The Frick Collection, known for hosting one of the world’s foremost collections of fine and decorative arts, just announced the reopening of its historic 5th Avenue venue. The reopening follows an extensive, nearly five-year $220 million renovation overseen by Selldorf Architects, marking the first comprehensive upgrade of its facilities in almost ninety years. During the restoration, the Frick Collection was housed in the Whitney-owned Brutalist Breuer building at 945 Madison Avenue, which has notably hosted a carousel of renowned art collections and is set to become Sotheby’s new headquarters in 2025 after the auction house announced it would buy the building last year and then announced the completion of the purchase today (Nov. 4).
The restored structure repurposes 60,000 square feet of existing space and adds 27,000 square feet of new construction, reviving the building’s Gilded Age splendor. Iconic masterworks from the permanent collection by artists such as François Boucher, Gentile and Giovanni Bellini, Anthony Van Dyck, El Greco, Giambattista Tiepolo and Paolo Veronese, among others, will be reinstalled on the first floor in galleries restored to their original opulence. The Frick spared no expense on finishes; textiles and wall hangings have been carefully refurbished by the same firms commissioned by the Frick family over a century ago, including the green velvet in the West Gallery. This backdrop for paintings and objects in the grand room has been rewoven by Prelle, the French manufactory that created the original in 1914. Another Parisian workshop, Verrier Passementerie, restored and supplemented the silk trimmings and other decorative elements adorning draperies and upholstery. These efforts make the Frick one of the few remaining Gilded Age buildings with original fabric wall and furniture coverings. Additionally, ceilings and historic light fixtures have been fully refurbished and rewired with modern optical elements, improving both energy efficiency and lighting quality.
Among other notable restorations, the eight caryatids from the Frick mansion’s original East 70th Street façade will be displayed in a new space connecting the museum and the Frick Art Reference Library. The Beaux-Arts façades have been meticulously restored, including the long-overdue facelift of their fragile limestone.
With this new phase, the Frick will, for the first time, open its second floor to visitors, presenting rarely exhibited and recently acquired works. Previously serving as staff administrative offices since the museum opened in 1935, the mansion’s second floor has now been transformed into a suite of ten galleries, where visitors can experience installations inspired by the Frick family’s collecting interests over time.
“The intimate encounters with art offered by our historic galleries, along with new spaces transformed from former domestic interiors, remain a cornerstone of the Frick experience,” Ian Wardropper, the Frick’s outgoing Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Director, told Observer. “These spaces have been enhanced thanks to the efforts of the architects, artisans, preservation experts, curators, and many others who have made our historic renovation and enhancement project a reality. We are especially honored and gratified by the extraordinarily generous support of donors to this project, the most important in our history.”
Last September, the Frick Collection appointed Axel Rüger to Wardropper’s former role, and he will begin his tenure with the reopening in April. A two-time museum director, Rüger joins the Frick after leading the Royal Academy of Arts in London and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
The opening will bring some exciting exhibitions, including “Vermeer’s Love Letters” (June 18 – September 8, 2025), which will inaugurate the first-floor galleries, continuing the tradition of focused presentations that re-examine masterworks from the Frick’s permanent collection. The exhibition will center around three works by Vermeer: the Frick’s Mistress and Maid, the Rijksmuseum’s Love Letter and the National Gallery of Ireland’s Woman Writing a Letter, with Her Maid. These three variations allow viewers to consider Vermeer’s diverse treatment of the theme, exploring the portrayal of women from different social classes.
On the occasion of the reopening, the museum’s first- and second-floor galleries will also host a special display of lifelike porcelain flower sculptures by Vladimir Kanevsky (b. Ukraine, 1951), evoking the fresh floral bouquets that adorned the museum when it first opened to the public in 1935.
Lastly, a new Cabinet Gallery will showcase twelve exceptional works on paper, ranging from sketches to highly finished drawings by artists such as Degas, Goya, Ingres, Rubens and Whistler. These works have rarely been displayed due to their extreme sensitivity to light. The presentation will be on view from the reopening through the summer of 2025 and was organized by Aimee Ng, the Frick’s John Updike Curator.
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With the Frick Collection’s reopening, the museum will resume its rich program of on-site cultural activities for all ages and interests and debut a new Education Room, an ideal space for schools, students and partners to host courses, seminars, art-making activities, workshops and other programs that will broaden the institution’s reach and impact. Meanwhile, the Frick Art Reference Library and its refurbished Reading Room will reopen concurrently with the museum, offering brand-new entry points on multiple levels to enhance the integration of the institution’s two branches.
For the inaugural week, from April 26 through May 8, the Frick is planning a festival of performances and special events, including concerts of Classical, Baroque and twentieth-century music, along with a new contemporary commission. Organized by Jeremy Ney, the Frick’s Matthew Christopher Pietras Head of Music and Performance, the series will mark the opening of the new 220-seat, circular-shaped Stephen A. Schwarzman Auditorium, also designed by Selldorf Architects.