How does an old-school New York City museum filled with masterpieces by Fragonard, Goya, El Greco, Rembrandt, and Vermeer move into the next century while maintaining its original flair?

If there is a perfect answer it may be found in the Frick’s five-year $220 million renovation of its treasured Gilded Age mansion on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

At a time when museums all over the world are splashing out on ambitious and pricey expansions in hopes of raising their profile and drawing more visitors, the careful and thoughtful planning of the Frick leaders and curators—buoyed by a number of serendipitous but substantial moments— may well serve as a blueprint for other aspiring institutions going forward.

The sense of anticipation and excitement is palpable, with the official re-opening to the public slated for today, Thursday, April 17. Late last month, Frick leaders welcomed the press for an advance first look at the refurbished space. The event included a presentation in the museum’s sleek, new, state of the art 220-seat auditorium, where the speakers included outgoing director Ian Wardropper (via video), new director Axel Rüger, deputy director and chief curator Xavier F. Salomon, and architect Annabelle Selldorf, whose firm served as the design architects for the project.

The Frick Grand Staircase. Photo by Joseph Coscia Jr., courtesy of the Frick Collection, New York.

All of their remarks about the massive project emphasized the skillful, years-long balancing act that it entailed, with an emphasis on foregrounding the art collection amid all the changes.

The all-star team has seemingly managed to nail every detail of the overhaul: it added 27,000 square feet of new construction; 30 percent more gallery space for permanent collection display and exhibitions; added its first-ever onsite cafe; and created a new double-height reception hall.

For the first time in its history, the Frick has dropped the velvet rope at the base of its grand staircase and now welcomes visitors to the second floor (accessibility was also made possible by new public elevators), where a series of 10 rooms and five additional passages of the original residence are beautifully renovated and stocked with masterpieces. Look for one of the collection’s most famous works here, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’s Portrait of Louise, Princesse de Broglie, Later the Comtesse d’Haussonville (1845). It looks more stunning than ever, thanks in part to its second-floor glow-up in the “walnut room.”

Walnut room, new second-floor gallery. Photo by Joseph Coscia Jr. Image courtesy The Frick Collection.

The Frick renovation project also included the creation of new conservation studios for the museum and library collections, and money was also put toward thoughtful but intense details such as recreating some of the textiles and wall hangings. That was accomplished by working with the original firms that first produced the fabrics for the Frick family over 100 years ago.

“Paradoxically, after all of this effort, we hope that many visitors wonder ‘What changed?’ as they wander through our galleries,” said Wardropper. “Our goal and priority have always been to preserve and revitalize the experience that makes the Frick so unique.”

Salomon echoed this sentiment, saying, “To paraphrase a famous Italian writer, and a famous Italian book: ‘Everything has to change for everything to remain the same.'”

Entrance Hall, The Frick Collection, New York. Photo by Nicholas Venezia. Image courtesy The Frick Collection.

The total project number of $330 million also included the costs of temporarily relocating the Frick collection to the Frick Madison, the famous Marcel Breuer-designed building nearby on Madison Avenue, that was the longtime home of the Whitney Museum before it decamped downtown to its new building in the Meatpacking District.

Following the Whitney’s departure, it was the home of the Metropolitan Museum’s satellite wing, Met Breuer. The Frick took advantage of an available lease, during the pandemic, just as it was about to shutter the 70th street mansion for the years-long overhaul. It opened Frick Madison in March of 2021 and left in late 2023. Sotheby’s is taking over the building next.

Interior of the Fragonard Room at the Frick. Photo: Joseph Cosica Jr.

The hard costs of the Frick renovation amount to $220 million, according to the Frick. That includes new construction, capital improvements, renovation, and restoration. That number ranks far lower in comparison to some other major ongoing museum renovations such as the Met, which has a $2 billion cumulative price tag for ongoing upgrades as of 2023, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) which has raised some $750 million for ongoing renovations. The Milwaukee Art Museum’s renovation is estimated at $240 million.

The Frick’s lead gift of $35 million was given in 2019 by trustee Stephen A. Schwarzman (via his eponymous foundation). The auditorium has been named after him to honor his support. Ronald Lauder who made a major donation, somewhere in the region of between $15 million and just under $30 million according to the 2021 Frick annual report, is also the namesake of a suite of new special exhibition galleries on the museum’s main floor. And together with her husband, Elizabeth Eveillard, chair of the board, donated between $10 million and $15 million, in addition to a 2021 promised gift of more than 20 major works on paper, which were showcased in 2022 at the Frick Madison.

The East Wing gallery at the Frick Collection. Photo: Joseph Cosica Jr.

To date, the capital campaign has raised roughly 80 percent of the $330 million goal (which includes both the restoration as well as the temporary move to Madison Avenue), and donations are still being accepted.

Curator Aimee Ng described the capital campaign as “very successful” in an interview during the preview, adding: “We could not have imagined the support we received.” After the initial fundraising by dedicated donors, when the campaign was opened to the public, individual donations from the public also really added up.

One secret to the campaign’s success? The continued visibility of being open at the Breuer building under the Frick Madison label, while the mansion was closed.

“Being open at the Frick Madison did help, in the sense that it’s not like we disappeared for five years. We remained active and kept in touch with our donors. They knew the stories we were telling and planning for the future. It’s funny because way back when we closed, that wasn’t one of the options,” Importantly, she points out: “It’s not cheaper to open a temporary satellite location.”

Ng continued, “I think in the long run, the relationships and the cultural currency that we were able to foster while remaining open—it did cost money and it was labor intensive—but I think in the long run it fostered stronger, deeper, and broader relationships.”

Of course, it’s hardly surprising that she and other leaders would be sought out for advice from other institutions that are considering or embarking on major changes. Salomon, who had just returned from a trip to Lisbon when we spoke in late March, told me: “It’s already happening. I was in Lisbon last week and speaking with colleagues at the Gulbenkian Museum, which has just closed for a year.”

The Boucher anteroom at The Frick. New second-floor gallery. Photo by Joseph Coscia Jr. Image courtesy The Frick.

In response to their queries, he has an overarching guiding principle: “There are many pieces to it. How do you remain respectful to the character of the building? I mean, there are museums that just want to transform the character of the building altogether. In our case, and in the Gulbenkian’s case, that is not the approach,” he said.

“I think the biggest way of being respectful is by paying attention to detail,” he said, adding, “invariably there are things you don’t think about that don’t go quite the right way. If a mistake is made, you need to adjust that immediately.”

Generally speaking, leaders identified and pursued four major areas to focus on, including: the second floor opening to the public and addition of special exhibition galleries; the space for education programming which includes a new education program as well as the acoustic improvements in the auditorium space; and improved visitor flow, amenities, and access.

So what hasn’t changed at the museum? The Frick has preserved its longstanding no-photographs policy (with the exception of the Garden Court and in public spaces). The hope is that, with this type of display, the museum is able to provide more intimate encounters with art, a representative said.

And it’s also keeping in place another longstanding policy—no children under the age of 10 are permitted in the galleries.

In summing up the changes, Salomon told me, “This is the most comprehensive change in almost 100 years after the museum opened. This is really about the next 100 years… That was the responsibility we had, to redesign and reconcile this museum for the future.”

During the March preview, new director Axel Rüger recognized Wardropper’s key role throughout his 14-year tenure, saying: “We would not be standing here without him really, his vision, his imagination, and dare I say, his tenacity, to get this project—this enormous renovation—realized.”

Rüger also said that in his first few days and weeks on the job: “I could not believe how many people came up to me and said ‘The Frick is my favorite museum’… in short, it is the world’s favorite museum.”