Founded in 1898 to promote public interest in the arts, the National Arts Club holds art exhibitions, usually open to the public from 10am to 5pm Monday to Friday (check the website for upcoming shows). Calvert Vaux – one of the creators of Central Park – designed the building itself, its picture-lined front parlor adorned with a beautiful, vaulted, stained-glass ceiling. The place was once home to Samuel J Tilden, governor of New York and failed presidential candidate in 1876.
It also hosts evening life drawing classes, usually on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7pm to 9pm.
