I do not make New Year resolutions. Nevertheless, going into 2023 I was determined to fill some of the gaps in my NY cultural experience. Top of the list was a visit to the Neue Galerie, the museum on the Upper East Side dedicated to the art and design of Germany and Austria from the early 20th century. I can’t quite believe that it has taken me nearly seventeen years to get there, but a chilly Saturday afternoon in mid-January seemed like a good moment to explore the elegant townhouse where 86th Street meets Fifth Avenue. What really drove me, however, wasn’t the wintry conditions, but the opportunity to get a glimpse of the collection of Ronald S. Lauder, one of the Galerie’s patrons, in an exhibition that closes next month.

Lauder’s collection and the museum as a whole is especially rich in paintings and drawings by the great Austrian and German masters: Klimt, Kokoschka, Grosz, Dix, and Schiele. Their work is well represented here, but Lauder’s interests as a collector go much further. Renaissance altarpieces, armor, even a slightly incongruous trove of items connected to the movie, Casablanca, serve to remind you that this is a rich man showing off his various enthusiasms.

The Neue Galerie is a gem, a beautiful setting in which to see some wonderful treasures. Klimt’s Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer may be the centerpiece, but there’s so much more. I’ll be back.