My New York museum exhibit wish list

Some months ago, Ephemeral New York suggested that it would be a good idea for a New York museum to put on an exhibit of etchings by Martin Lewis.

I agree. I can picture a Martin Lewis exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York, and there are a few other ideas for New York-based exhibits that I think would be worth a try.

• Islands of New York, for a look at Governors Island, Rikers Island, City Island, Roosevelt Island, Ellis Island, Randall’s Island, and other small and sometimes overlooked islands of the city
• New York wastelands, featuring the photography of Nathan Kensinger
• Thoreau’s New York, including Thoreau’s uneasy meeting with Walt Whitman, and a glimpse of Staten Island as it was in 1843, when he arrived to tutor the sons of William Emerson.
• Joseph Mitchell’s New York, with excerpts from his essays and photographs of McSorley’s, the Old Hotel, Joe Gould, and the oystermen’s community on Staten Island
• Wildlife of New York, highlighting the variety of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles and amphibians, and insects found in the city, with emphasis on major parks and the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge