NYC’s Whitney Museum approves plans to begin construction of down museum in 2011

NYC’s Whitney to build new, bigger downtown museum

NEW YORK — The Whitney Museum of American Art will break ground on a new museum in downtown Manhattan in 2011.

The museum’s board on Tuesday night unanimously approved the construction of the Renzo Piano-designed building at the entrance to the new High Line park. It said the six-story, asymmetrical, metal-clad museum will provide “essential new space” for the Whitney’s holdings.

The museum’s current Madison Avenue location can display only 150 works at a time from its 18,000-piece permanent collection.

The museum has raised $372 million of the $680 million project. It’s expected to be completed in 2015.

The fate of the uptown museum hasn’t been resolved. The Whitney board agreed to continue discussions with the Metropolitan Museum of Art about possibly sharing it.

Online:

www.whitney.org