The Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft (KMAC) announces major renovation plan to be completed in Spring 2016. After 35 years of artist support, exhibitions, educational programs, and community building, the newly designed museum will increase public space and open opportunities for continued growth.
Renovation plans aim to meet ambitious 2016 goals to engage 10,000 more children in educational programs, double the average visitor duration, grow with downtown development and Museum Row expansion, and double capacity for events. The design includes extra event area, redesigned education space, expanded MakerSpace, and a café.
“With all these activities and a strong community foundation supporting us, KMAC is ready for renovation,” said KMAC Executive Director and Chief Curator Aldy Milliken. “This new flexible, efficient design will help further KMAC’s presence as a downtown community art center.”
The first level of the museum will be transformed into an open, multi-purpose area that will serve as a comfortable gathering space for visitors, while maintaining a regionally focused retail space. Renovations on the second floor will create a streamlined space for national quality exhibitions to better contextualize artists in the community. Third-floor changes include a complete overhaul of the education center to create a better learning environment, accommodate hands-on activities and various group sizes.
KMAC has partnered with Christoff : Finio Architecture, a firm based in New York to bring these plans to life. The team has extensive experience with cultural center design focusing on preservation, including projects at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the New Museum. For on site construction, KMAC will be working with Bosse Mattingly Constructors and K. Norman Berry Architects of Louisville, Kentucky.
In the fall of 2014, The Future is Being Crafted: KMAC’s Capital Campaign began to raise funds to provide ongoing support of art education programs through endowment and enhance facility space to sustain museum growth. KMAC has received pledges of 3.3 million dollars toward the campaign to date.
During renovation, the permanent collection will be safely housed in a climate controlled storage facility. The KMAC Collections Committee is meeting regularly and will continue to assess and grow the permanent collection. With new renovation capacity, the Collection will have a safer home at KMAC and more space to exhibit.
During the 4-6 month renovation time, KMAC educational and exhibition programming will continue, including external exhibitions, pop-up shops and events. The museum will begin renovation in September following the closing of the exhibition Food Shelter Clothing.
“This renovation time offers the opportunity for KMAC to engage in community projects and continue to build relationships,” Aldy Milliken said. “Art education, conversations and outreach efforts will continue across the city.”
Next month, KMAC’s photo biennial exhibition will be displayed at the Louisville Public Library Southwest Branch on Dixie Highway. Nina Katchadourian’s Sorted Books project will be on view from September 19 – November 8. A public reception with the artist will be held at the library on October 1, 2015.
The KMAC education team will be collaborating with Louisville’s Commission on Public Art to create programming and guides for an arts exhibition to be displayed along the waterfront. KMAC educators will be regularly participating as artists-in-residence at regional schools, and the museum’s popular Mobile Museums will still be available for rental.
The new KMAC will open in Spring 2016 with the exhibition “The Material Issue.” This exhibition will create a dialogue with certain materials that are steeped in traditional craft. Refer to the KMAC website at http://www.kmacmuseum.org and follow on social media @KMACmuseum for updates and event schedules.
- Louisville Mini Maker Faire: September 19, 2015
- Programs with the Commission on Public Art: August 28-November 2015
- Photo Biennial Public Reception: October 1, 2015
- Bourbon Bash: October 3, 2015
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