The Frick Collection Finally Reopens: What the Renovated House Museum Looks Like

After a major four-year renovation, the famous Frick Mansion is once again welcoming visitors. SecretNYC tells what the renovated house-museum looks like, which opened on April 17.

Many people know the famous Frick collection of old Western European paintings. It was collected by the American industrialist Henry Clay Frick with the consulting assistance of leading art historians and was put on public display in his mansion on 5th Avenue in Manhattan. And now, after renovation, the mansion has opened its doors to visitors again.

The reconstruction has brought the space into a new era. You can already see more than 1800 exhibits – paintings, sculptures, ceramics.

Let's take a look inside

Selldorf Architects, in collaboration with Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners, designed the new 220-seat Stephen A. Schwarzman Auditorium, expanding the gallery space by 30%. The mansion’s reading rooms were renovated and a new gallery complex was created on the second floor of the original Frick family home—an area that is open to the public for the first time.

The first floor galleries are basically the same, but a lot of work has been done on all of this.
Wall hangings (damask and velvet), carefully cleaned wood paneling, carvings, marble, plaster, bronze fixtures and fittings - all were brought to perfect condition.

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The Frick's infrastructure has also been updated, making it accessible to people with disabilities. New lighting has been installed, and the building's façade has been restored. The garden, with its iconic Japanese magnolias, has been restored as much as possible to its original 1977 design by Russell Page.

The collection's famous masterpieces are more ergonomically placed in the restored galleries. More works are now on display here artsthan ever before. There is a new 218-seat auditorium and an expanded reception hall. The museum's first café is set to open this spring.

The staircase of the mansion leads to the second floor, into the intimate spaces of the house. The second floor, where the bedrooms and private quarters of the Frick family were located, was strictly closed to the public.

You can now climb the museum's grand staircase as a member of the Frick family to see the private rooms that once belonged to Henry Clay Frick, his wife Adelaide Childs, and their children.

For decades, the upper floor spaces served as museum offices.

The second floor is unlike any other space in New York City. Private quarters include Mr. Frick's own bedroom, The Walnut Room.

A pair of vestibules and drawing rooms on the second floor serve as small galleries for ceramics, gilded Renaissance panels, and even a collection of portrait medals of various sizes and ages.

However, the second floor corridors are what will truly enchant you. Be sure to look up to see the ornate ceiling frescoes.

Exhibitions and festival

The opening took place on April 17. And what a grand opening without exhibitions? Visitors can now see Porcelain Garden: Vladimir Kanevsky at the Frick Collection and Highlights of Drawings. Later in June, visitors can see Vermeer's Love Letters and Flora Yukhnovich's Four Seasons in September. To the Holy Sepulcher: Treasures from the Terra Sancta Museum will open in October. Ronald S. Lauder Exhibition Galleries opens June 18.

Additionally, a music festival will be held in the spring (April 26 to May 11). Audiences will be treated to performances from Nico Muhly's World Premiere of a Commission, performed by the Jupiter Ensemble and Anthony Roth Costanzo. Visitors can expect the New York premiere of Tyshawn Sorey and Vijay Iyer's Piano Works, to name just a few.

Ticket prices: $30 for adults, $22 for seniors, $17 for students. Tickets are available for purchase here.