The New Museum's Lower East Side outpost debuted a decade ago, and has already become an indelible part of the neighborhood. Japanese architecture firm SANAA was behind the design, which they said is meant to be "elegant and urban." That's achieved through a mixture of a minimalist look (the exterior, made of aluminum mesh, is neutral without being boring) and a design that takes the building's narrow footprint into account. The ground level, with its floor-to-ceiling windows, helps further connect the institution to the urban fabric. An addition, designed by OMA’s Rem Koolhaas, is in the works.

Renzo Piano's design for the Whitney building over the High Line wasn't exactly beloved when it debuted in 2015; New York's Justin Davidson compared the structure to a "prodigiously misassembled" Ikea object. But there's no denying its impact on the city's cultural landscape, and unlike some other institutions, it fits its surroundings in a way that's meaningful and in context. And the Piano structure is already serving its purpose well: the Whitney now accommodates more visitors than ever before.

There are still some signs of the former Barneys store that used to occupy the Rubin Museum's Chelsea headquarters; the spiral staircase that winds through the center of the building, designed by Andrée Putman, is the biggest remnant. And the building's transformation into the Rubin, which houses an impressive collection of art from the Himalayas and its surrounding areas, includes some new features that nod to its mission. Its main entrance on 17th Street, for example, is shaped like a Mandala—a hat-tip to the many objects within the collection, and also a space that's "meant to represent a gateway to Himalayan art."

Where to begin with this gorgeous institution? It's an utterly unique mix of old and new. The campus is made up of a turn-of-the-20th-century McKim Mead & White building (which holds the stunning library, pictured above); a 1920s brownstone-turned-annex (which is not home to the gift shop); and the contemporary Renzo Piano addition, which serves as a bridge between the two older buildings. It sounds like it shouldn't work, and yet it does, thanks to thoughtfully designed interiors that seamlessly connect the three disparate buildings. Also, seriously, don't miss out on that library.

This may prove to be a divisive addition to this list, given the controversy surrounding the refurbishment of this Midtown institution. Edward Durrell Stone's original building—christened "the lollipop building" thanks to an unfavorable Ada Louise Huxtable review—was revamped by Allied Works Architecture. The lollipops are gone, and a glass skin that almost spells out the word "HI" is in its place. But in the years since the new design debuted, it's grown on us; the interior, including a lovely floating staircase, is quite beautiful as well.

Henry Clay Frick was one of the most powerful industrialists of the early 20th century, so it's no surprise that he commissioned a starchitect of the time—Thomas Hastings, of Carrère and Hastings—to design his private residence on what was then Manhattan's Gold Coast. But luckily, us commoners can enjoy the Gilded Age mansion these days: As the Frick Collection, it's both a lovely art museum (with an emphasis on European painting and sculpture) and a serene oasis in the midst of a bustling city. And soon, it'll get even bigger: Annabelle Selldorf will design the museum's long-planned (and oft-contentious) expansion.

A slew of architects have contributed, in one way or another, to the Met's immense building: Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mould designed the original museum, and remnants of their work can still be found in the current iteration. Richard Morris Hunt created the Fifth Avenue facade and the Great Hall, and McKim, Mead & White added the north and south wings. In the latter half of the 20th century, Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates added some of the museum's newer wings: the Sackler Center, home to the Temple of Dendur, and the American Wing (pictured here), among others. And yet somehow, the museum doesn't feel disjointed; the sum truly is greater than its parts.

Frank Lloyd Wright didn't design many New York City buildings, but one of those—the Guggenheim Museum—is arguably the architect's best-known masterpiece. It was first conceived in 1943, but didn't open until 1959, just a few months after Wright's death. It remains a modernist masterpiece to this day; it's designed as an "inverted ziggaraut," which is intended to lead visitors to the top and then slowly work their way down along a winding pathway.

The Cooper-Hewitt sits just two blocks up from the Guggenheim, but the buildings couldn't be more different. Where the Gugg is the pinnacle of modernism, the Cooper Hewitt—housed in a building that was once the home of Andrew Carnegie—is an exemplary bit of ornate, turn-of-the-20th-century architecture. It was designed by Babb, Cook & Willard, and despite its old-world feel, it featured many innovative design touches. (Per the museum, "it was the first private residence in the United States to have a structural steel frame and one of the first in New York to have a residential Otis passenger elevator." Cool!) The Cooper Hewitt moved in in 1976, and recently, a team of architects (including Beyer Blinder Belle and Diller Scofidio + Renfro) worked to restore the beautiful building to its former glory, while updating it for 21st-century audiences.

While the exterior of this museum isn't as awe-inspiring as, say, the Guggenheim, its interiors—including a peaceful garden—are simply stunning. That's no surprise, though; it was designed by Isamu Noguchi himself before his death in 1988. Visitors can appreciate the celebrated artist's work in the galleries themselves, or in the sculpture garden, which is one of the hidden gems of New York City.

Brooklyn's biggest museum predates its obvious Manhattan counterpart, the Met, by a good few decades, but its buildings were constructed around the same time—and McKim, Mead & White, who also worked on the Met, conceived of the master plan for the Brooklyn Museum (it was originally planned as part of a larger campus that would have also included the nearby Botanic Garden; alas, that wasn't meant to be). But even with those similarities, the museum stands on its own as a beautiful Beaux Arts structure. In 2015, its Eastern Parkway entrance got a modern upgrade by Brooklyn firm SITU Studio, which makes the entryway more useful for 21st-century patrons (there's additional seating, better wayfinding, and more).