Statue of Liberty Museum
1 Liberty Island | Liberty Island | built 2019
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The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.
Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.
- 2016
Diane von Furstenberg leads private fundraising for the Statue of Liberty Museum
The museum was funded privately. Von Furstenberg headed the campaign, and donors included Michael Bloomberg, Jeff Bezos, Coca-Cola, NBCUniversal, the Tisch family, and Mellody Hobson with George Lucas. The campaign had raised more than $40 million by the October 2016 groundbreaking.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2016
Groundbreaking begins on a new museum designed by FXCollaborative
Construction starts on a 26,000-square-foot museum on Liberty Island, designed by FXCollaborative to sit low within the surrounding parkland rather than compete with the statue. Exhibition designer Edwin Schlossberg's firm ESI Design plans galleries meant to hold all of the island's daily visitors, unlike the old visitor center, which could fit only a fifth of them. Fundraising chair Diane von Furstenberg helps raise more than $40 million toward the $70 million project before construction begins.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2019
The Statue of Liberty Museum opens with the statue's original torch
Designed by FXCollaborative and built at a cost of about $70 million, the 26,000-square-foot museum opened on Liberty Island on May 16, 2019. The old museum could hold only a fifth of the island's daily visitors; the new one can take all of them. Its centerpiece is the original torch that the statue held from 1886 until 1984. Diane von Fürstenberg led the fundraising.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2019
FXCollaborative's $70 million museum is built to hold all of Liberty Island's daily visitors
The 26,000-square-foot building cost $70 million and was designed by FXCollaborative to merge with the parkland around it. It can take the island's whole daily crowd. The museum it replaced held only about a fifth of that number.
“The $70 million 26,000-square-foot (2,400 m2) museum can accommodate all of the island's daily visitors, while the former museum could hold only 20 percent.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2019
Exhibits draw on more than 500 photographs and graphics, including images from the Musée Bartholdi in France
ESI Design of New York designed the displays, which gather over 500 photographs and graphics from more than 100 sources. They include rare photographs documenting how the statue was built, drawn from the Musée Bartholdi in Colmar, France, and early pedestal design sketches from the Library of Congress.
“The exhibits include more than 500 photographs and graphics from more than 100 different sources.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2019
A 10-minute immersive theater tells the statue's story with a virtual fly-through of its interior
Visitors pass through a multimedia theater that surrounds them with images of the statue's origins and the ideals attached to it. A virtual flight inside the figure is one of the highlights. The 10-minute show is the first of the museum's three interactive galleries.
Source: National Park Service
- 2019
The Inspiration Gallery asks visitors to add a self-portrait to a digital collage called Becoming Liberty
In the museum's third gallery, visitors are invited to record their visit with a self-portrait that is added to a digital collage titled Becoming Liberty. Glass walls around the room look out on the statue and the city skyline. A roof deck on top of the building offers a wider view of the harbor and is closed in bad weather.
“…visitors may document their visit and express their views by adding a self-portrait which will be added to a digital collage called Becoming Liberty.”
Source: National Park Service
- 2019
Tour guides are barred from parts of the island and part of the new museum
After the museum opened, guides were kept out of some areas on the island, among them a portion of the museum itself, according to Wikipedia. The restriction came along with the new building, which can take all of Liberty Island's daily visitors.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2019
A 2019 documentary follows the museum's construction and von Furstenberg's role in funding it
The film Liberty: Mother of Exiles, released in 2019, features the construction of the museum. It also covers Diane von Furstenberg's part in raising the money for it.
Source: Wikipedia
Further reading
- Statue of Liberty MuseumWikipedia
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