History of The Bronx Museum of The Arts
The Bronx Museum of The Arts was mainly built to stir an interest in the arts to what was and continues to be a diverse population center. The museum opened its doors in 1971 in partnership with the Bronx Council of the Arts, founded a decade earlier in 1961 alongside the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The opening of the Bronx Museum of The Arts mainly coincided with Bronx Day. The first exhibit had 28 paintings, mainly from the Met’s collection. The museum was initially housed on the first floor of the Bronx County Courthouse, which was converted for a mere $77k. However, additional galleries were located in Bedford Park, Allerton and Co-op City. During its 12 years of operation, the museum held over 350 exhibitions.
Later in 1983, the vacant synagogue on 165th street was purchased and became the museum’s new location. The new site opened a year later, in 1983, coinciding with Bronx Week and Bronx Day.
The space was inaugurated with the exhibition of its twentieth-century art. The exhibition consisted of prints, paintings, and photographs from the Met. The renovation and planned extension ended in 1988 and cost $5.8 million.
Later in February 2004, the city began construction of the $19 million expansion project, which doubled its size to 33,000 square feet. The newly expanded museum opened its doors in October 2006. Later in 2008, a 3,000-square-foot arts center was added to educate local families and school kids. Then in 2012, the museum did away with admission fees for all days of the week to encourage families to visit the museum.
