I am thrilled to report that the Brooklyn Museum just announced new hours: Beginning Oct. 6, it will remain open until 10 p.m. every Thursday and Friday.
Congratulations! This is something I’ve been harping on for a while, and it’s something with which director Arnold Lehman has agreed with me privately and now publicly. Today, he said:
This important and positive change is an institutional priority that will enable us to better serve a twenty-first century audience by providing greater access for visitors who work during the day, for families, as well as for those who prefer to visit weekday evenings.
And museum board chairman Norman Feinberg said:
The Board believes that the previous hours did not appropriately address the changing needs of its community. We are delighted, through this reorganization, to far better serve our visitors.
Hallelujah.
Lehman has been in hot water lately, with critics pouncing on lagging attendance at the museum and its “populist” attempts. I’ve agreed — up to a point, though I have always said Lehman has a tougher row to hoe than (almost) any other museum in the U.S. And attendance woes at other places, like the Whitney, have unfairly gone relatively uncriticized.
Under the new plan, the museum will open at 11 a.m. Wed.-Fri., instead of 10 a.m., and it will close on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. Target First Saturdays will continue as currently scheduled.
Other changes: “Existing staff hours, particularly those of the security team, have been rescheduled. The Museum Café, which is managed by Restaurant Associates, will offer dinner options as well as light snacks and beverages, including wine and beer, in the Rubin Pavilion.”
This somehow seems hard to do, especially in the current environment, but it’s the right thing to do — I hope other museums follow. Closing doesn’t have to be 10 p.m., btw — it’ll be different in different cities. But closing a 5 p.m., or worse 4 p.m., as many museums do, can no longer be justified.
Photo Credit: Courtesy Brooklyn Museum
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