REVISED/UPDATED Expansion Fact Sheet

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1 Press Contact Phone Fax REVISED/UPDATED Expansion Fact Sheet January 28, 2011 The Saint Louis Art Museum announces the details of its expansion project. For more information, please contact the Museum s press office or visit Project Overview Over the past 130 years, strategic acquisitions by the Saint Louis Art Museum and magnificent gifts from local benefactors have created a collection that places the Museum among the top 10 comprehensive art museums in the country. Designed by British architect David Chipperfield, the more-than-200,000- square-foot expansion represents a 30% increase in the Museum s gallery and public space and will more than double its former parking capacity. In addition to providing increased gallery space, the design includes extensive improvements that address infrastructural deficiencies that have challenged the institution for more than a century. Schedule Site Description Architect General Contractor The Museum will remain open to the public throughout construction and will continue to operate on its regular schedule. A public opening of the David Chipperfield designed expansion is anticipated in early (See attached Fact Sheet: One-Year Milestones.) The expansion will be located to the east and south of the 1904 Cass Gilbert designed building. David Chipperfield Architects Tarlton/Pepper/KAI, through a joint venture Project Cost Total Cost: $162 million Expansion Project: $130.5 million Endowment: $31.2 million The Campaign for the Saint Louis Art Museum Leadership Phase Donors The Museum launched the public phase of its $145 million Campaign for the Saint Louis Art Museum on January 19, Six lead gifts of $10 million or more each were made during the leadership phase of The Campaign for the Saint Louis Art Museum by community leaders Emily Rauh Pulitzer, Alvin J. and Ruth Siteman, Jack C. Taylor, John D. and Anabeth Weil, Gary C. Werths and one anonymous donor. Endowment As of November 30, 2010 the endowment stood at $95.6 million, an 8.8 percent increase year to year.

2 p. 2 Saint Louis Art Museum Lease Economic Impact The Saint Louis Art Museum s 1997 lease with the city of St. Louis establishes the framework that provides for the current expansion. It is available online at The Museum s renovation provides a beautiful addition to the city s cultural landscape. The project is financed entirely through private funds and is a testament to private philanthropy in St. Louis. The two-year construction project will involve all building trades and 24 different crafts, generating an estimated 200 jobs. As of January 1, 2011, 631 tradesmen and women had worked on the project. The framework outlined in the lease with the city includes goals of 25% Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) participation and 5% Women s Business Enterprise (WBE) participation; the lease also sets criteria for a contractor to qualify as a MBE or WBE on the Museum expansion project. The project has been tracking at 26% MBE participation and 37% WBE participation. Upon opening, the Museum plans to add 25 new full-time employees to serve its visitors and maintain the expanded facility. Building Design The design calls for an addition with a dark, polished concrete façade incorporating Missouri river aggregate. New galleries and public spaces will feature skylights and a number of floor-to-ceiling windows to invite and provide views from both inside and outside. Architect David Chipperfield s design organically links the expansion to the current structure by connecting to existing primary circulation axes. It features a new central staircase to more clearly connect the Main Level to the Lower Level and a new public concourse serving an expanded cafe and the existing Museum Shop and Auditorium. A new restaurant will feature a dramatic overlook of Forest Park to the north. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED certification indicates that a project has met set standards for environmentally sustainable construction. The expansion project was designed in accordance with these standards, and the Museum will seek LEED certification for the project upon completion. To provide the public with an understanding of the design process as it unfolded, the Museum hosted a series of five Community Conversations, between November 2005 and October 2007, with architect David Chipperfield and Museum Director Brent R. Benjamin. Building Materials Façade: Dark, polished concrete incorporating Missouri river aggregate Ceiling: Uniform white concrete coffered ceiling throughout with a combination of artificial light and skylights Floors: Solid wood plank flooring, 6-inch wide quarter sawn white oak

