Happy Mid-Summer!

This is the monthly newsletter of Hank Orenstein, real estate broker at the Corcoran Group, professional NYC tour guide, and organizer of the successful Meetup group with over 10,000 members, "Exploring NYC History and Neighborhoods." Also president of Owning New York LLC, which offers real estate and lifestyle tours of NYC neighborhoods for people seeking to make a move.

Enjoy my curated list of under-the-radar free events and those with an admission charge that celebrate the culture and history of NYC. Speaking of history, courtesy of THE CITY SCOOP, check out this post honoring the city's human rights pioneers in honor of Disability Pride Month.

Scroll to the end for the latest NYC Real Estate Reports

Upcoming Walking Tours: Morningside Heights: July 23rd; Upper West Side, July 27th, Long Island City, August 5th; South Harlem, August 10th. All tours begin or end end with an optional free outdoor concert. Email me at hank.orenstein@corcoran.com for details or the full schedule on my group Meetup page:

River and Blues Concert Series at Rockefeller Park/Battery Park City

Thursdays July 24 and 31 at 7pm (main concert at 8pm_.

The River & Blues Concert Series is a celebrated NYC summer tradition featuring Global and American folk, roots and blues music for over 25 years! This summer, Battery Park City Authority presents FREE concerts sure to delight music fans of all ages. Picturesque Rockefeller Park is the perfect summer show venue with breathtaking views of Hudson River sunsets, picnic-friendly fairgrounds and refreshing waterfront breezes.

July 24th: Performing is the award-winning Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra led by Arturo O’Farrill, which has enamored international audiences with dynamic performances featuring the music of jazz legends and new compositions from the Latin music scene.

Brazil Week at Lincoln Center July 16-20

Experience the vibrant artistry and traditions of Brazil without ever leaving New York City. From July 16–20, Summer for the City offers a star-studded week of Brazilian concerts and cultural programs that showcase the country’s diversity, depth, and creative excellence. Alongside select performances at our Family Storytime, Comedy Underground, and Jazz Underground series, we are excited to welcome back Brazil Summerfest, presenting an astonishing roster of brasileiros. More highlights throughout the week include shows with Latin GRAMMY nominee Melly, psychedelic rock band Os Mutantes, art-pop diva Anelis Assumpção, MPB superstar Tulipa Ruiz, influential soul-samba singer Liniker, and many more!

This exhibition examines the Art Students League of New York’s rich and complex history and its impacts on the trajectories of American art since 1875. For the last 150 years, the League has been home to artists of every medium and movement. Not immune to the ups and downs of our lived experience, the League has withstood two World Wars, stock market crashes, the Great Depression, the Cold War, and other major upheavals of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. As these events have shaped the institution, the League, in turn, has shaped its artists and the course of American art. More than a citation in an artist’s biography or a footnote to an epoch, the League firmly holds a place in the manifold histories of American art.

Milton Avery, Untitled, 1945, Watercolor on paper, 17.5 x 20.5 in. Permanent Collection, The Art Students League of New York. Gift of Lenore L Wesely. © Estate of Milton Avery.

Last Chance: Anonymous Was a Woman: The First 25 Years.

Through Saturday, July 19

Grey Art Museum, 18 Cooper Square (NOHO).

This exhibition celebrates Anonymous Was A Woman (AWAW), a grant program for mid-career women artists living and working in the United States. Featuring works by 41 of the 251 artists who received the award in its first quarter century, it provides a timely opportunity to look back at a crucial period of art production by women, and to reflect on the program’s enormous impact.

Suggested Admission:

$5.00, Free to current NYU students, faculty, and staff.

Installation view of ''Anonymous Was A Woman: The First 25 Years.'' Courtesy Grey Art Museum, New York University. Photo: Simon Cherry

The Bronx Documentary Center (BDC) will hold its 8th annual Latin American Foto Festival (LAFF) from July 10 – August 3, featuring large-scale photographs by both emerging and established, award-winning photographers.

This year, the festival exhibitions will be on view at the Bronx Documentary Center and throughout the Melrose neighborhood in the South Bronx from July 10-20. Select outdoor exhibitions will then travel to additional community spaces across Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn where they’ll be on view through August 3.

