Today, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York revealed that the institution would close for approximately four months starting June 16 to complete the final stages of its $400 million, Diller Scofidio + Renfro– and Gensler–led expansion and renovation. The museum says that the added 40,000 square feet of exhibition space will help the institution execute its vision of highlighting work by women, Latino, African-American, and Asian artists.
“Inspired by Alfred Barr’s original vision to be an experimental museum in New York, the real value of this expansion is not just more space, but space that allows us to rethink the experience of art in the museum,” said museum director Glenn D. Lowry in a press release. “We have an opportunity to re-energize and expand upon our founding mission—to welcome everyone to experience MoMA as a laboratory for the study and presentation of the art of our time, across all visual arts.”
As part of this return to its founding mission, MoMA will open street-level galleries to the public for free. The second-, fourth-, and fifth-floor galleries will be reorganized to facilitate a rotation of works that will be swapped out every six to nine months, "recognizing that there is no single or complete history of modern and contemporary art," according to the museum. The expansion—which will occupy space where the American Folk Museum once stood—will also include a new performance and programming space (the Studio) as well as a second-floor experimental visitor education area (the Platform).
MoMA will close to the general public after June 15 and plans to reopen on Oct. 21. MoMA PS1 will remain open throughout the summer.
