What's New In Your Back Yard: Queens Museum of Art
BY ELIZABETH YUEN

The Queens Museum of Art, located in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.

Ever since the Queens Museum of Art opened in 1972, it has upheld its goal of presenting a wide range of visual arts and educational programs to the residents of Queens and the surrounding New York area. Upcoming, current, and past exhibitions have varied in artistic styles, mediums, and influences but the one thing in common is the high quality of art that is produced. Queens residents or visitors just in the borough for a Mets game should check out what this museum offers.

One of the sights to see has to be the Panorama of the City of New York. This ongoing exhibition is a 9,335-squarefoot miniature New York City that showcases an accurate bird's eye view of the buildings constructed in New York City before 1992. The model includes a total of 895,000 building structures that expands across the five boroughs. For example, anyone who has never set foot on the Rockaway peninsula before with one visit will be able to see all that the Rockaways have to offer. Lest visitors become overwhelmed with such an immense exhibition, the museum provides an hourlong tour every Saturday and Sunday at 4 p.m.

Photos Elizabeth Yuen A view of the Panorama of the City of New York housed in the Queens Museum of Art.

Besides the exhibitions, this summer from July 11 to August 22, the Queens Museum of Art and American Express present Passport Fridays 2008. Queens is home to many diverse cultures, and Passport Fridays provide experiences of different cultures across the globe from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. on Friday evenings.

Every evening starts off with a bang as live dance and music performances fill Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Moroccan hip hop, Chinese mask magic, African drums, folkloric music of the Andes, Brazilian sambas and others will provide a whole other world for guests. Next, short films ranging from a family's journey in discovering new cultures while still preserving their own to following the dreams of four female rappers as they face the harsh realities of the music industry will be screened.

All of New York City is right in front of visitors' eyes at the Panorama exhibition, and so is the rest of the world during this free summer festival.

All in all, the Queens Museum of Art is an ideal place to take the family. It is located in Flushing Meadows- Corona Park, which also holds the Queens Zoo, miniature golf, sailing, and various other activities. A ride on the 7 train to the Willets Point/Shea Stadium stop will bring visitors to a day's worth of fun.

For more information about current exhibitions and Passport Fridays 2008 visit

www.queensmuseum.org/i ndex.htm