The Speed Art Museum will reopen to the public July 5 with a blockbuster exhibition featuring the work of pop artist Andy Warhol.
On Monday, the museum announced it will operate with reduced hours and use timed ticketing to limit guest capacity in this initial phase, reopening just the North Building on Fridays with a maximum of 125 visitors, and the whole building Saturdays and Sundays with no more than 625 visitors at a time.
Museum director Stephen Reily said this capacity is below what the state allows, but they wanted to give people plenty of room to spread out.
“We're looking at a level that gives an enormous amount of space around visitors and a metric allowing at least 10 square feet per visitor even within galleries,” he told WFPL
Guests will be required to wear face coverings and follow social distancing guidelines. There will be frequent cleanings in high-touch areas throughout the day. Museum officials said staff will also wear masks and do health screenings before entering the building. The cafe will stay closed, as well as the Art Sparks interactive gallery for kids and the Speed Cinema.
Reily said the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, which loaned more than 150 pieces that will be displayed in the Speed’s exhibition, “has been a phenomenally flexible partner during this unprecedented time.”
Museum staff continued to prepare for the opening of “Andy Warhol: Revelation” while the facility was closed due to the pandemic. The show looks at Warhol’s relationship with his Catholic faith and how that shaped his artistic output. It will be up through Nov. 29.
“We feel confident that we can share it with a lot of people even under reduced capacity and reduced hours,” Reily said of the exhibition.
The director said, while he’s been happy with all of the digital content flowing out of the museum since shutdown, he’s thrilled to open the building back up to the public.
According to a press release from the museum, front line health care workers can get in for free through June 30, 2021.