New York’s Cooper Hewitt announced Tuesday that the museum will reopen on Dec. 12, after being closed for several years for renovations. The museum is also changing its name from Cooper Hewitt, National Design Museum to Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.
Founded in 1897, the museum began as part of the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. It became part of the Smithsonian in 1967. The campus on New York’s Fifth Avenue includes the Andrew Carnegie Mansion (designed by Babb, Cook & Willard and completed in the early 1900s), the Arthur Ross Terrace and Garden, and two townhouses.
James Rudnick/Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Teak Room, designed by Lockwood de Forest.
James Rudnick/Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Great Hall.
The museum has been closed since 2011 for the renovation, which included reworking existing and non-public areas to increase the museum’s exhibition space. The completed project will have 7,000 more square feet of gallery space, bringing the total to 17,000 square feet. The project anticipates LEED Silver certification.
Several firms were involved in the project, including Gluckman Mayner Architects, Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners, Hood Design, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Thinc Design, Local Projects, Ideum, and Goppion.
