It was announced last week that the Altria group will be leaving New York and the Park Avenue space that houses the Whitney branch museum was put up for rent. According to an article in the New York Times today, Carol Vogel writes that the Altria branch of the Whitney will not be seeking another location. Adam D. Weinberg, director of the museum said, “It has been fabulous, but the branch museums are a thing of the past. They’ve pretty much run their course.”
The Whitney had had several branch museums open and close over the years, all in conjunction with different corporate sponsors. Now they are focusing their time and efforts in securing a site in Meatpacking district near the Highline for an additional Whitney museum. The projected location would make the museum 100,000 – 150,000 square feet and ideal for presenting exhibitions of artist’s work that does not fit in the museum uptown or in traditional gallery spaces.
With Altria Leaving, Whitney Loses Branch [NYT]
