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Building the Museum of the Future
The state-of-the-art 52,000-square-foot
facility that houses the International Museum of Cartoon Art was designed in 1992. A capital campaign to build the center was initiated soon after, raising over $6.5 million to complete the building and exterior
and open the first phase of the project.
Phase I, a temporary first floor, opened to the public in 1996. With 26,000 square feet of space, the first floor includes The Hearst Cartoon Hall of Fame, a
changing exhibition gallery, Create-A-Cartoon Center, educational classrooms, a small theater and several smaller galleries which house exhibitions on a variety of artistic disciplines with works culled from the
Museum's outstanding permanent collection.
The Museum has now embarked upon the Ground Floor - Phase II portion of the project. This will create a permanent first floor in the Museum. Plans include
six permanent exhibition galleries, two changing galleries, a 150-seat animation theatre, expanded education areas and an on-line research library.
The JM Family Challenge
In June 1999, the Museum received a $500,000 challenge grant from JM Family Enterprises, Inc. to help build The Learning Center
a 3,000-square-foot hands-on educational area that is a major component of Ground Floor - Phase II.
When completed The Learning Center
will provide a variety of educational programs to accommodate a broad-based visitorship and target different ages at different times of the day. Film series and lectures will work in conjunction with the permanent and temporary exhibitions at the Museum. Programming will encourage discovery, exploration, reflection and learning; interactive experiences; and multi-sensory experiences. Core and supplemental programs will encourage the development of perceptual skills that allow each participant to gain new insight into the cartoon art form. Reading, history, social relationships, philosophy, biography, art instruction, and story telling are all subjects to be touched upon at
The Learning Center. State of the art technology is being developed for its programs and a full-time Education Director, support staff and volunteers will assist visitors in the use of Learning Center
computers and materials.
Beyond the gallery itself, The Learning Center
will deliver programs, workshops and exhibition elements to the community via the use of schools, camps, libraries, community centers and other public venues through its educational outreach component.
Learn More
If you are interested in learning more about the Museum's Ground Floor – Phase II campaign, the JM Family Challenge or other investment opportunities at the Museum, please contact our Development
Office (Development@Cartoon.org).
Now click here
to view a listing of Museum's Leadership Donors.
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