Lobby Renovation FAQ

Visitors enter the CMA via a covered walkway at the museum’s north entrance, which is accessible via the CMA parking garage or off Wade Oval. The museum’s south entrance from the Fine Arts Garden is also open. Signage directs visitors to the nearest entrance. We expect minimal disruption or inconvenience to visitors.

The Cleveland Museum of Art remains open and fully functional throughout construction. Ingalls Library, the galleries, special exhibitions, the café and restaurant, and the store are unaffected. 

Construction began on May 1 and is scheduled to be completed at the end of November 2024.  

Yes, the CMA’s parking garage remains open and fully functional. 

Yes, the covered walkway to the Beverly Stadler Harris North Courtyard and the Parker Hannifin Corporation Donor Gallery (north courtyard lobby) is fully wheelchair accessible. 

During the renovation period, performances, lectures, or events that would normally take place in the Gartner Auditorium are hosted in other spaces within the museum and at other CMA venues, such as Transformer Station, the Community Arts Center, or partner organizations. The CMA is also expanding its schedule of City Stages concerts. While Gartner Auditorium is closed, the CMA’s Lunchtime Lecture series is hosted virtually.  

The museum’s annual Solstice event is taking a pause in 2024 to return in 2025. 

Visitors can access Ingalls Library through the Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation Japanese Art Galleries (235A and 235B) on level two. Once you enter the CMA, a staff member is happy to direct you. 

Visitors can access ArtLens Gallery from the atrium through the Julia and Larry Pollock Focus Gallery. Once you enter the CMA, a staff member is happy to direct you.

Updating the lobby makes the museum more accessible, wayfinding more informative, the visitor experience more friendly, and the space more efficient. The new renovations also provide updated accommodation for large groups, create opportunities for students and other visitors to engage with the museum’s Education Art Collection, and enable the CMA to develop student- and community-curated exhibitions. All of this helps the CMA to realize an important ambition articulated in its strategic plan: to welcome 100,000 pre-K through grade-12 students annually. 

Horace Kelly Art Foundation North Lobby (Upstairs) 

• A large digital wayfinding display to replace the current ticketing desk 
• New energy-efficient LED lighting 
• Reconfiguration of the coat check 
• Modification of the pavement at the entrance to create a less slippery and safer surface 
• Streamlined security systems 

Susan M. Kaesgen Education Gallery and Lobby (Downstairs) 

• Reconfiguration of the lobby as a welcoming center for school groups and other large tours, including a reception area and coat check 
• Specially designed vitrines to showcase student- and community-curated exhibitions of the CMA’s Education Art Collection 
• Removal of walls to expand space 
• Restoration of the area to its original size and floor plan 
• Preservation of visitor-favorite artworks on view, including the beloved wishing well and Looking Along Broadway Towards Grace Church by Red Grooms (with Turtle Baby by Edith Barretto Stevens Parsons moved to just outside of Ingalls Library) 

Funding for this capital project was spearheaded by board chair Ellen Stirn Mavec, through a leadership challenge gift from The Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation. The Chair’s Challenge for the lobby renovation was met with principal support from The Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation and Jon and Jane Outcalt, with major support provided by James and Susan Ratner and the Sauerland Foundation. The museum also received principal support from the State of Ohio capital budget. Dieter and Susan M. Kaesgen and the Womens Council of the Cleveland Museum of Art were also generous contributors.