HARTFORD, CONN .- The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art publically unveiled the product of a five-year, $33 million renovation project Saturday, Sept.19. The colossal project has renewed over 38,000 square feet of the museum's historic structures with 21st-century museum visitors in mind, emphasizing access to, and reinterpretation of, the museum's vast collections. The renovation has reclaimed space previously used for storage and other purposes to add 17 new galleries-nearly 16,000 square feet of new exhibition space (a 27% increase)-to the building's existing footprint. A seminal moment in the Wadsworth Atheneum's rich legacy, the grand reopening prominently features exquisitely appointed galleries in the 100-year-old Morgan Memorial Building, marking the first comprehensive reinstallation of the museum's European collections in over a generation, and the first time all of the museum's galleries have been open simultaneously in 50 years.

"It is thrilling, on the eve of my retirement to look at what we as a team have accomplished over the last five years of renovation," said Susan L. Talbott, Director and C.E.O. "I am confident that when I leave the Wadsworth Atheneum at the end of this year the museum will be poised to serve the next generation of visitors and staff."

The museum's renovation began in 2010 following the closure of many galleries due to leaks and other structural issues. The project specifically addressed sub-grade waterproofing; new roofs for the museum's five buildings; integration of a proprietary energy plant and window treatments to stabilize gallery climate; improvement of existing storage area to a state-of-the-art facility to better protect collections; enhancements to gallery lighting systems to accepted industry practices; fabrication of new ADA-compliant restrooms and existing restroom relocation/upgrade; installation of a new elevator car; placement of new skylights in the Morgan Memorial Building and total refurbishment of a 1910 Heinigke & Bowen stained glass laylight; uncovering of original architectural elements, like concrete beams and windows; new or repaired flooring and fresh paint in galleries; wiring to bring in-gallery technologies and wi-fi to museum visitors; and the installation of comprehensive way-finding signage throughout the buildings. Smith Edwards McCoy Architects of Hartford led the project.

"The Wadsworth Atheneum was founded in 1842, some 28 years before the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and 30 years before the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Says David W. Dangremond, President of the Board of Directors, "We are proud of what we at the Wadsworth Atheneum have achieved by focusing on the reinstallation of our collections and renovation of our campus of historic buildings. Now, at last, the public can fully experience the richness of our remarkable history."

Reinstallation of the Collections
In January 2015 the museum unveiled the newly refurbished and reinstalled Post-War and Contemporary Art galleries, brimming with pivotal works by artists like Franz Kline, Sol LeWitt, Martin Puryear, Cindy Sherman, Kiki Smith, Kara Walker and Andy Warhol. Also opened in January was expanded special exhibition space, featuring, "Coney Island: Visions of an American Dreamland, 1861-2008"-the first exhibition to use visual art as a lens to explore the lure that Coney Island exerted on American culture over a period of 150 years.

The reinstallation and September debut of the Morgan Memorial Building covers a period from antiquity to the late 19th century. More than 1,000 works of art were moved and hung, and nearly 150 new cases and platforms were installed to present innovative configurations of objects. Highlights include the Early Baroque gallery, painted a rich sanguine red and brimming with masterpieces by Caravaggio and Poussin, and debuting of the museum's new acquisition, Artemisia Gentileschi's Self-Portrait as a Lute Player (1616 - 18); an interactive Cabinet of Art and Curiosities packed with hundreds of Wunderkammer objects like Nautilus shells, glass, rock crystal, including many pieces drawn from J. Pierpoint Morgan's own collection; and the majestic Great Hall, where 24-foot-high walls are hung with massive frames in a salon style, intermingling the sacred and profane as liberally as in Giovanni Paolo Panini's The Picture Gallery of Cardinal Silvio Valenti Gonzaga (1749).

The new European galleries were reconceived by a museum team led by Oliver Tostmann, Susan Morse Hilles Curator of European Art, and Linda Roth, Senior Curator and Charles C. and Eleanor Lamont Cunningham Curator of European Decorative Arts.

Special Guests
The Wadsworth Atheneum has negotiated loans of two significant works by major artists to enhance the reinstallation of its European paintings: Pablo Picasso’s iconic Blue Period painting, “La Vie,” (1903) from the Cleveland Museum of Art, and Titian’s, “Ranuccio Farnese,” (1542) from the National Gallery of Art in Washinton, D.C. Both paintings are considered the most important works by their makers in the United States.

New Technology Offerings
The museum’s renovation has addressed technology and hardware in the building to provide free wi-fi for museum visitors. In addition, a downloadable mobile application was launched in tandem with the reopening, allowing visitors to learn more about the museum and its collections as they explore the galleries on their own mobile devices or with iPods borrowed from the information desks. The Cabinet of Art and Curiosities will use touchscreen technology to allow visitors to create their own collections to keep and share. And continuing the museum’s mission of holding its collection in trust for all people, a growing digital collections search is now available via the museum’s website.