The Columbia Museum of Art is back, bigger and not all what you’d expect

Main Street was nothing for Columbia to be proud of 20 years ago when the Columbia Museum of Art made its home in an abandoned Macy’s department store at the corner of Main and Hampton streets.

The museum was one of the earliest factors in bringing Main Street back to life, helping to make the heart of downtown Columbia the vibrant working, living and entertainment district it is today.

And after 20 years of making Main Street cool, the museum has gotten a major upgrade of its own.

On Friday, the Columbia Museum of Art reopens its collection galleries for the first time since March 2017. They feature more modern and contemporary art pieces, some that have never been displayed before; a new arrangement of galleries, focusing on themes in art rather than time periods; and new ways for visitors to interact with the art they’re experiencing.

“I really hope that it’s a physically and a culturally exciting vibe that something’s different, and then that something different will be what we deliver as we move along in our programming and exhibitions,” said Della Watkins, the museum’s executive director since October 2017.

The entire museum has been shut down for the past two weeks to prepare the second-floor collection galleries and the first-floor rotating galleries, which will open two new exhibits showing the works of Katie Pell and Hiroshi Sugimoto.

An opening reception will debut the renovations and new galleries Friday night — free for members and $15 at the door for anyone else. And Saturday will mark the first full day of business for the new-look museum.

The nearly 18-month renovation of the museum’s permanent collection galleries has added some 4,000 square feet of new gallery space to accommodate a growing stash of modern artworks, including Andy Warhol’s iconic “Mao” series, a pair of quirky floor sculptures by Bob Trotman and works by homegrown artists such as Osamu Kobayashi.

The 20 collection galleries have been reorganized by themes such as “Gods, Heroes and Legends,” “Spiritual Beings” and “Postwar Expressions,” as opposed to the traditional displays that travel through time periods. The effect is that a piece such as a 16-year-old portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. is displayed side-by-side with a 1,800-year-old marble Roman bust.

While some national art museums are starting to experiment with thematic galleries on smaller scales, Columbia’s is one of the first to go all-in with theme-based organization, said Joelle Ryan-Cook, the museum’s deputy director.

One of the goals of the reorganization is to make the museum experience more relatable to a wider audience.

“A lot of people are intimidated by an art museum,” Ryan-Cook said. “They really feel like they’re supposed to have a PhD in art history to walk in. ... That’s not what it’s supposed to be. We want you to be able to have an individual response to the way that you are identifying with the culture or with an individual piece or with an artist’s technique. ... Relax, have a good time, be playful, be curious.”

To help visitors feel more relaxed and engaged with the galleries, the museum has a few additional offerings: Lightweight, foldable stools to take with you on your walk through the galleries, and interactive exhibits meant to spark thought and conversation about art.

The second-floor transformation also includes a new event space in what once was an unfinished loft area (you might remember it from some Arts & Draughts parties). This space will be available to rent for occasions such as weddings and meetings.

The first floor of the museum is next up for major work. By mid-September, a new museum entrance will open on Main Street, and the lobby and gift shop areas will undergo renovation. The first-floor galleries will remain open during this work.

An overhaul of Boyd Plaza outside the museum began earlier this summer and is expected to be finished by the end of the year, around the same time as the indoor renovations are completed. The new plaza will feature a pair of covered pavilions, including one overlooking Main Street, and a grove of oak trees.

In conjunction with the completion of renovations, the museum will have a special display of Jackson Pollack’s “Mural” from Dec. 7 through May 19.

It will host its next Arts & Draughts event — a major party with live bands, food, drinks and, of course, art — in January and its annual gala in the spring.

If you go

The Columbia Museum of Art hosts a reopening reception Friday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Attendance is free for museum members and $15 at the door for non-members.

The museum reopens for regular business hours Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Special half-priced admission will continue through the end of the museum’s renovations in December. Renovation pricing is $6 for adults, $5 for senior citizens, $2.50 for students and free for military members, children 6 and under and members.

For more information, visit www.columbiamuseum.org.

This story was originally published August 17, 2018 at 9:17 AM.