MoMA PS1’s Warm Up, the outdoor music series that has turned the museum’s Long Island City courtyard into a Friday evening dance floor since 1998, reaches its final two dates this week and next. The August 21 installment features Detroit electro pioneers Dopplereffekt alongside RHR, Purelink, and Eev Frances, while the August 28 season finale brings R&B experimentalist keiyaA, Den Haag-based DJ De Schuurman, DJ Working Class, and an unannounced special guest. Both events run from 4 to 10 p.m. at 22-25 Jackson Avenue in Queens.
Key Takeaways
- MoMA PS1’s Warm Up 2026, now in its 28th season, closes out with two remaining Friday evening events on August 21 and August 28
- The August 21 lineup features Dopplereffekt, RHR, Purelink, and Eev Frances; the August 28 finale brings keiyaA, TDJ De Schuurman, DJ Working Class, and an unnamed special guest
- General admission is $25 in advance and $35 day-of; Long Island City residents in ZIP codes 11101, 11106, and 11109 can claim one complimentary ticket per event on a first-come, first-served basis
- The 2026 season coincides with MoMA PS1’s 50th anniversary and features 26 artists and collectives performing across six Fridays
- All Warm Up attendees receive access to the “Greater New York” exhibition inside the museum galleries and Precious Okoyomon’s living forest installation in the courtyard
Twenty-Eight Seasons of Underground Music on a Museum Courtyard Stage
Warm Up launched in 1998 as a small-scale summer concert series designed to bring experimental and electronic musicians into the MoMA PS1 courtyard. Over nearly three decades, the program has grown into one of New York City’s defining cultural rituals, drawing thousands of attendees each season to a museum space that doubles as an open-air club. The 2026 edition, organized by Assistant Curator Kari Rittenbach and Senior Project Manager Nick Scavo, featured 26 artists and collectives across six consecutive Fridays from July 24 through August 28.
The curatorial framework for this season focused on the historical roots of global subgenres. Dub, techno, gabber, house, hyperpop, avant-garde improvisation, and sound art all appeared on the lineup, connected by a curatorial thread that traced how contemporary electronic musicians are building on the foundations laid by earlier generations. The opening night on July 24 set that tone immediately, pairing San Francisco-based Detroit vinyl specialist Carlos Souffront with a Wackies Showcase featuring Lloyd “Bullwackie” Barnes, the Bronx-based founder of the Wackies reggae label, alongside Berlin’s Mark Ernestus of Basic Channel.
The series operates on a stage designed by New York City-based artist Somnath Bhatt, whose installation pays tribute to the seasonal cycle. Bhatt’s stage design functions as a visual anchor for the courtyard, framing each Friday’s performers within a sculptural environment that shifts in feel as the light changes from late afternoon into evening.
The 50th Anniversary Season Brought Back Warm Up Veterans
MoMA PS1 turns 50 this year, and the Warm Up programming reflected that milestone by inviting back performers who helped define the series across its nearly three-decade run. Sound artist Lary 7, who performed at the very first Warm Up in 1998, returned to the courtyard on August 14. Lary 7 is known for building intricate soundscapes from vast collections of found objects, a practice that aligns with the experimental ethos that Warm Up was built around. Detroit Sound trailblazer Marcellus Pittman, a 3Chairs alumnus who last appeared at Warm Up in 2013, also performed on the August 14 date. Parisian producer Crystallmess, a returning Warm Up artist, headlined a back-to-back set with LA-based BAE BAE of Hood Rave on July 31.
The decision to thread returning performers throughout the season rather than concentrating them on a single “anniversary night” gave each Friday a dual character. Audiences encountered the new alongside the familiar, with veteran acts sharing the courtyard with artists making their MoMA PS1 debut. Brazilian stalwart DJ Anderson do Paraiso made a U.S. debut appearance. Cellist Mabe Fratti performed in a trio setting that highlighted her drone-inspired bowing technique. Cortisa Star brought lyrical drill beats to the series, while BADSISTA and Gabber Eleganza each pushed the boundaries of their respective genres on separate dates.
