Smriti Malhotra
The iconic Breuer building on Madison Avenue, Upper East Side has been sold by the Whitney Museum to Sotheby’s, which will shift its headquarters to the building by 2025.
Designed and conceptualised by the renowned artist Marcel Breuer in 1966, the building was the third home to the Whitney Museum in New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art also at one point occupied the building between 2015- 2020, calling it the MET Breuer. The building shall be taken over by Sotheby’s by September 2024 before finally shifting into it by 2025. The Sotheby’s committee shall review the internal spaces and design structures carefully before making certain changes, it plans on keeping its key structures such as the lobby untouched and as it is.
Officials from Sotheby stated in an article with ArtNews, “We are honoured to acquire and write the next chapter of such an iconic and well-known New York architectural landmark,” Sotheby’s CEO Charles Stewart said in a statement. “We often refer to the provenance of artwork, and in the case of The Breuer, there is no history richer than the museum which has housed the Whitney, Metropolitan and Frick collections. The acquisition will further distinguish us as we continue to transform and innovate for our clients.”
The Whitney Museum’s director, Adam D Weinberg stated, it is bittersweet to part away from this iconic yet controversial building in an article with the New York Times. Weinberg, who also plans on stepping down as the director next year, states that the Museum has increased its exhibition space in the new Renzo-Piano designed headquarters which seems like the right fit for the museum’s collection now and is more accessible.
However, this location is ideal for a mega giant such as Sotheby’s to be closer to the elite addresses in the Upper East Side and moving closer to emerging art galleries. The centrality of the space shall bring in more traction for previews and exhibitions conducted at Sotheby’s, more public will be able to witness the collections at Sotheby’s.
Speaking about the architecture of the building, the modernist building as stated above was made by Marcel Breuer, many didn’t appreciate the building’s facade, he merged the new-age sensibilities of 20th – 21st centuries art and sculpture within the building scape. The exhibition spaces were practical, refined and showcased great class and structure. When The Met took over the space, it spent millions of dollars to upgrade the building which included a restaurant. It was then handed over to the Frick Collection which stayed in the space till 2021, it currently holds the space in lease till August 2024.
Sotheby’s current acquisition of this iconic building is a part of their larger global schemes of things, with the auction house opening flagship stores across the world in Hong Kong and Paris by 2024. They also plan on opening a Gallery in Long Island City later this year.
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