Overview
- The Bowery institution opens to the public today with the cross-building exhibition “New Humans: Memories of the Future,” and free opening‑weekend tickets are already sold out.
- The seven‑story, 60,000‑square‑foot addition by OMA’s Shohei Shigematsu and Rem Koolhaas with Cooper Robertson nearly doubles gallery space and improves circulation with a new atrium stair and three elevators.
- New infrastructure includes a permanent home for NEW INC, a 74‑seat forum, an expanded seventh‑floor Sky Room, multiple terraces, and an artist‑in‑residence studio.
- Visitor amenities feature a new entrance plaza, a larger bookstore, and a full‑service restaurant operated by the Oberon Group led by chef Julia Sherman, with regular hours resuming, pay‑what‑you‑wish Thursday evenings, and free admission for visitors under 18.
- Site‑specific commissions by Tschabalala Self, Klára Hosnedlová, and Sarah Lucas debut as critics and visitors offer mixed reactions to the new facade and the slippery finish of the central stair, with some finishing touches still evident at press preview.