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Plans for a major renovation project to the western entrance of the Acropolis have been met with strong opposition from archaeologists in Greece and across the world. In an open letter to the public, the signatories, including figures from the universities of Oxford, Durham and Brown, called for the cancellation of a project they believe will lead to the “devaluation, concealment and degradation of the greatest archaeological and artistic treasure that has been bequeathed to modern Greece”. — The Art Newspaper
At the center of the controversy is the argument over the "correct appearance" of the historic Acropolis site in Athens that has experienced multiple additions, restorations, and excavations over the years. According to The Art Newspaper, the group opposed to the planned renovation believes that... View full entry
The Church, a nonprofit arts center in Sag Harbor, N.Y., founded by the artists Eric Fischl and April Gornik, will begin to welcome visitors on April 15. Two tours of the center, a former Methodist church built in 1832, will be offered daily, Thursday through Monday. — The New York Times
After housing the Methodist Church of Sag Harbor from the early eighteen-hundreds until 2008, the historic structure was recently renovated by New York firm SKOLNICK Architecture + Design Partnership. The 12,000-square-foot adaptive reuse intervention created flexible spaces for exhibition as well... View full entry
The Philadelphia Museum of Art has announced May 7th as the grand opening date following a major renovation endeavor led by Frank Gehry's team. Called the Core Project, the transformation represents two decades of planning, design, and construction of 90,000 square feet of revived and newly... View full entry
The Centre Pompidou in Paris will close for three years from the end of 2023 for essential maintenance work, the museum announced [Monday] in a statement. The plan is for France’s national museum for Modern and contemporary art, designed by Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano and inaugurated in 1977, to reopen in time for its 50th anniversary in 2027. — The Art Newspaper
The renovations will reconcile corrosion and wear and tear that has been affecting the building. Moreover, the work will remove asbestos within the structure, "meeting safety, technical and energy standards and making the building accessible for people with reduced mobility," reports The Arts... View full entry
The Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin is set to reopen in the summer of 2021, more than six years after it closed for renovation, with an exhibition of the American sculptor Alexander Calder in the temple-like steel-and-glass upper level of the building.
Designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and first opened in 1968, the museum is undergoing a €100m modernisation and refurbishment by the Berlin-based British architect David Chipperfield [...].
— The Art Newspaper
Reflecting on the significance, and also quirks, of Mies van der Rohe's 1967 New National Gallery, the architect of the ambitious renovation project, David Chipperfield, told the New York Times in a 2017 interview: "Mies took architecture to its extreme. And as a result, the building has... View full entry
The Centre Pompidou in Paris could close for up to three years for essential maintenance work to be carried out on the famous 1970s building. The plan is one of two options under consideration by the French government who will decide how to proceed with the multi-million euro refurbishment. — The Art Newspaper
As many Americans have taken to working, learning, and sheltering at home in the months since the coronavirus pandemic took hold, existing residential spaces have had to play double and triple duty, functionally speaking. Amid these shifts in use, Americans have begun to undertake home... View full entry
The renovation of the Musée d’Art Moderne in Paris took place between July 2016 and October 2019 with a primary goal of improving the reception area and staff working spaces. The museum remained open to the public during the renovation, forcing the team to coordinate the project without... View full entry
The William Pereira-design Hunt Branch Library in Fullerton, California has received funds for a new renovation. Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silvia issued a $2.5 million budget request in 2019 which has since been approved and allocated to the City of Fullerton to be utilized in the renovation of... View full entry
[...] vast renovation project aimed at bringing all those innards up-to-date. The endeavor, budgeted at close to 300 million Australian dollars (nearly $200 million U.S.), culminated with the closure of the complex’s concert hall for the first time in its history. The hall has in the past been open 363 days a year, a point of pride, but it was shuttered in February for the start of a two-year upgrade. — The New York Times
Sydney's iconic Jørn Utzon-designed opera house will be turning 50 years old in 2023, and a massive renovation project has been long overdue. Particular focus for the designers in charge of the job, Australian firm ARM Architecture, will be creating accessibility for visitors with mobility... View full entry
As the three-month-long renovations for the Great Hall comes to a close, the National Building Museum prepares to reopen on March 13, 2020. The reopening will kick off a yearlong 40th anniversary celebration at the museum. The celebration will begin with a new exhibition: Alan Karchmer... View full entry
One of the Upper East Side buildings that was once home to the National Academy of Design will soon get a starchitect-designed revamp. At a hearing this week, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to approve a Rafael Viñoly-designed plan to renovate one of the museum’s former holdings, with some modifications. — Curbed NY
Plagued by financial troubles in recent years, the National Academy had sold, among other properties on Fifth Avenue, its historic building on East 89th Street to Salon 94 art gallery in 2016 "The owner of the gallery, Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, hired Viñoly to restore the landmarked building’s... View full entry
On Saturday, the Seattle Asian Art Museum will reopen after a two-year, $56 million restoration and renovation, unveiling new and modern spaces to share its extensive collection. The building is one of three associated with the Seattle Art Museum, and except for some minor additions, has not had a major renovation since its construction in 1933. — The New York Times
Aerial view of the museum in Seattle's Volunteer Park. Photo: © Tim Griffith Seattle-based firm LMN Architects, in collaboration with landscape architect Walker Macy, was in charge of the $56 million, 24-month-long renovation and expansion which includes a new glass-enclosed park lobby, a new... View full entry
In London, where it is often difficult, if not nearly impossible, to build new ground-up residences, many architectural firms specialize in helping families give their "traditional"-looking homes contemporary updates. Initiatives like New London Architecture (NLA)'s annual "Don't Move... View full entry
Thinc Design and Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) have announced the completion of the reimagined Empire State Building Observatory, marking the culmination of the final phase of a four-year $165 million-dollar transformation of the iconic tower. Acting as Experience Designer on the project, Thinc... View full entry