Doylestown, PA - The James A. Michener Art Museum has announced a decision to work on the establishment of a satellite facility at Union Square, New Hope. The new branch is scheduled for completion in 2002, and will include 5,000 square feet with two galleries, a museum shop and public spaces. "A satellite in New Hope will offer an opportunity to tell the story of the arts in Bucks County in the very place where so much of the activity took place," said Museum Director Bruce Katsiff. "The project will also support the current community of artists who continue to live and work throughout the Delaware River valley."
Created by George E. Michael, Inc., Union Square encompasses over 115,000 square feet of boutiques, offices, a restaurant and parking. The project blends new and restored classic industrial buildings in a park-like setting along the Delaware Canal and the historic New Hope-Ivyland Steam Railway. Space for the satellite facility is being provided to the Museum, rent free, for the next 20 years.
The James A. Michener Art Museum opened in 1988 in the renovated historic site that formerly served as the county jail. Dedicated to preserving, interpreting and exhibiting the art and cultural heritage of the region, the Museum increased its gallery spaces and storage facilities with two expansions, in 1993 and 1996. In 2000, two further milestones were crossed—completion of the Patricia D. Pfundt Sculpture Garden, and the opening of the Lenfest Exhibition of Pennsylvania Impressionism, a long-term exhibition that represents the heart of the Museum's permanent collection. The facility satellite will be the first expansion at a location apart from the Doylestown campus.
Mr. Katsiff also stated that "establishment of a satellite in New Hope will give the Michener an opportunity to reach new audiences and to expand our service to the citizens of the region."
