Excavation continues on the west side of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery for an underground parking garage and a new museum wing.
The Albright-Knox has expanded twice before, with the initial construction of the museum in 1905 and a new wing added in 1962. AK360, the third expansion, will add more than 30,000 square feet of space for displaying special exhibitions and Albright-Knox’s world-renowned art collection and for a reimagined education wing.
Designed by OMA/Shohei Shigematsu, the new building will incorporate numerous visitor amenities and is envisioned to have a wraparound promenade that visually connects the interior of the building with the surrounding Frederick Law Olmsted landscape.
The project will more than double the number of works the museum can display at any given time, including adding state-of-the-art space for presenting special exhibitions. It will also radically enhance the visitor experience at the museum, creating more space for education, dining, and social activities.
The new Buffalo AKG Art Museum is expected to open in 2022. With a gift of $62.5 million, Buffalo native Jeffrey Gundlach is the leading donor to the AK360 project.