If you’re 25 or younger — just in time for your prefrontal cortex to fully develop — you can expect free admission to the Whitney Museum of American Art for the next three years starting in mid-December.
The initiative is funded by a gift of over $2 million from artist Julie Mehretu, according to the Wall Street Journal, and an unspecified amount from philanthropist Susan Hess. Both Mehretu and Hess are Whitney board members.
The New York museum announced its new free entrance program for young people on Tuesday, October 22, months after it first piloted Free Friday Nights and Free Second Sundays. General admission fees for the museum rose by 20% last year to $30 for adults and $24 for students, making the Whitney one of the most expensive museums in the city.
When it raised its entrance fee last year, the Whitney joined a wave of art museums across the country topping $30 admissions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.
The Whitney’s “Free 25 and Under” initiative appears to be the latest attempt at offsetting these rising ticket costs, which museums claim are necessary due to high inflation and slowing attendance. The Whitney’s free programs, it said, brought in 300,000 visitors over the last year, an audience that was younger than the museum’s average attendee and 60% Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC).
“You can’t have any conversations around diversity, equity and inclusion without providing access,” Mehretu said in a statement.
The Whitney has not yet responded to Hyperallergic’s inquiry about the exact breakdown of the gift amounts from Mehretu and Hess.
