Glenstone

Glenstone
Glenstone in September 2017
Established 2006 (2006)
Location Potomac, Maryland, United States
Coordinates 39°03′42″N 77°15′09″W / 39.061703°N 77.252595°W / 39.061703; -77.252595Coordinates: 39°03′42″N 77°15′09″W / 39.061703°N 77.252595°W / 39.061703; -77.252595
Type Art museum
Collection size 1,300
Founder Mitchell Rales
Curator Emily Rales
Website glenstone.org

Glenstone is a contemporary art museum in Potomac, Maryland, 15 miles from downtown Washington, D.C. It contains about 1,300 works in many mediums from post-World War II artists around the world.[1] First opened in 2006, the museum was expanded several times in size in between 2013 and 2018, with its new galleries opening in October 2018. Glenstone has a 230-acre campus. The museum was developed and financed by billionaire American businessman Mitchell Rales, and is open to the public via online ticketing.[2]

History

In 1986, Rales purchased the Potomac, Maryland property, a former fox hunting club, in order to build a home. Soon thereafter, Rales began collecting art for that home. Rales first conceived of the idea of establishing a museum following a near-death accident on a helicopter trip, which inclined him to take on a philanthropical project. Glenstone is named for the nearby Glen Road, and because of stone quarries located in the vicinity. The museum's initial 25,000 square foot Modernist limestone gallery opened in 2006, and admitted visitors two days a week. In its first seven years of existence, the museum admitted 10,000 visitors.[3]

A major expansion was announced in 2013 and was completed in 2018, opening to the public on October 4, 2018. The expansion increased the size of the museum by a factor of five, and included substantial landscaping changes to the 230-acre property.[4]

Collection

The museum's collection of about 1,300 post-World War II works consists of paintings, single-artist installations, and both indoor and outdoor sculptures. Included in its 2018 inaugural exhibition are artists such as Alexander Calder, Ruth Asawa, David Hammons, Alighiero Boetti, and Mark Rothko.[1][2]

References

  1. 1 2 Pogrebin, Robert (2018-09-21). "Glenstone, a Private Art Xanadu, Invests $200 Million in a Public Vision". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-10-01.
  2. 1 2 Smee, Sebastian; Higgins, Adrian. "Glenstone: See inside (and outside) D.C.'s newest museum experience". Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-10-01.
  3. ↑ Vogel, Carol (2013-04-18). "Mitchell and Emily Rales Are Expanding Glenstone Museum". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-10-01.
  4. ↑ Mendelsohn, Meredith (2018-09-27). "Tour the New $200 Million Expansion of One of America's Most Important—and Unknown—Museums". Architectural Digest. Retrieved 2018-10-01.
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