Museum of Living Art

By Tours of 1930s NYC

Museum of Living Art This photo was derived from the 1940s tax department photographs. The building which included the Museum of Living Arts is the right-most building In the photo. Located in the first story. Source: New York City Municipal Archives Date: 1939-1941

"On the ground floor, right of 100 Washington Square East is the Museum of Living Art. Founded in 1927, the gallery contains works of Man Ray, Lachaise, Cézanne, Brancusi, Matisse, Picasso, and Juan Gris, owned by Albert E. Gallatin, a descendant of the New York University's first council chairman. Three of the paintings are critically acclaimed as being among the most important of this century: The Three Musicians, by Picasso, The City, by Leger, and Composition in White and Red, by Mondrian. The exhibits also include the work of American artists such as Marin, Demuth, Sheeler, Hartley, and Knaths (NYC Guide, pp. 134)."

The museum was originally known as A.E. Gallatin’s Gallery of Living Art until it was renamed the Museum of Living Art in 1936 (Grey Art Museum, 2016). The museum was opened from 1927 until 1943. The collections and exhibits represented at the museum were exclusive to "fresh and individual" work.

Unlike Whitney, who had a director for her museum, Gallatin, the founder, operated the museum on his own. His museum was very popular in the Greenwich Village area due to the famous work he displayed (listed above in quotes). It was also beneficial that the location of the Museum was placed right next to Washington Square Park, allowing many tourists to visit the location. Unfortunately, in 1943, Gallatin shut the doors of the museum and presented some of his collected work to the Philidelphia Museum of Art (The MET, 2024).