On
May 9, 2009 the Women's Board of the Art Institute of Chicago
hosted the Modern Wing Opening Gala, a celebration of the Museum's
extraordinary new Modern Wing. The 264,000-square-foot Renzo
Piano-designed addition is the largest expansion in the museum's history.
The Modern Wing increases the museum's size to more than a million
square feet, making it the second largest art museum in the United
States.
The Modern Wing offers brand new galleries for the Art Institute's
renowned collection of modern European painting and sculpture as well
as its revelatory collection of contemporary art, including film, video,
and new media. The Modern Wing also offers much needed additional special
exhibition space and gallery space for the museum's Department of Architecture
and Design and Department of Photography. Added to the 65,000 square
feet of new gallery space are a number of visitor amenities, including
an interior garden, an open-air sculpture terrace, a mezzanine café,
a pedestrian bridge to Millennium Park, and a fine-dining restaurant
managed by award-winning Spiaggia chef Tony Mantuano. The Modern Wing
opens with its permanent collection galleries as well as six special
exhibitions.
