Two New York museums that have narrowly survived the current economic times will possibly partner together in a series of exhibitions hosted by the Seaport Museum in 2012.

Earlier this year, the American Folk Art Museum was forced to sell its flagship building on 53rd St. to MoMA in order to cover its debts. The financially-flailing museum received last-minute donations to keep its collections intact.

Similarly saved, the struggling Seaport Museum, with its holdings of marine paintings, scrimshaw, ship models, ship memorabilia, and historic ships, located in the South Street Seaport district, announced this fall that it would now benefit from a $2 million Manhattan Development Corp. grant for the post-9/11 recovery of nonprofits, as part of a take over by the Museum of the City of New York.

“We are very much hoping that the Museum of American Folk Art will do exhibitions in four galleries [at the Seaport Museum] starting in June," said interim Seaport head Susan Henshaw Jones at a city council meeting last week.