The 26 -year -old New Yorker brings together 40,000 Tiktok subscribers in his quest to visit all museums in the city

But with 136 museums documented since 2021, she still has about 64 to make her estimate. And with the opening of new museums and a few former who change so dramaticly that they deserve a revisit, the 26 -year -old woman now says that she realistically aims to finish the project before the age of 30.

“At first, I started the project for myself to get out of my house safely and experience culture in the city again,” said August, who grew up in Arizona and lived in New York for nine years. She said that she was not a big person in the museum before starting the project and that she had only been about seven at the time.

But as it started, the plan has evolved quickly.

“I decided that Tiktok would be a cool way to document it so that my friends can follow my trip and maybe discover something new,” said August. Its audience has since expanded with around 40,000 subscribers to social platforms.

Large and small museums, Manhattan and beyond

Visiting its museums has aroused new appreciation for New York, she said, as well as for the pure width of what is proposed, especially for those who wish to explore small museums and those of the districts beyond Manhattan.

And yes, she has favorites.

“I love the display house. It is the first museum of posters in the country, has a large programming and is free on Friday, “she says about the largely unknown museum of 23rd Street and Sixth Avenue, which presents graphic design and advertising posters from Art Nouveau to political propaganda.

Others on his favorite list include the teinming museum in the Lower Manhattan and the Museum of Image Movement in Queens, as well as three Brooklyn Museums: Brooklyn Seltzer Museum, New York Sign Museum and Red Hook Pinball Museum. She also has a weakness for the Paley Center for Media NYC in Midtown Manhattan.

“They have archives with each television show you might think about. It’s incredible,” she said about the Paley Center.

The offers of Staten Island are worth the ferry journey

As for the smallest arrondissement of the city, the ferry journey to Staten Island (free, with a view of the statue of freedom along the way) is well worth the trip for museum lovers, she said.

The district includes the Newhouse Center of Contemporary Art, as well as the Alice Austen house, an important Victorian Gothic house for LGBTQ +history. It was the house of one of the oldest and most prolific female photographers in the country, famous for documenting the city’s immigrant communities.

“You don’t imagine that Staten Island had one of the most gay museums in New York, dedicated to a queer photographer, but that’s the case,” said August.

Staten Island also houses the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art and the Jardin du Savant Chinese, which claims to be one of the only two Authentic Chinese Outdoor Gardens in the United States.

“It’s so peaceful and calm, and I love to ride on the ferry,” said August.

Take advantage of free days and slow hours

Although museums can cost dearly, she said that she made a good use of museum’s pass in her local library, and that many museums have days or moments when they are free.

And because her “day jobs” tend to be at night – she works in different places in ticketing and production, and also bartendus – she is able to visit museums in the middle of the days of the week, when they tend to be less crowded.

August has recently become an approved tourist guide in New York, and she says that it gave him a renewed appreciation of the city and its visitors.

She has also seen some trends settled, such as the rise in museum programs aimed at a younger audience and the trend of chronological exhibitions, which, according to her, make the return visits less attractive.

“Many of us are desperate for the third spaces,” she said, referring to a separate place in the house and at work where people can relax or socialize. “For many of us, we are hungry to come back and visit again, especially when it’s free.”

Although great museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art can certainly be crowded, August says that New York does not face almost the level of overcrowding as in European cities like Paris.

And during rush hour and seasons, like summer, it is good to know that there are many small museums to visit.

See the whole city

“I think this is particularly important for less known museums that do not often get press or social networks,” she said. “There are small museums that get a huge bump present and the press after having published my videos, so it’s exciting to be able to play a small role in this success.”

As for her motivation to continue the project, she said: “It comes down to people. I can connect with fascinating and passionate people who make these museums what they are and I can connect with enthusiasts who want to find something fun to do with their weekend. ”

For anyone interested in giving something like that, she says she says a lot of endurance.

“Be ready to go to the corners of the city you have never considered-I’m talking about the edges of the Bronx and the midst of Staten Island,” she said. “But if you are ready to take up the challenge, you will probably have a lot of insight not only on museums and their content, but also on the communities they serve.”