MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Brooks Museum of Art has announced plans to move to downtown Memphis, relocating to a new $150 million facility overlooking the Mississippi River.
The new museum is 112,000 sq. ft., about 25 percent larger in size than the existing facility in Overton Park, where it has resided since 1916.
The expanded museum will feature its permanent collection and temporary exhibitions as well as purpose-designed spaces that will include classrooms, a theater, a dining facility, and the museum store, a news release said.
Collections storage and art handling areas will more than double and there will be an underground parking garage.
“The Brooks’ new location is an economic stimulus for the city and region that will boost private development and job creation — we’ve seen it happen in other cities,” said Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland. “For the first time in decades, Memphis is restoring its connection to the Mississippi River waterfront and the public promenade our founders envisioned there. In our bicentennial year, we are again embracing the Mississippi River as our greatest asset.”
The new museum will be on the corner of Front Street between Monroe and Union avenues with its grand opening slated for mid-2026. It will break ground on its new home in late 2023.
For more information on the project, click here.