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The guest favorite Math Square gets a central location at MoMath's new permanent location in Chelsea.

MoMath: The Basics

MoMath's new location is at 635 Sixth Avenue, just a few blocks southwest of its original location. Walking in, the first thing I noticed was that math is everywhere here, from the pie sign door handles to the ceiling design and tiles on the floor. The second: It's a huge upgrade in space and visibility from the original location, with soaring ceilings and huge picture windows spanning the corner of 19th and Sixth. The new location covers about 36,000 square feet of space. Exhibits will, initially, occupy the ground and second floors; in 2027, new exhibition space opens on the lower level.

Exhibits at MoMath

At the heart of MoMath has always been a focus on hands-on learning that's fun and provokes exploration and discovery. The museum, which has been operating out of a temporary pop-up space on Fifth Avenue for the last two years, is bringing most of its popular exhibits to the new space—39 to be exact, including the famous square-wheeled tricycle—and adding another 31 new exhibits!

Parents of tots take note: There will be an entire section of the museum dedicated to early-childhood education, with little-kid-sized exhibits and colorful touchpoints to introduce the youngest visitors to the concepts in a fun, age-appropriate way.

Using an equation to propel a racecar is the aim of the new Formula Fun exhibit at MoMath.

Exciting New Additions at MoMath

In addition to an early-childhood section, MoMath has added tons of classroom space to its new location, with six separate classrooms to offer programming and an inventive design that allows for walls to be retracted and open up the space to host anything from a talk on mathmatics (with retractable, auditorium-style seating tucked into one wall) to a seated dinner for up to 300.

On its second floor, there's also a climate-controlled gallery space designed to host temporary exhibitions that can be tied into math. Discussions are underway to bring a large-scale, first-of-its-kind exhibition of M.C. Escher's work to the space within the first year.

MoMath CEO Cindy Lawrence, who led the tour, emphasized that the exhibits here are meant to be fun and build a love of math and its concepts without leaning into the curriculum. The team is more concerned with building "ah-ha moments in every corner" than boosting test scores, and the enthusiasm of Lawrence and her team certainly has us excited for this revamped addition to NYC's museum scene!

All photos by author