The National Park Service and other agencies approved a proposal for a new 26,000-square-foot museum for the Statue of Liberty, according to reports on travel-about.com and the Wall Street Journal.
Fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, who has been instrumental in the plans for a new “floating park” underway on the west side of Manhattan, will be “honorary godmother” of the Statute of Liberty project.
The new facility is aimed at increasing public access to exhibits on the history and construction of the monument. It will be located on the northwest portion of the island, and it will have the capacity to accommodate up to 1,000 visitors per hour, as well as to serve as a shelter during inclement weather. The current Statue of Liberty museum is located inside the pedestal of the statue. It is only accessible to a small fraction of the Statue’s visitors due to safety upgrades installed after September 11, 2001, according to a release from the National Park Service.
Courtesy FXFOWLE.com
The new space is expected to be unveiled in 2019. Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation (SLEIF) president and CEO Stephen Briganti said in a statement: “The Statue of Liberty is not just one of the most recognized monuments in the world, but an international symbol of hope that deserves to have her story shared with everyone who visits Liberty Island.”
Briganti added: “We are so honored to have Diane von Furstenberg, who was so inspired by the Statue herself when she first arrived in America, leading the fundraising campaign for the new museum.”
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The museum, which is being designed by FXFOWLE, will feature a multi-million dollar art installation of the American flag on its exterior. Exhibitions will be created by experience design firm ESI Design.
Von Furstenberg is leading a fundraising committee that hopes to secure $100 million for the museum’s development. She will also oversee the commission of the institution’s exterior art installation.
“Lady Liberty is the symbol of everything America is about: freedom, hope, possibility and resilience,” she said in a press release. “It is She that millions of immigrants saw first as they arrived in this country, their hearts full of dreams for a brighter future. Now it is my hope that the Statue of Liberty and her incredible story will live on and on, inspiring generations for years to come.”