Expanded Museum Of Contemporary Art Sets April 9 Public Reopening In La Jolla

By Chris Jennewein, Times of San Diego

February 27, 2022

The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego announced that its flagship location in La Jolla will reopen to the public on April 9 following a four-year, $105 million renovation and expansion.

Art lovers will find four times the current gallery space, two levels of light-filled galleries, a public park, and new seaside terraces offering views of the Pacific Coast.

The project doubled the museum’s square footage to over 100,000, rivaling The Whitney in New York City.

“MCASD’s flagship building is, at last, scaled to showcase the work it has collected over the past decades,” said CEO Kathryn Kanjo. “Soaring ceilings and natural light allow for inviting displays of the collection alongside lively, changing exhibitions.”

The La Jolla building will be renamed in honor of donors and long-time arts supporters Joan and Irwin Jacobs, whose gift of $20 million provided the foundation for extensive fundraising efforts.

“Our long-term interest in contemporary art expanded greatly following our move to La Jolla, driven by visits to the nearby Museum of Contemporary Art and interactions with faculty and students in UCSD’s adventurous Visual Arts Department,” Irwin Jacobs recalled. “We are especially excited that many others will now have the opportunity to enjoy great contemporary art with this beautiful expansion of MCASD in La Jolla.”

The museum will inaugurate its new 6,800-square-foot special exhibition galleries with “Niki de Saint Phalle in the 1960s,” the first exhibition to focus on the experimental and prolific work of revolutionary French-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle, who lived in San Diego late in her career. The dramatic 20-foot ceilings will provide a one-of-a-kind showcase for this beloved artist’s work.

Since the Museum’s founding in 1941, MCASD has evolved into a leading visual arts organization with locations in La Jolla and downtown San Diego. Its collection numbers more than 5,600 works from 1950 to the present.

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