3 p. 3 Renovation South Building Education Center The 1904 Cass Gilbert designed building and South Building will both be improved, with more than 13,000 square feet of space renovated for permanent collection galleries, as well as education, classroom and public use. The Saint Louis Art Museum s Board of Commissioners selected TAO + Lee Associates, Inc. as architect for the Museum s South Building Education Center in June St. Louis based TAO + Lee will execute the design concept master plan for the Education Center and the South Building entry experience. Led by owners Peter Tao and Helen Lee, the firm is a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) with experience in commercial, cultural, educational and hospitality projects. New Amenities Entry: A new entry hall will be served by a new, fully accessible entrance on Fine Arts Drive, with expanded visitor amenities including restrooms, coat check and information desk. An extended east/west axis will connect visitors through the new entry hall directly into the Cass Gilbert designed building and Sculpture Hall. Restaurant: A new 2,500-square-foot restaurant will feature a dramatic overlook of Forest Park to the north. Level 1 Concourse: A new central staircase will connect Sculpture Hall to the Lower Level and a new public concourse, which will lead visitors to the newly renovated Museum Shop, Auditorium and Education space in the South Building. The concourse will also connect with an expanded cafe, as well as link visitors to the new garage. Education Space/Auditorium: To better serve the Museum s school and group visitors, the project includes three new classrooms and orientation spaces on the second level of the South Building. The 480-seat Murphy & Mackey designed Auditorium on the Lower Level will be renovated with equipment and interior finish upgrades. Tour Group Entrance: A new, dedicated bus/group tour entrance will be located at the South Building entrance of the Museum. This new group entrance will relieve traffic congestion from Fine Arts Drive and improve safety for the tens of thousands of school children who visit the Museum every year. Parking Garage: The expansion will include space for over 300 cars in a below-grade parking structure more than doubling the Museum s previous parking capacity. While there will be a charge for garage parking, free public parking will remain available in the two public lots located in front of the Museum off Fine Arts Drive. The garage will also be available after hours for Forest Park events.

4 p. 4 Landscape Plan The landscape design envisions approximately 730 new trees on the Museum s leased site as well as the installation of outdoor sculpture. An entry plaza will link the new accessible entry directly to Fine Arts Drive. The Neptune Fountain, installed in Sculpture Hall in 1958, will be relocated to the new group entrance at the South Building to greet the Museum s school visitors. Project Credits Design Architect: David Chipperfield Architects Architect of Record: Landscape Architect: Landscape Architect of Record: Project Manager: General Contractor: HOK Michel Desvigne Paysagiste HGA The RISE Group Tarlton/Pepper/KAI joint venture Tarlton Corp. Pepper Construction Group KAI Design & Build Engineers: Civil/Structural Engineer: MEP/FP Engineer of Record: Ove Arup & Partners Magnusson Klemencic Associates William Tao & Associates

5 p. 5 David Chipperfield Architect London-based David Chipperfield Architects (DCA) has won some of Europe s most prestigious honors, including the restoration of the Neues Museum and master plan for Museum Island in Berlin; the America s Cup Pavilion in Valencia, Spain; and the extension of Venice s historic San Michele cemetery island. Chipperfield was awarded the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2007 for the Museum of Modern Literature in Marbach, Germany. Chipperfield s U.S. projects include the Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa; the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center; and the Des Moines Central Library. In addition to receiving some of Europe s most prestigious honors, including the Tessenow Gold Medal, David Chipperfield was knighted in 2010 by the Queen of England in the New Year s Honors List in recognition of his services to architecture in both the United Kingdom and Germany. He also received the 2011 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Previous recipients include Mies van der Rohe, Louis Kahn, and most recently Alvaro Siza (2009) and I. M. Pei (2010). Michel Desvigne Landscape Architect Michel Desvigne was appointed landscape architect in December Based in Paris, Desvigne was the recipient of the Medal of the French Academy of Architecture (2000) and has taught at Harvard University s Graduate School of Design. He has worked with such internationally recognized architects as Sir Norman Foster, Herzog & de Meuron, Jean Nouvel, O.M.A. (Rem Koolhaas), Bernard Tschumi, I. M. Pei, Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers. Desvigne s projects include Millennium Park in London s Greenwich Peninsula, several modern art Museums gardens Utrecht (Netherlands), Antwerp (Belgium) and Parc Drai (Luxembourg) and more recently a project at the Keio University in Tokyo. Desvigne s projects in the U.S. include the Dallas Centre for Performing Arts and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis.

