The Textile Museum Joins the George Washington University

Increased exhibition space and engagement with the GW academic community ensure a bright future

WASHINGTON, July 26, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Textile Museum and the George Washington University today announced an affiliation whereby The Textile Museum will move to the George Washington University's Foggy Bottom Campus to become a cornerstone of a new museum scheduled to open in mid-2014.

Exhibitions and programs will be presented to the public in a custom-built, approximately 35,000-square-foot museum building located at G and 21st streets, bearing the names of both The Textile Museum and the George Washington University Museum. The new museum will include dedicated galleries for The Textile Museum, with increased exhibition space compared to its present facilities. Until the new museum opens, The Textile Museum will continue operating at its current location.

In addition to the new museum, the university today announced that it will construct a 20,000-square-foot conservation and resource center on its Virginia Science and Technology Campus in Loudoun County, Va., for the study and care of The Textile Museum and the university's collections. This center will include storage facilities, a conservation laboratory and facilities for access to the collection.

The affiliation with the university will allow The Textile Museum to expand its rich tradition of scholarship, education and fostering cultural understanding as it broadly integrates its activities into the far-reaching GW academic community.

In this unprecedented arrangement between a university museum and an existing art museum, The Textile Museum will continue management of its internationally acclaimed collection of more than 18,000 objects, which will be on perpetual loan to the university. The agreement, pending final approval by both Boards of Trustees, also specifies that Textile Museum staff will continue to develop exhibitions and programs that align with the current mission, which will remain the same after moving to the new location.

SOURCE George Washington University