| Contact: | Sunny Mindel / Lynn Rasic |
(212) 788-2958 |
| Kim Mitchell (MoMA) | (212) 333-6594 | |
| Dana Larson (Ruder Finn, Inc.) | (212) 593-6448 |
Joining the Mayor for the groundbreaking ceremony in the historic Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden were MoMA Chairman Emeritus David Rockefeller, MoMA Director Glenn D. Lowry, Deputy Mayor for Planning, Education and Cultural Affairs Anthony P. Coles, as well as the Museum's Chairman Ronald S. Lauder and President Agnes Gund.
"The Museum of Modern Art is one of New York City's greatest cultural treasures and the most important institution dedicated to modern art in the world," Mayor Giuliani said. "This major public-private expansion project will ensure MoMA's continued position of pre-eminence. The Museum's expansion will benefit the City by drawing a tremendous number of new visitors, generating a substantial number of permanent new jobs, and broadening education opportunities for New York City students. The City's investment in MoMA is an investment in the preservation, enhancement, and future of an invaluable cultural institution."
"We are thankful to the Mayor and to the City for making such an important
commitment to the future of MoMA, and to the future of New York," David
Rockefeller said. "The City's lead contribution of $65 million helped the
Museum to raise $500 million toward our $650 million capital campaign goal in
record time. It is particularly moving to embark on this new chapter in the
Museum's history in The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden, named for
my mother and located on the site of my childhood home."
The Museum expansion will provide larger, more flexible exhibition space for
contemporary art, distinctive galleries for displaying masterpieces of modern
art, a dramatic lobby space with an expansive view of The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller
Sculpture Garden, and a soaring light-filled atrium. The Museum's new building
complex will house exhibition galleries and a major center devoted to education
and research, reflecting the Museum's dual priorities of art and education.
The building will frame the restored and enlarged Sculpture Garden, re-establishing
it as the heart of the Museum.
In addition to creating dramatic new spaces, Taniguchi's design restores and enhances a number of the Museum's noteworthy architectural features. Specifically, The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden will be expanded to its pre-1984 configuration, the existing Goodwin & Stone façade will be restored and will serve as the new entrance to the film and video center, the Bauhaus staircase will become a connection between departmental galleries, and the 1984 Cesar Pelli Museum Tower will become more fully integrated into the urban ensemble.
"Today is an important milestone in the bold and innovative redefinition of the Museum, made possible by the creative vision of architect Yoshio Taniguchi," MoMA Director Glenn D. Lowry said. "Taniguchi's inspired design, with its sensitivity to the Museum's mission and its urban surroundings, will allow us to share our collection in new ways with a broader audience."
With construction in progress, MoMA's current 53rd Street facilities will remain open through the summer of 2002 with major exhibitions, including the first comprehensive New York City museum exhibition in three decades of Alberto Giacometti's works, and the first New York City retrospective of Gerhard Richter's work. In summer 2002, Museum operations will move to MoMA QNS in the Swingline factory building at 33rd Street and Queens Boulevard, Long Island City, Queens. The new museum space is designed by Cooper, Robertson, and Partners of New York, and the public spaces are designed in collaboration with Michael Maltzan Architecture of Los Angeles.
Currently on view on the Museum's second floor is MoMA Builds, an exhibition exploring the Building Project. The new 53rd Street building is illustrated through a three-dimensional model, a virtual tour narrated by actor and art collector Steve Martin, a lenticular photograph illustrating the transformation of the midtown facility, color renderings and a presentation of the interior and exterior materials. MoMA Builds also explores MoMA QNS through a three-dimensional model and a map of Queens covering the exhibition floor and presenting the building in the context of the City.
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