NEW YORK, NY.- The Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) will open the doors to its new home at Columbus Circle, designed by Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture, on September 27. With triple the space of its previous facility, the 54,000-square-foot building allows MAD to dedicate galleries to its growing permanent collection for the first time in its history and will distinguish the institution as the only New York museum with open studio programs that allow visitors to watch the creative process within programming spaces.

With a new textured façade of glazed terracotta tile and fritted and clear glass, the Chazen Building will be a dynamic cultural center that brings together the museum experience and the street life of the surrounding neighborhood in one of Manhattan’s most significant public spaces. Ribbons of glass weave across the building’s exterior, allowing light to filter into galleries and providing dramatic views of Columbus Circle and Central Park. Inside, these ribbons continue across gallery floors and ceilings to create visual connections between the exhibition spaces on different levels.

MAD will inaugurate its new galleries with Second Lives: Remixing the Ordinary, a special thematic exhibition showcasing 51 artists from around the world who repurpose and transform mass-produced objects into extraordinary works of art. The new Museum will also feature the permanent installation of several works, including a site-specific stained-glass commission by Judith Schaechter, an abstract ceramic wall relief by Ruth Duckworth, and a ceramic muralby Robert Arneson, titled Alice House Wall, on display for the first time in 20 years.

“Allied Works has created a dramatic new space in which we can fully realize our expanded mission to explore the craftsmanship and creative processes of contemporary artists and designers,” said Director Holly Hotchner. “Our new home allows us to continue our leadership role of working with contemporary artists through an expanded program that includes open studios and artists residencies, further distinguishing MAD among museums in New York and nationally.”

In support of the project, MAD has raised $84 million toward capital and an additional $13 million towards endowment. In the past decade, the Museum has seen tremendous growth—increasing its attendance to 310,000 visitors annually and nearly doubling its permanent collection. Through its innovative programming, MAD challenges traditional classifications and hierarchies that separate the arts according to medium, geography or chronology. With its focus on materials and processes, MAD places fine art, craft, decorative art and design along the same creative continuum.