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On June 12 and 13, 2008, The Textile Museum’s Board of Trustees convened a special meeting and unanimously voted to forego the Museum’s planned expansion to Washington, D.C.’s Penn Quarter area. Instead, the Museum will continue to offer exhibitions and programming focused on its core audience of textile collectors, enthusiasts and scholars at its current 2320 S Street, NW location, along with expanded outreach to better engage the Museum’s national and international audiences. See below for more information about the planned expansion project and what informed the Board’s decision.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was The Textile Museum planning to expand?
The Textile Museum sought to significantly increase its exhibition, public program and shop space in order to engage a broader audience. A second site in the Penn Quarter area was identified for this purpose. The expansion project also addressed important space and environmental limitations inherent at the current location at 2320 S Street, NW.
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Why did the Museum’s Board of Trustees decide to forego the expansion project?
In final analysis, the Penn Quarter expansion project could not be implemented within a sound financial framework. Unforeseen costs resulted in an expansion project budget the Museum’s Board of Trustees and management believe to be unsustainable, particularly for a building the Museum would not own.
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Did the Museum intend to close the S Street site when the Penn Quarter venue opened?
The Textile Museum planned to shift its public face – including exhibitions, public programs and educational activities – to the Penn Quarter facility. Public access to the Museum’s renowned Arthur D. Jenkins Library, as well as scholarly access to the collections, was still to be offered at the S Street site after the Penn Quarter facility opened.
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What will the Museum do now?
The Textile Museum will continue its long-standing tradition of stellar exhibitions and programs focused on its core audience of textile collectors, enthusiasts and scholars at the S Street location, and will continue to find new ways to better engage its national and international audiences. The Museum is currently determining the exhibition schedule for 2009 and beyond, and will reconfigure many exhibitions slated for the Penn Quarter site to the gallery space at S Street. The exhibition Timbuktu to Tibet: Rugs and Textiles of the Hajji Babas will open as planned on October 18, 2008.
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Will The Textile Museum expand or move to a new location in the future?
The Museum will continue to seek a long-term solution to the space and environmental challenges the institution faces at the two historic buildings in which it is currently situated.
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How can I provide comments?
You are welcome to send an e-mail to info@textilemuseum.org.
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For media inquiries, contact Cyndi Bohlin, communications and marketing
manager, at (202) 667-0441, ext. 78 or cbohlin@textilemuseum.org.
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