frank gehry's philadelphia museum of art will open this spring

on may 7th 2021, the philadelphia museum of art will unveil to the public its frank gehry-designed renovation and interior expansion. the opening will mark the culmination of two decades of planning, design, and construction — a project that represents a major milestone in the transformation of the museum’s landmark 1928 building. while its north entrance opened in september 2019, this phase is called the ‘core project’ due to its focus on the renewal of the museum’s infrastructure that has opened up the very heart of the main building. its completion after four years of construction represents an enormous step forward for the museum.

images courtesy of the philadelphia museum of art

the scope of gehry partners‘ ‘core project’ comprises nearly 90,000 square feet of reimagined and newly created space within the main building of the philadelphia museum of art. the entirety of the work is ADA compliant and energy efficient. it includes a rebuilt west terrace, now the robbi and bruce toll terrace, with integrated ramps to facilitate access for all visitors; a renovated lenfest hall, which has long served as the principal entrance to the museum; a new public space, the williams forum, which will serve as the setting for a wide range of activities and will connect the ground floor of the museum to its upper levels; and the vaulted walkway, a grand 640-foot long corridor that spans the entire breadth of the building and has not been open to the public for nearly 50 years.

with the interior expansion of the philadelphia museum of art, the team at gehry partners introduces two new suites of galleries. these galleries occupy areas once devoted to offices, the museum’s restaurant, and retail operation, totaling 20,000 square feet of exhibition space. one of these, the robert l. mcneil, jr. galleries, is devoted to telling a broader and more inclusive narrative of the development of early american art centered on the prominent role played by philadelphia in this story. the other, the daniel w. dietrich II galleries, focusing on the creative spirit of philadelphia today, presents an exhibition of the work of 25 contemporary artists with ties to the city and speaks to many of the most pressing issues of our time.