6 p. 6 Amenities During Construction Construction is expected to take approximately two years. The Museum remains open to the public while the expansion is underway and continues to host, organize and circulate temporary exhibitions. The Museum Shop: A temporary Museum Shop is located on the Main Level in Galleries 210 and 211. Cafe: A temporary Cafe serving light fare is located on the Main Level in Gallery 213. The Richardson Memorial Library: The Library is open on Thursdays, by appointment only. To schedule a visit, please call Please make reservations at least 48 hours in advance. Monday through Friday, Library staff is available to answer your questions by telephone ( ), fax ( ) or (library@slam.org). Education Space: A temporary Classroom space is located on the Main Level in Galleries 204 and 205. Museum History Free Admission Historic Cass Gilbert Building The Saint Louis Art Museum was founded in 1879, at the close of a decade that saw the establishment of art museums in great cities across the eastern half of the United States. The Art Museum s comprehensive collection bears witness to the inspirational and educational goals to which its founder, Wayman T. Crow, aspired and the moral and democratic imperatives he embraced. Today, the quality and breadth of the Museum s collection secure for it a place among the very best institutions of its kind. In 1907, St. Louis voters approved a tax to support the Saint Louis Art Museum, and in 1909, thanks to this generous public support, the Museum became free to all. This fortunate circumstance continues to foster the broadest possible access to the Museum s extraordinary collections, as well as a deep regard for the visual arts for generations of Museum visitors. Born in 1859, Cass Gilbert had a distinguished architectural career before designing the Palace of Fine Arts (now the Saint Louis Art Museum) for the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition, better known as the St. Louis World s Fair. In addition to the permanent limestone structure that houses the Museum today, the Fine Arts complex included three temporary pavilions, which were demolished at the close of the Fair. Some of the sculptures that surround the building, including the two flanking the main entrance, were originally made of plaster but later carved in marble and reinstalled. Significant modifications to the Museum over the last century include the addition of third floor galleries, an auditorium, an office wing and an underground conservation wing. Renovations increased available exhibition space by 47% between 1975 and The Museum s current expansion plans will add another dimension to the historic Cass Gilbert building.

7 p. 7 Collection Highlights Galleries As part of the Museum s expansion, several galleries were closed, and highlights of the Museum s collection were reinstalled. Collection highlights were carefully chosen by the Museum s curators. African Gallery 103 Egyptian Galleries 130, 130W European Gallery 222 Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Gallery 218 Pre-Columbian Gallery Exhibitions Aaron Douglas Closes April 10, 2011 Glimpsing History Through Art: Selections from the Charles and Rosalyn Lowenhaupt Collection of Japanese Prints New Media Series William Kentridge: Two Films Closes April 10, 2011 Opens January 28, 2011 Fiery Pool: The Maya and the Mythic Sea Opens February 13, 2011 Visual Musings: Prints by William Kentridge Opens February 25, 2011 Currents 105: Ian Monroe Opens April 8, 2011 Restoring an American Treasure: The Panorama of the Monumental Grandeur of the Mississippi Valley Opens June 12, 2011 Monet s Water Lilies Opens October 2, 2011

8 p. 8 Address One Fine Arts Drive Forest Park St. Louis, MO Phone Website Museum Director Museum Hours Parking during construction Brent R. Benjamin Tuesday Sunday, 10 a.m. 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. 9 p.m. Closed Monday, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day Open Memorial Day and Labor Day Free public parking is available in the northwest and northeast parking lots flanking the statue of St. Louis in front of the main entrance to the Museum. Street parking along Fine Arts Drive is also available. ###