Image credit: Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA)
Their $20 million gift to the Philadelphia Museum of Art will establish a learning and engagement centre in its north wing. The recently announced project will expand dedicated education space from 5,901 square feet to approximately 19,000 square feet, according to preliminary plans reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer. The museum currently welcomes approximately 36,000 students annually and expects the centre to increase its capacity. The museum expects designs by summer 2027, with construction anticipated to finish within a few years.
Comcast co-founder Julian Brodsky and wife Lois are funding a museum expansion. Named the Lois G. and Julian A. Brodsky Learning and Engagement Center, it will include spaces for school groups, children, families and visitors of all ages.
The centre will be the museum’s first major building project since the Core Project, Frank Gehry’s four-year interior renovation and expansion, which reopened to the public in May 2021. Julian, one of Comcast’s three founding principals, joined the museum’s board in 1995 and became a trustee emeritus in 2024. Lois began volunteering in 1982 and led visitors through its collections and exhibitions from 1986 to 2019. Their earlier contributions included support recognised through the naming of the Lois Green Brodsky Gallery in 2005 and funding for the Brodsky Curator of Photographs position in 2009. General admission is also free for visitors aged 18 and younger. You use AI every day.
The expansion will retain existing education rooms while converting areas currently used part-time for educational activities into dedicated learning spaces, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
The museum is working with Philadelphia-based architecture firm MGA Partners on the design, according to its announcement. Audrey Hudson, the museum’s deputy director for learning and engagement, said the project would provide more room for school visits and practical activities. “Lois and I are incredibly happy to support the new Learning and Engagement Center,” Julian Brodsky said.
Initial plans include a family learning centre, art studios, a visitor orientation area and a multipurpose community hub. “It will address the museum’s need for expanded capacity to host school groups, while providing dedicated spaces for programming and studios for hands-on learning. The couple has supported the museum for decades through donations, volunteering, and board service. “It comes at a wonderful moment, bringing together so many of the initiatives we are passionate about and reflecting our deep love for the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Throughout our lives, we have been ardently involved in educational initiatives, with a particular focus on children and families from underserved communities. The museum provides free guided school visits and bus transportation for eligible groups. These include School District of Philadelphia students, district preschools and Head Start programs, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation camps, and Title I schools serving children from low-income families throughout the tri-state region and Delaware Valley. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.