The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (simply known as the Guggenheim Muesum), located on East 89th Street and 5th Avenue (facing Central Park), houses a collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern and contemporary art. It also holds special exhibitions throughout the year.

Designed by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright and built in the late 1950s, the cylindrical museum building, wider at the top than the bottom, was conceived as a “temple of the spirit” and is one of the 20th century’s most important architectural landmarks (rendering it a “must-see” destination for architectural students and academics).

The building underwent extensive expansion and renovations from 1992 to 1993 (when an adjoining tower was built) and from 2005 to 2008. The museum’s collection has grown organically, over eight decades, and is founded upon several important private collections, beginning with Solomon R. Guggenheim’s original collection. The collection is shared with the museum’s sister museums in Bilbao, Spain, and elsewhere.