A library, like the Internet, is a constantly growing, endless entity, with new titles and media added daily. But the way we organize and collect the information within changes with the times, and it is with that in mind that the Goethe-Institut’s New York Library presents a show titled, “The End(s) of the Library.” Starting last November and ending in June, the exhibition is actually a continuing series of events and shows that aim to emphasize “the fact that the library is neither a monolithic system nor an abandoned utopia, but an ever-contested site demanding new readings of its organizational frameworks: an institution whose ends are without end.”

With that lofty goal in mind, they have passed the baton to Julieta Aranda, Fia Backström & R. Lyon, David Horvitz, Christian Philipp Müller, and The Serving Library to touch on everything from preserving an artist’s work to issues involved with digital rights and reappropriation. It’s not all panels and discussions though. The art and text itself is front and center in each event and showing, with the artist dealing with these issues in their own work as they display it and document the process. If it sounds confusing, the project’s website probably won’t clear things up, but it will most certainly draw you in with its vast range of content, as any good library should do.

The New Museum has come up with a unique way of promoting their latest show, “1993.” In an attempt to place potential viewers into a mindset of nostalgia and memory related to that specific year, they used one of the few relics of that time for their message’s medium: pay phones. Barely used today, the phone booths still linger on every block and corner, a subtle reminder of the city’s recent past.

For the campaign, dubbed “Recalling 1993,” the museum has recorded artists and residents from every neighborhood, each talking about their memories and recollections of 1993, specific to that neighborhood, and sometimes specific right down to the very block where the pay phone sits. Anyone is now able to walk up to these public pay phones and access these memories simply by dialing the number on the phone handle. It’s an ambitious project in and of itself. The very fact that they’re asking us to pick up a pay phone, something many of us haven’t done in years, adds layers of personal memories to the pre-recorded ones on the line. The participation becomes part of the experience, and is unique to each and every location. Check the map on the site for pay phone locations, or merely start wandering your neighborhood. You’ll be surprised how many there are once you start looking.