Governors Island Arts
Governors Island Arts, the public arts and cultural program presented by the Trust for Governors Island, creates transformative encounters with art for all New Yorkers, inviting artists and researchers to engage with the issues of our time in the context of the Island’s layered histories, environments, and architecture.
We achieve this mission through:
- Public Art Commissions: Long term and temporary works from multidisciplinary artists that are sited within Governors Island’s park and historic landscapes
- Organizations in Residence: An annual open call inviting cultural organizations to present exhibitions, hold free public programs and host artist residencies within the Island’s historic former military houses. Over the next decade, the City of New York and the Trust for Governors Island will invest in evolving this seasonal program into year-round permanent homes for cultural organizations on Governors Island
- Public Programs: Free events and programs, including House Fest, the Interventions performance series, and THIRD Saturdays, along with additional events presented in partnership with a diverse range of NYC cultural organizations
Governors Island Arts presents its program with the visionary support of the Ford Foundation, as well the Mellon Foundation, the Charina Endowment Fund, Donald R. Mullen Family Foundation, Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Gottesman Fund, Donald A. Pels Charitable Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
Explore Arts and Culture on View
Public Art Commissions
Organizations in Residence
Upcoming Events and Programs
Current Opportunities
Propose an outdoor public program or cultural event
Arts and cultural organizations interested in utilizing outdoor space on Governors Island for public programming including performances, art installations and more may submit a proposal here.
Propose an outdoor public artwork
Governors Island Arts presents a limited number of public art projects each year. Artists and organizations interested in showing work on the Island as part of this program are invited to contact the Governors Island Arts team at arts@govisland.org and share a proposal.
Seasonal Organizations in Residence
Organizations in Residence receive access to indoor programming space in one of the historic houses in Nolan Park and Colonels Row where they present free, public programming, as well as host artists, researchers and other creative practitioners. Applications for the 2024 season were due November 10, 2023.
Investment in Governors Island Arts advances a key component of “Rebuild, Renew, Reinvent: A Blueprint for NYC’s Economic Recovery,” Mayor Eric Adams’s vision for the future of the city’s economy. For more information on the blueprint, visit nyc.gov/economicblueprint.