Teddy Sandoval and the Butch Gardens School of Art event image
El Museo del Barrio, East Harlem, Manhattan

Teddy Sandoval and the Butch Gardens School of Art

The first major retrospective of Teddy Sandoval, a central figure of LA's queer Chicano avant-garde, opens at El Museo del Barrio for its New York run.

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Teddy Sandoval worked at the center of LA's queer Chicano avant-garde for decades, and this is the first major retrospective to gather his slyly sensual ceramics, mail art, paintings, and public-art works in one place. After acclaimed West Coast runs, it lands at El Museo del Barrio for its only New York stop. Catch the opening weekend of a show art historians have called long overdue.

What to expect

A focused, revelatory survey rather than a blockbuster sprawl: ceramics, works on paper, mail art, and paintings threaded with coded queer wit and border-crossing style. Give it an hour or two, then keep going — admission covers the rest of El Museo's galleries, and your ticket also grants entry to the Museum of the City of New York.

Good to know

  • El Museo is open Thursday–Sunday, 11 AM–5 PM (closed Mon–Wed)
  • Admission is pay-what-you-can — suggested $9 adults, $5 students/seniors — and timed-entry reservations are strongly encouraged
  • Your admission also grants entry to the Museum of the City of New York
  • Take the 6 to 103rd St and walk three blocks west to Fifth Ave, or the M1/M2 bus along Madison
  • On view through January 10, 2027 — but opening weekend catches the buzz

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Common questions

How much does it cost?

El Museo del Barrio is a pay-what-you-can museum with suggested admission of $9 for adults and $5 for students and seniors; members and children under 12 are free. Reserving a timed-entry ticket in advance is encouraged.

When can I visit?

The museum is open Thursday through Sunday, 11 AM–5 PM. The exhibition opened September 10, 2026 and runs through January 10, 2027.

Who was Teddy Sandoval?

A Los Angeles artist (1949–1995) central to the city's queer Chicano avant-garde, known for ceramics, mail art, and paintings made under his invented imprint, the Butch Gardens School of Art. This is the first major museum retrospective of