WASHINGTON, DC.- On September 30, 2016, the East Building galleries of the National Gallery of Art, which house the modern collection and several temporary exhibition spaces, will reopen after three years of renovation of existing galleries and construction of new galleries and a roof terrace. A completely new configuration of the permanent collection of modern art will be unveiled to the public on this date. Several new public programs will inaugurate the reopened galleries, including evening programs and a community weekend.

Constructed with private donations within the existing I. M. Pei-designed East Building (opened in 1978) on the National Mall, more than 12,250 square feet of new spaces for art will enable the Gallery to present more art and accommodate an increasing number of visitors. New stairs connecting all levels of the building and a new large elevator will improve access and encourage visitors to explore the galleries and works of art on all levels.

The new spaces will include the Roof Terrace—an outdoor sculpture terrace overlooking Pennsylvania Avenue—as well as two flanking, sky-lit, interior tower galleries. The Roof Terrace will feature several outdoor sculptures, including the monumental, electric blue Hahn/Cock (2013) by Katharina Fritsch, on view from July 2016 as a long-term loan from Glenstone Museum in Potomac, MD. The northwest Tower Gallery will showcase a lively installation of works by Alexander Calder (1898–1976), and the northeast Tower Gallery will present abstract expressionist works, including a changing selection of paintings by Mark Rothko (1903–1970), most of them given to the Gallery by the Mark Rothko Foundation in 1986 (a gift that made the Gallery the largest public repository of his art). Trees, plantings, and built-in seating will make the Roof Terrace an inviting place to relax, look out over the city, and see the architecture of the East Building from an entirely new perspective.

"This gift to the nation by these generous donors will enable us to exhibit more art from our ever-growing modern collection in spaces that will be at once spacious, airy, and contemplative," said Earl A. Powell III, director, National Gallery of Art. "We are continually grateful for the federal funding that enables us to protect and present the nation's art collection, as well as offer exhibitions of art spanning the world and the history of art, free of charge, seven days a week, for current and future generations."