Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Monday was a day the arts and culture community of Western New York has been waiting for, more than three-and-a-half years in the making.
The Buffalo AKG Art Museum re-opened its doors to the public on Monday with a ceremonial ribbon cutting on the new green space in front of the historic Wilmers Building of the museum campus. It marked the end of the construction process of the $230 million capital campaign project that started in November 2019.
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Along with leaders from the Buffalo AKG in attendance for Monday's festivities along Elmwood Avenue across the street from SUNY Buffalo State, a number of other local leaders joined in to commemorate the re-opening including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, and much more.
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Not only was Monday an extraordinary day in Buffalo filled with excitement, but also a long-awaited day for the much-anticipated re-opening of the Buffalo AKG.
"The rest of the world is looking in awe of what a place like Buffalo, known for its architecture and culture and its vibrancy, has really outdone itself," said Gov. Hochul following Monday's celebration. "What we've accomplished here with support from the state, Jeffrey Gundlach and his generosity, and many other patrons, is something that is going to be talked about for generations to come. So really proud to be here in my hometown of Buffalo on this momentous occasion."
"I'm not certain all of our residents truly understand or appreciate the incredible nature of this newly re-opened Buffalo AKG Art Museum. It truly is, in some ways, one of the most important assets that we have. I'm talking about everything, including the Bills. This is something that is world class," added Poloncarz following Monday's festivities. "If you know anything about art, you know about the collection that exists in Buffalo. And with the new building and the renovated older buildings, we can really see the full collection on display in a way we never had before, and it's mind-blowing.
"People who aren't even born yet are going to set foot in this building, and they may not know anything else about Buffalo, but they traveled the world because they're going to want to come here to see the collection. That's something we should all be proud of. And hopefully, all of our residents have an opportunity to experience by coming here and and seeing the art."
Not only was the excitement felt amongst the local leaders and the patrons that came to see the nearly finished transformation of the museum, it was a welcoming day for the workers and volunteers of the museum. Many of them were eager to get back to work and enjoy the celebration with the community.
"It's been amazing. It has been a satisfactory experience across the board," said Buffalo AKG employee Tanner Kendall. "Just the happiness on everybody's face. Everybody's kind of smiling."
"The space was very needed, and to see so many new works that I hadn't seen before because they were purchased or they hadn't been displayed, or couldn't be displayed in the old the way it was before, it's spectacular. Really spectacular," said Buffalo AKG volunteer docent John D'Arcangelo.
Perhaps the highlight feature of the capital campaign project at the Buffalo AKG is the new Gundlach Building that was added to the museum campus as part of the expansive work done. Designed by OMA/Shohei Shigematsu in collaboration with Cooper Robertson, the Gundlach Building adds more than 30,000 square feet of exhibition space, and furthers the museum’s mission of accessibility and initiates a dialogue with the surrounding community, inverting the traditional model of the art museum as an opaque facility and creating tremendous porosity between interior and exterior.
"One of the things that's first noticeable about the new Gundlach building is its size on the inside. It looks like a big building outside, but it is really dedicated to showing off the artwork," Poloncarz said. "This building alone would be something that other communities would love to have on their own and call that their art museum, and we have two other major buildings, three buildings in total on the campus. By having the ability now to put out about 440-to-450 pieces of works of art at the same time, it really is an example of the strength of Buffalo's past, but where we're going in the future."
Following Monday's festivities, Gov. Hochul took a quick tour of the new Gundlach Building and all that it has to offer for the community. She says what she saw was beyond her expectations when she first supported the project as Lieutenant Governor of the state.
"It is so stunning to see how natural light and the beauty of the neighborhood is such an important part of the museum itself, the way they designed this. I don't think there's another museum in the world like this, and people are going to be talking about this," Gov. Hochul said proudly.
When this project first came to the attention of state government years ago, Hochul admitted it was a bold and ambitious feat, but it was one worthy of Buffalo.
"Buffalo needed this," she said. "I've been pushing behind the scenes, even as Lieutenant Governor, but certainly as Governor, to help close out the capital campaign when things were just getting close, but not quite over the finish line. I was really proud to, so this has exceeded all expectations."
Meanwhile, employees and volunteers of the Buffalo AKG are also blown away by the enormous magnitude of the Gundlach Building. Kendall says it is a tremendous addition to the museum campus, and also the community.
"The building really is reflective of a many hands-on approach across the community, not just construction workers or staff members, but the patience and the general admiration of the community has really brought it together and made it shining," he said.
"It will be a place to treasure, and it's a place that will last. It's built to last."
As for D'Arcangelo, he feels the Gundlach Building is just another new highlight of Buffalo that will put the city in the spotlight.
"I think it's of international importance. I think that is one thing which helps put Buffalo on the map," he said. "I think it's something that will enhance the city's personality, and somewhat of the city's jewels."
D'Arcangelo says in the time leading up to Monday's re-opening, staff at the museum needed several weeks of re-indoctrination, as it were, because of the new name and branding of the museum. He said it was like opening a completely new facility.
As for what stands out to D'Arcangelo following the re-opening of the museum, he still couldn't get over the expansive spacing that is now available in all three buildings of the campus.
"I can't get over how beautiful the Common Sky is that's between the 'Knox Box' and the Wilmers Building, it's just so beautiful. They really enhanced the space and made that space more welcoming and much more usable, and just a real town square," he said. "Then this building, the Gundlach Building, just the space, the enormous space to be able to display three [Anselm] Kiefers or this Nick Cave. We couldn't do this before, and that's the pleasure of the space. And they haven't spared any expense. They really did it right, and that's good. We are very fortunate to have people in Buffalo and around the world who gave generously, especially starting with Jeffrey Gundlach."
With the addition of the new Gundlach Building on the museum campus, as well as the addition of new green spaces and other enhancements to the museum and its facilities, the Buffalo AKG has become another shining example of what the Renaissance of the community has been able to produce.
"And especially this Elmwood corridor. New apartments coming up, and they just sold one I heard some million dollars, so they're not cheap. So it really raises the quality of Buffalo in general. And what they're doing down at [Canalside], I mean it's just really changing the whole nature of the city," D'Arcangelo said.
As for Poloncarz, he feels what the Buffalo AKG Art Museum now has to offer for patrons and residents is only proof that the City of Buffalo matters.
"Sometimes I think we have a little bit of a chip on our shoulder, but we also have an inferiority complex. 'Well, we're Buffalo. We're not New York City, we're not Chicago, we're not Washington.' We're not, but we have something they wish they had," Poloncarz said. "This is the type of museum that the major cities in the United States and the world wish they had. So to have this art collection on display here just reinforces that we don't have to be the biggest city in New York State nor the biggest city in the United States, but we can still be a big important city for culture. We are.
"People will travel the world to see the collection here now that they have an opportunity to see it all at once."
A compilation of photos from the new Gundlach Building are available in the player below:
