The Chazen Museum of Art celebrated its groundbreaking ceremony Friday with Madison community members.
Over 100 students, faculty, and community members gathered at 750 University Avenue to witness the ceremony. When completed, the museum will offer twice the gallery space than that of the current museum, an outdoor plaza, study rooms and a glass-walled lobby that students will be able to peer into when passing by.
""It is a very exciting moment and it is a dream come true,"" UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin said.
Speakers included Chazen Museum Director Russel Panczenko, UW-Madison Chancellor Martin, Lieutenant. Governor Barbara Lawton, Dean of College of Letters and Science Gary Sandefur, Chazen Museum of Art council Chair Tim Erdma and alumni Simona and Jerome Chazen.
The $43 million expansion was made because of donations from private donors, as well as a generous $25 million donation from the Chazens.
The Chazens said they were excited for the museum to open and look forward to Oct. 22, 2011, the expected date of the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
""This will be the best university museum in the country,"" Simona Chazen said. Lawton said the museum will impact not only the university but also the state. ""It's part of branding the state; that this is an edgy, thoughtful, interesting place with a strong cultural heartbeat right here in our capitol city,"" Lawton said. ""The Chazen will be the centerpiece of UW-Madison's culture corridor.""
Sandefur said the expanded museum will further enhance the research and teaching on the UW-Madison campus.
""I think [the expanded museum] will have a tremendous impact, because it will allow us to double the amount of art that we can put on display at any point in time. It will be really important in terms of both research and the things that classes will be able to do in the museum,"" he said.
The expanded Chazen Museum of Art will be a part of the East Campus Mall; a plan to create a pedestrian mall stretching from West Johnson Street to Lake Mendota scheduled to be completed within the following years.
