
Here you can:
- Spot 18 species of live insects, including honeypot ants, hissing cockroaches, blue death-feigning beetles
- Step into an 18 foot honeycomb, and try out an interactive exhibit called “Be a Bee”
- Enter a sound gallery featuring a soundscape of Central Park’s insects, and check out the digital interactive map to explore the roles insects play in different New York City ecosystems.
Ticket: Insectarium is included in general admission/no additional ticket required. Location: Ground Floor, Gilder Center.
Research Library and Learning Center & Education Resources
The Gilder Center opening also includes 18 state-of-the-art classrooms, learning labs, and educational areas. These classrooms will have access to the Museum’s unique Education Collection, featuring 25,000 natural history specimens, artifacts and touchable objects. Each room is designed specifically for learning, with specific amenities for each school category – from early childhood classes and middle school, high school and college students. These will be available for student instruction for teacher and professional programs.
The new ResearchLibrary and Reading room offers over 500,000 volumes of research books and special collections of rare and unique science books, photographs, moving images and art. This room offers a study and reading space with public computer terminals, and seating for adult visitors.
Ticket: Research Library is included in general admission/no additional ticket required. Location: Third Floor, Gilder Center.
American Museum of Natural History Gilder Center
200 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024
Museum Tickets and more information HERE.
