What's in a museum?

Francis Morrone reports from the Art Dealers Association of America panel on new museums with some recent stars and critics. On the panel were Daniel Libeskind, Glenn Lowry, director of MoMA and in charge of its recent mass renovation, Malcolm Rogers, director of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Victoria Newhouse, architectural historian, and moderated by Paul Goldberger, New Yorker architecture critic and dean of the Parsons School of Design.

Morrone got it right: when the panelists were asked to name their favorite museums, none of them named a star architect building. For all that cities expect museums to be and do (e.g. economic engine), then, this highlights the disconnect between architectural dreams and the realities of the building function.

Other museum news:

Hard Hat Tour at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (Mail and Guardian, South Africa) lets you take a peek at renovations
MoMA's new restaurant (Newsday)