On Sunday, July 20, 12-6 join the Bronx Documentary Center for a lively community block party with live music, food, and fun for all ages! Enjoy free portraits, bilingual exhibition tours, and family-friendly activities like a waterslide, bounce castle, face painting, arts and crafts, and games for all ages. Details here.

Photo © Carmen Mojica

Tis The Season of Free Outdoor Concerts!

From Hudson River Park to Brooklyn Bridge Park, there are countless musical events to enjoy! Courtesy of Secret NYC.

And more:

Riverside Park 96th Street Tennis Courts, Saturdays from 7pm - 8:30pm Through August 9. Information here.

Check out the free concert series at Gantry State Park in Long Island City: Four more Tuesdays:

Find the schedule here.

Astoria Park Waterfront Concert Series: Thursdays at 7pm in July. Details here.

Harlem Meer Performance Festival

Central Park at 110th Street

Sundays 2:00 - 4:00pm, Through August 17

Schedule here.

Travers Park in Jackson Heights:

Sundays Through August 24th at 6pm: Schedule here.

The first retrospective of the artist’s two decades of world-building installations, the exhibition showcases Woolfalk’s ambitious fictional narrative of an imagined race of women known as “Empathics.” Woolfalk has created for the Empathics’ their own distinctive visual imagery, symbolism, and folklore, which reflect her investigations of African, African American, Japanese, European, and Brazilian art, craft, and storytelling. In this parable told through garment-based sculptures, video, paintings, works on paper, and performances, cultures mix, clash, and are ultimately transformed through shared understanding.

Visit the Goats in Riverside Park This Summer at West 143rd Street.

Over the past five summers, the goats have successfully cleared the slopes at 120th Street, allowing the human staff to install native understory and large trees, protecting the mature tree canopy. This summer the hard-working goats are assigned a new job site at West 143rd Street, where they are munching on poison ivy and other invasive plants.

Join the goats on Friday, August 1st from 1pm - 2pm to clean up the park using trash grabbers and garbage bags. It’s a great opportunity to meet new people, enjoy the goats, and contribute to the well-being of our community. No prior experience or equipment is necessary – just bring your energy and enthusiasm! Details here.

Bryant Park Lecture Series

Lincoln’s Lady Spymaster: The Untold Story of the Abolitionist Southern Belle Who Helped Win the Civil War

Wednesday, July 23. 7pm-8pm (Free with registration)

The New York Historical Society's popular outdoor lecture series is back! Partnering with the Bryant Park Reading Room to present a series of free programs in the park.

In the eyes of Confederate society, Elizabeth Van Lew was the perfect Southern belle, with charm, wit, and an elegant Richmond mansion. But in reality, she was building a secret network of spies that included enslaved people, Unionists, and prisoners of war. Author Gerri Willis uncovers the story of this underappreciated American figure, who, through her political savvy and daring escapades, provided vital daily information to Ulysses S. Grant and the Union Army during the Civil War.

Photo Credit: Angelito Jusay

Bob Mackie: From Sketches To Spotlight

The Gallery at Soho Grand, 310 W. Broadway

Through August 31



Renowned for dressing the most dazzling figures of pop culture—from Cher and Diana Ross to Carol Burnett and Madonna—Bob Mackie’s work is synonymous with spectacle, glamour, and showmanship. This exclusive exhibition offers an unprecedented view of Mackie’s artistic process, capturing the hand-drawn beginnings of the looks that helped define decades of fashion and performance.

Join The Center for Brooklyn History for a screening of the documentary film Gowanus Current followed by a talkback with the filmmakers Jamie Courville and Chris Reynolds. 

A century and a half of industrial waste and raw sewage has turned Brooklyn’s Gowanus Canal into one of the nation’s most toxic bodies of water. Squeezed between some of the borough’s most expensive brownstone neighborhoods, neglected public housing, row houses and small manufacturing have long dotted its sludgy banks. However, an ambitious EPA Superfund cleanup and a massive rezoning plan by the city hint that the real changes are just beginning.



Shot over the course of ten years, Gowanus Current explores the textures of this unique part of the city and the passions and hopes of stakeholders fighting for its future. 

