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| Expanded High Museum Of Art Opens On November 12, 2005 The High Museum of Art opens its expanded facilities to the public on November 12, 2005, creating a vibrant “village for the arts” at the Woodruff Arts Center in Midtown Atlanta. Designed by architect Renzo Piano, three new buildings surrounding a public piazza more than double the Museum’s size to 312, 000 square feet—allowing the High to display more of its growing collection, increase public programs and offer new visitor amenities to address the needs of larger and more diverse audiences. The High and the Woodruff Arts Center surpassed their original $130-million campaign goal in November 2004—exactly one year before the opening of the expanded Museum. Due to success of fundraising efforts during the campaign, the scope of the project was expanded to include the renovation of the High’s existing building as well as other owner-directed enhancements to the facility and campus. To date, the High and Woodruff Arts Center have raised $163.9 million towards a total goal of $178.4 million. The 177, 000-square-foot, $109.3 million expansion of the High is accompanied by a $54.1 million upgrade of the Woodruff Arts Center. The total construction budget stands at $163.4 million. The High opened its existing critically acclaimed building designed by Richard Meier in 1983. Attendance rose to a high of 450, 000 visitors in 2005, the collection has more than doubled and in the past decade, membership has reached a high of over 41, 000 households—among the top 10 memberships of any art museum in the United States. The High has been a catalyst for the development of the Midtown Atlanta, that now encompasses nearly 17 million square feet of office space and is a destination for nearly half a million citizens each day. Piano’s signature piazza design will open the Arts Center to the surrounding neighborhood. Key design features of the new buildings include transparent glass walls on the piazza level and an array of gallery spaces to showcase the core strengths of the Museum’s collection. Over 5, 400 individuals and families in Atlanta and beyond expressed their support for the expanded High and Woodruff Arts Center through contributions to the campaign, launched in mid-1998, with gifts ranging in size from $25 to $12 million. Lead gifts include a construction gift of $12 million from the former Chairman of the High’s Board of Directors, John Wieland and his wife Sue—the largest individual gift in the Museum’s history. Renzo Piano, winner of the prestigious Pritzker Prize for Architecture in 1998, has designed several acclaimed art museums, including the Pompidou Centre in Paris, The Menil Collection in Houston, the Cy Twombly Gallery in Houston, the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas, and the Museum Beyeler in Basel, Switzerland. Piano’s current cultural projects include: The California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, The Morgan Library in New York, The New York Times building in New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. write your comments about the article :: © 2005 Construction News :: home page |