Sydney Modern Project Update: December 2020

Marking the first year of construction

The Gallery is delighted to share an important milestone to end 2020 as we mark the first year of construction of our new building.

Despite unprecedented challenges this year, Richard Crookes Constructions has made great progress and work continues on schedule. Key milestones include completion of bulk demolition and excavation, establishment of two tower cranes on site and the commencement of concrete foundations, formwork and structural steel installation.

We’re taking you behind the hoarding with a one-minute timelapse video of the first 12 months of construction.

Upcoming works

We’re now into the build phase of the project and the structure is starting to rise. Over the next three months, work will continue on the building’s structural elements, the erection of structural steel and construction of the first of two sweeping rammed earth walls in the building. Read more

In a collaboration with the City of Sydney Council, graphics featuring artworks from the Gallery’s collection have been installed on the hoarding around the construction site on Lincoln Cresent, Woolloomooloo. Come and have a look!

Project featured in BBC StoryWorks sustainability series

We’re the first art museum in Australia to achieve the highest environmental standard for design with a Green Building Council 6-star Green Star design rating for the Sydney Modern Project expansion.

The Gallery was invited by BBC StoryWorks to participate in a project supported by the World Green Building Council. The Building a better future series highlights leading sustainable buildings around the world and the way in which architecture can have a profound effect on the quality of people’s lives. The Gallery’s video features interviews with director Michael Brand, artist trustee Tony Albert, who also chairs the Gallery’s Indigenous Advisory Group, and architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, founders of SANAA.

Watch on the BBC StoryWorks website

Revitalising our historic building

While the new building takes shape, the Gallery is excited to be embarking on the revitalisation of our historic building. The upgrades will restore original architectural features, provide more space for art and scholarship including a new library, and enhance the visitor experience and sustainable operations of the Gallery. The program of works with architects Tonkin Zulaikha Greer is a key part of our Sydney Modern Project transformation, which together with our new building is scheduled for completion in 2022. Read more

Public art garden

Acclaimed landscape architect Kathryn Gustafson and Seattle firm Gustafson Guthrie Nichol are designing feature landscape elements for the expansion including the public art garden, which incorporates the Entry Plaza of the new building, and the revitalisation of the grand forecourt of the existing building. The landscape design will create a unified art museum campus connecting both gallery buildings, unfolding as a sequence of experiences for visitors across open spaces that are free and accessible to all, 24 hours a day. Read more

Keeping you informed

We continue to keep our communities informed as work progresses, and regular updates are available on this project website, which also answers frequently asked questions.

For any enquiries, please contact the Sydney Modern Project team at smp@ag.nsw.gov.au.

The $344 million Sydney Modern Project expansion of the Art Gallery of NSW will almost double current exhibition space and is the largest government and philanthropic partnership of its kind to be achieved to date in the arts in Australia, with the NSW Government proudly contributing $244 million together with $100 million raised by the Gallery from private donors. The project is being delivered by Infrastructure NSW on behalf of the government and the Gallery. Richard Crookes Constructions is the building contractor. The Gallery remains open during this time.