Step into interactive galleries and move through the rhythm of dance and music in a guided exploration through the roots of the Lindy Hop led by Derrick León Washington, curator of Urban Stomp: Dreams & Defiance on the Dance Floor. Hear how Louis Armstrong helped shape the sound of early swing through rare recordings. Dive into the stories of New York’s most iconic ballrooms—where Frankie Manning and other dancers sparked a movement.

Along the way, you’ll encounter original instruments from music legends, vintage photographs, sculptures, and film clips featuring some of the greatest musicians, dancers, and Lindy Hoppers of all time. Each tour ends on the “All Dancing Allowed” floor—where you’re invited to try the Lindy Hop and other social dances. No experience needed—just bring your curiosity (and maybe your dancing shoes). 

Throw it back and turn it up at our ultimate summer bash! Join us for an unforgettable night of Hip Hop and Dance, presented in collaboration with the Hip Hop Hall of Fame, Vinyl Nights, and El Museo del Barrio. Get down to legendary live DJ sets from Grand Wizzard Theodore and DJ Misbehavior as we celebrate the golden era of sound and style.



Highlights of the Night:

• Sip refreshing summer cocktails and specialty drinks from the Park View Bar
• Play your way through free retro arcade games featuring old-school favorites
• Cool off with handcrafted gelato from Avrilililly’s Creamery and grab tasty bites at our Pop-Up Cafe
• Enjoy delicious bites by Charles Pan Fried Chicken
• Dive into NYC's musical and dance legacy with our hit exhibitions: Above Ground: Art from the Martin Wong Graffiti Collection, Songs of New York: 100 Years of Imagining the City through Music and Urban Stomp: Dreams & Defiance on the Dance Floor

A challenging artist to describe. Here are some quotes, courtesy of surfacemag.com:

“I prefer to follow concepts as they unfold, or lead me to the right format for their expression,” he says. Over the last three years, many of what he refers to as his obsessive fields of inquiry—including deep time, meteorites, mycelial networks, cave drawings, and systems of archiving—have taken shape as paintings. “While these themes have always been present in my sculptures, the inherent flatness of painting presents new challenges, especially around surfaces, scale, and legibility,” he says.

Rooted in the rural outskirts of Port of Spain, Lovelace considers Trinidad his ultimate subject. The flora, fauna and figures of island life are ever-present in his tropical vistas, painted on wood panels split into quadrants. Lovelace’s vibrant, energetic compositions present a nuanced exploration of postcolonial identity, grounded in a deep commitment to the Caribbean landscape and its community.

A tribute to some of Gene Hackman’s most treasured performances, tracing the evolution of the man who redefined the contours of American screen acting. Films screened include The French Connection, Mississippi Burning, Night Moves, Hoosiers, The Conversation, Unforgiven, Heist and The Royal Tennembaums.

Join NYC Parks, West Harlem Arts Alliance, Harlem Late Night Jazz and National Jazz Museum in Harlem for fourth Fridays jazz in the Park. Bring a blanket to sit and enjoy on the James Baldwin Lawn.

Located in an 19th century townhouse at 128 East 63rd Street, the Society of Illustrators was founded in 1901 and is the oldest nonprofit organization dedicated to the art of illustration in America. Notable Society members have been N.C. Wyeth, Rube Goldberg, and Norman Rockwell, among many others.

The Museum of Illustration was established in 1981 and offers year-round themed exhibits, art education programs and annual juried competitions. Their permanent collection houses 2,500 pieces that are cataloged for scholarly use and displayed periodically. 

Enjoy an afternoon of vibrant Latin jazz with Jennifer Vincent and her band on the lawn of the Van Cortlandt House Museum!

Bassist, cellist JENNIFER VINCENT has been an active force on the music scene in New York City for the past twenty years. She has played and toured with Jon Hendricks, Betty Carter, Bobby Sanabria, the Harry Whitaker Group, Ray Vega, Mo’ Guajiro, Doc Cheatham, Carmen Lundy, The Roberto Rodriguez Septet, and Regina Carter. She also tours regularly with The Duke Ellington Orchestra, and can be heard on Abbey Lincoln’s Verve release: Over the Years.

