Minnesota Museum of American Art expanding in…
Minnesota Museum of American Art expanding in Pioneer Endicott buildings
A rendering of the facade planned for the Minnesota Museum of American Art, which announced a major expansion in St. Paul's historic Pioneer Endicott building on Wednesday, May 31. (Courtesy of Minnesota Museum of American Art)
A rendering of the Sculpture Court planned for the Minnesota Museum of American Art, which announced a major expansion in St. Paul's historic Pioneer Endicott building on Wednesday, May 31. (Courtesy of Minnesota Museum of American Art)
A rendering of a classroom planned for the Minnesota Museum of American Art, which announced a major expansion in St. Paul's historic Pioneer Endicott building on Wednesday, May 31. (Courtesy of Minnesota Museum of American Art)
A rendering of the skyway between the the historic Pioneer Endicott buildings, part of the expansion planned for the Minnesota Museum of American Art, announced Wednesday, May 31, 2017. (Courtesy of Minnesota Museum of American Art)
A rendering of the Contemporary Gallery planned for the Minnesota Museum of American Art, which announced a major expansion in St. Paul's historic Pioneer Endicott building on Wednesday, May 31. (Courtesy of Minnesota Museum of American Art)
By Kathy Berdan | kberdan@pioneerpress.com | Pioneer Press
PUBLISHED: May 31, 2017 at 1:07 p.m. | UPDATED: June 1, 2017 at 7:59 a.m.
The Minnesota Museum of American Art ("The M") announced a major expansion in downtown St. Paul's historic Pioneer Endicott building.
The $12.5 million development project will begin this summer and expand the museum's public space to more than 20,000 square feet, according to Wednesday's announcement. The M's gallery currently occupies the corner of the Pioneer building at Fourth and Robert streets.
The expansion will cover the first floor of both the Pioneer and Endicott buildings on Robert Street, with the entrance in what was once an alley between the two buildings.
"It's an integration of old and new, inside and outside," said Kristin Makholm, executive director of the M.
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The new M will open in spring 2018 and include a state-of-the-art gallery, community gathering spaces and a sculpture court with a "sky bridge" overhead that extends the skyway over Robert Street into the M.
Exposed brick archways will be uncovered and the brick from behind the marble pillars in front of the Endicott will be removed and be replaced with a sheet of windows along Robert Street.
The project, which involves private and St. Paul funding, was going to be carried out in two phases, explained Susannah Schouweiler, the M's communications manager. But the Minnesota Legislature recently approved a bonding bill that includes $6 million for the M. The timeline for Phase 2, which will add more galleries, is currently being re-examined.
The expansion has been planned since the M moved to the Pioneer building about four years ago, Schouweiler said.
The current gallery space will become the Sifo Center for Creativity, named in honor of the Sifo Company, a toy company that thrived in St. Paul from 1944 to 1975, according to a news release from the M. The Center for Creativity will have 5,000 square feet for new classroom and maker spaces.
The upper floors of the Pioneer Endicott buildings contain retail on the skyway, offices and housing.
The M is one of the oldest visual arts organizations in Minnesota and holds more than 4,500 artworks by American artists. The first exhibit in the new gallery will draw from the museum's permanent collection.
Kathy Berdan | Arts and entertainment team leader
Kathy has been an arts journalist for more than 25 years. She loves Twin Cities theater, bicycling, reading good books in the screen porch, the St. Paul Winter Carnival and the Minnesota State Fair.
kberdan@pioneerpress.com
Follow Kathy Berdan @KathyBerdan
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