TULSA, Okla — Gilcrease Museum officially opened its doors to allow invited community leaders and media to get a glimpse of what's to come.
2News has been following this story closely since the museum announced the old building would be torn down and a new one would be constructed:
Gilcrease Museum Executive Director and CEO Brian Leewhisenhunz told 2News the museum will be fully completed early next year, which will allow time for the collection to be rehoused.
“The collection is over 350,000 objects so that’s gonna take about 8 months," he said. “Our collection spans all of the western hemisphere and connects histories of people’s migrations and stories over 12,000 years.”
Leewhisenhunz said he has achieved a personal goal by helping to get the museum built.
“I grew up in Tulsa, I grew up coming to Gilcrease as a child, and I’m thrilled to be leading it into its next iteration," he said. "“It’s amazing, we’re so excited to open to the public and next year, even though we won’t be formally open, the building will be completed.”
Leewhisenhunz said the building should be fully complete by early 2025.
He plans to host a re-opening in late 2026, when the collection should be in place.
“The exhibitions are designed to hold rotations of the exhibition," he said. "So each time you come back to the museum, you’ll see new ideas, new works of art, new objects, maps and other documents.”
To stay up to date, you can visit the museum's website.
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