This is an outdoor event. Please bring a blanket or a chair.

The Van Cortlandt House is the oldest house in The Bronx (George Washington visited). It was at the center of a large 18th century farm. Visit the museum, pack a picnic and take a hike in the expansive woods of the park. More about the house and museum here. Van Cortlandt Park Alliance Events Calendar here.

Named by Time Out as one of the top “10 under-the-radar cultural experiences in NYC,” Wave Hill’s annual summer tradition brings five exciting performances Wednesday evenings to our Great Lawn. Pack a picnic and bring your favorite blanket or chair for an unforgettable summer evening as the sun sets over the Hudson.

The New York Asian Film Foundation and Film at Lincoln Center announce first highlights from the 24th edition of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF). From July 11 to July 24, FLC is proud to host 40 features of the more than 100 films featured in this year’s festival, with additional films and screenings running from July 11 to July 27 at SVA Theatre, LOOK Cinemas W57, and the Korean Cultural Center NY.

This year’s festival marks NYAFF’s most globally expansive lineup ever. With over 75 premieres—including eight world premieres—and 17 directorial debuts, the 2025 program showcases its largest slate of premieres and new talent to date, bringing bold, genre-defying films from across Asia. 

We are pleased to present our snapshot of Brooklyn condo and co-op contracts signed from July 5 to July 11, 2025. Read the full brief report here.

Below are some key highlights from the week:

• Last week, 53 contracts were reported signed, down 34% (27 sales) year-over-year and 16% (10 sales) versus the previous week. Year-to-date, activity has increased, though less than 1% annually.
• Compared to last year, the $750K to $1M segment remained level. It was the only price segment without an annual decline.
• Only two submarkets had an increase in contracts. The largest increase was in Bed-Stuy/Crown Heights/Prospect Lefferts Gardens/Bushwick, a difference of four contracts, because of a higher number of resale condo deals.
• Last week's most expensive contract was a three bedroom at One Domino Square, featuring views of the East River and Manhattan.

We are pleased to present our weekly snapshot of Manhattan condo and co-op contracts signed from July 5 to 11, 2025. Read the full brief report here.

Below are some key highlights from the week:

• Last week, 226 contracts were signed, up 18% versus the previous week and 11% year-over-year.
• New development sales have declined more than 30% annually in five of the seven weeks since Memorial Day.
• Sales over $3M underperformed those under $3M for the second consecutive week, in contrast to the prior two months when higher price points performed better.
• Per typical seasonality, this was the slowest week for sales over $5M since January.

“In June, pricing in Manhattan and Brooklyn moved in different directions, but the rental market was undeniably competitive in both boroughs. Manhattan’s median rent hit a record $4,895, up 5% year-over-year, while Brooklyn’s dipped 2% to $4,025 – only its second annual decline in nearly four years. Meanwhile, inventory remains tight across the board. The lack of available apartments was especially pronounced in Manhattan, where the number of listings fell 23% from this time last year. This is due – in part – to landlords recalibrating their marketing strategies in response to shifting regulations.”



– Gary Malin, Chief Operating Officer, The Corcoran Group

Overall in June Manhattan contract activity increases versus last year and average days on market declines.



• Average price per square foot rises despite tighter negotiability.
• Manhattan saw 1,017 signed contracts — up 3% year-over-year and 1% above the 10-year June average. This was the 11th time in 12 months that contract activity increased annually.
• Buyers also signed contracts quicker this month, with average days on market falling 4% year-over-year to 111 days, 13% below the 10-year June average.
• Compared to June 2024, condo contracts declined 4% while co-op sales rose 8%.

Brooklyn’s residential market slowed in June, with total sales down 11% year-over-year — the lowest June figure in five years.

• The under $1M segment had the largest nominal decline, down 50 signed contracts, due in part to fewer sales in South Brooklyn. Though not a very large segment of the market, sales over $3M fell by more than half compared to last June.
•  Conversely, sales increased in the $1M to $1.5M and $1.5M to $2M segments compared to last year, mainly with a high concentration in Williamsburg and Park Slope.
• Additionally, the average days on market fell by 26% year-over-year, primarily due to a sense of urgency driven by rising prices.