Say Cheese! Or… eat cheese, I guess, because New York’s biggest photography museum is currently developing a brand new cafe.
The International Center of Photography is the world’s leading institution dedicated to photography and visual culture. Founded by Cornell Capa in 1974, the ICP’s stated mission is to champion “concerned photography” – socially and politically minded images that can educate and change the world. Using the power of the static image, the ICP offers an open forum for dialogue through their exhibitions, educations programs, and community outreach programs.
Today, the center is lead by executive director David E. Little, who previously helmed the Mead Art Museum at Amherst College for six years. Just prior to his arrival, the ICP launched the grand opening of their $60 million new center at 79 Essex Street. With the new location, the center’s galleries and school were housed together for the first time in twenty years, but the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic soon rendered that change moot as the school reverted to an online-only plan to endure the pandemic.
Now, as the effects of the pandemic appear to be waning, Little and the ICP team are resuming the projects they initiated over two years ago. Without a live audience to witness and react much of the importance of a gallery is lost, so the team has been very eager to resume standard operation and is now developing one more concept that should help get more feet in the door.
Originally planned for 2020 (but delayed for obvious reasons), the ICP is in the process of developing a brand new cafe for the museum. Described as a “small museum cafe serving pastries and sandwiches,” the ICP has also applied for a liquor license, indicating that the museum will also offer guests a robust selection of beer and wine. Thankfully, the museum will remain in operation while the new cafe is developed, so readers can go check out their latest exhibitions and maybe even take a class or two on the history and fundamentals of technology. Information on exhibits and classes can be found on the center’s website.
