Since the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art shared the final six designs for its latest expansion, Kansas Citians have gotten the chance to provide their feedback.
"Thank God there are strong opinions," says museum president and CEO Julián Zugazagoitia. "If people would say, 'Everything is bland,' we don't want bland."
The six finalists were chosen out of 182 entries from 30 countries. Zugazagoitia tells KCUR's Up To Date he's been thinking about how museums grow and change over time.
"In looking into the future, we want a museum that is the one that my children and my grandchildren will totally embrace," Zugazagoitia says. "We're making a path for the next generation to make (the Nelson-Atkins) their own."
Evelyn Belger, chair of the Nelson-Atkins board, says that keeping the design selection process public is part of their broader vision for an open, transparent museum.
"It personifies what we're trying to do with the new building, which is communicate more with our audiences, to listen to them and to be able to be responsive and still perform at a level of excellence that's recognized around the world," Belger says.
Zugazagoitia says he knows change to an iconic landmark like the Nelson-Atkins can be difficult for the community to embrace. Even the Nelson's now-iconic shuttlecock sculptures were once a source of controversy.
"I think we are so not used to change that when anything comes that is a little bit different or that changes our assumptions... it takes us a while," Zugazagoitia says. "Anything that we will do is with the love, the care, and the response to our community."
- Julian Zugazagoitia, president and CEO, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
- Evelyn Belger, board chair, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