This Friday’s Lineup Centers on Dopplereffekt’s Electro Legacy
The August 21 program positions Dopplereffekt as the anchor act. The Detroit-based electronic duo, formed in 1995, occupies a specific lane in the history of electro and techno, producing sparse, machine-driven compositions that draw from Kraftwerk’s electronic minimalism and the harder edge of Detroit’s underground scene. Their presence on the Warm Up stage connects the series back to the Midwest electronic traditions that have influenced global dance music for decades.
Joining Dopplereffekt on August 21 are RHR, a Brazilian artist whose rhythmic basslines reflect the intensity of Sao Paulo’s club circuit; Purelink, a New York-based electronic trio that The FADER has identified as a “scene cornerstone” in the city’s experimental dance community; and Eev Frances, whose sets draw on ambient and textural electronic production. The four-act bill covers a wide stylistic range within a single evening, moving from hard electro to ambient textures to rhythm-forward South American club music.
The August 28 Finale Carries an Unannounced Guest
MoMA PS1 has held back the identity of one performer on the August 28 closing night, listed only as a “Special Guest” on the published schedule. The confirmed acts for the finale include keiyaA, the R&B vocalist and producer whose work straddles experimental pop, ambient, and avant-garde soul, and TDJ De Schuurman, a Den Haag-based DJ known for his take on “bubbling,” a Dutch-Antillean dance music style built on percussive syncopation. DJ Working Class rounds out the confirmed lineup.
Finales at Warm Up have historically carried extra weight. The closing night tends to draw the season’s largest crowd, and the unannounced guest adds a layer of anticipation that has fueled speculation among the series’ regular attendees throughout the week.
Art and Dance Share the Same Courtyard
Every Warm Up ticket includes access to the museum’s galleries, which stay open late on Friday evenings during the series. The current anchor exhibition, “Greater New York,” is MoMA PS1’s signature survey of artists living and working in the New York City area, returning for its sixth edition this year. The 2026 installment features more than 50 multidisciplinary artists in the formative stages of their careers, spanning all levels of MoMA PS1’s historic school building.
In the courtyard itself, Precious Okoyomon’s living forest installation coexists with the Warm Up stage and audience. Okoyomon’s work, a large-scale sculptural environment incorporating live plant material, creates a sensory backdrop that shifts throughout the season as the vegetation grows and changes. The overlap is intentional. MoMA PS1 has consistently positioned Warm Up not as a standalone concert series but as an extension of the museum’s curatorial programming, where sound, visual art, and audience participation share the same physical and conceptual space.
A host committee of artists connected to dance music and New York City nightlife guided the 2026 season’s programming sensibility. The committee included Diane Severin Nguyen, Women’s History Museum, writer and therapist hannah baer, dancer Lysis, and Elliot Reed, each bringing perspectives rooted in the intersections of performance, nightlife, and contemporary art that define the series.
FAQs
How much do tickets cost for MoMA PS1 Warm Up?
General admission is $25 in advance and $35 on the day of the event. Students and MoMA members receive discounted rates. Long Island City residents in ZIP codes 11101, 11106, and 11109 can claim one complimentary ticket per event on a first-come, first-served basis.
What time does Warm Up run?
Each Warm Up event runs from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. at MoMA PS1’s courtyard, located at 22-25 Jackson Avenue in Long Island City, Queens.
Who is performing at the August 21 Warm Up?
The August 21 lineup features Dopplereffekt, RHR, Purelink, and Eev Frances, spanning Detroit electro, Brazilian club rhythms, experimental New York electronic music, and ambient production.
Does a Warm Up ticket include museum access?
All Warm Up tickets include access to MoMA PS1’s galleries, which stay open late on Friday evenings during the series. The current exhibitions include “Greater New York” and Precious Okoyomon’s living forest courtyard installation.
