Throughout its history, the Century Fund funneled more than $54 million to 139 nonprofits in the Lehigh Valley. The fund’s work included everything from small grants, such as for playground equipment in Alburtis, to major support for what is now the Allentown Arts District.
Admission to the museum will be free in perpetuity through drawing interest on the $2 million Allentown Art Museum Endowment Fund, which will be administered by the Lehigh Valley Community Foundation.
It’s unclear how common free museum admission is. Rusty Baker, executive director of the Pennsylvania Museums Association, said his organization does not track admission prices but museums across Pennsylvania offer programs that reduce the cost of admission or have special days or events when admission is free.
“The Philadelphia Museum of Art, for example, is open free or ‘pay what you wish’ a couple of times each week,” Baker said. “There are also free admission programs at some museums for people who are enrolled in state programs to assist families below a particular income level.”
The Allentown Art Museum has offered visitors the opportunity to visit for free every Sunday, as well as the third Thursday of the month. The museum has seen, by far, the most visitors on Sundays.
Michelle Stringer, chair of the museum’s board of trustees, said for years they have researched how to go to completely free admission because, as research shows, the greatest principal barrier to going to a museum is economic.
“We think this is really going to have an impact on the quality of life in the Lehigh Valley,” Stringer said. “This is really monumental.”
Of course, eliminating paid admission isn’t the only piece in ensuring that museums are equitable.
“Museums clearly want more visitors and people from different communities walking through their doors,” Baker said. “And there is so much to do, like in our other community institutions such as schools, to provide a welcoming, safe environment to learn. This work does not end at the admission desk.”
Led by Weintraub, the museum has had a renewed dedication to telling the story of American art in an inclusive and relevant way, featuring more contemporary art and works by women, Black, Latino and indigenous artists.
On the day the museum goes free, it will also be an opportunity to see the first major “rehang” of the museum’s permanent collection in more than a decade. Visitors will see a more open space, which will allow the museum to have better flexibility to show never-before-seen pieces from the museum’s collection.
“One of the challenges of being in an older building is that some of the spaces can feel smaller,” Weintraub said. “We have opened it up and reconfigured gallery walls, creating deeper sight lines into the space. That makes a big impact on the visitor experience.”
Like most museums, only a small fraction of Allentown’s permanent collection is shown. An important segment of that collection, featuring a large representation of women and artists of color, is the museum’s textiles and works on paper. Those pieces can only be on view for a few months at a time because their exposure to light must be limited.
A good example is the museum’s collection of Navajo rugs. Now, with the new space, the museum can rotate pieces such as the rugs, so there’s always something new to see while preserving the pieces.
On Aug. 27 and thereafter, visitors will simply come to the museum, receive a metal button and walk around.
“Our principle mission is to continually strive to be an inclusive place,” Weintraub said. “Ultimately, going free is really about that.”
Morning Call features reporter Jennifer Sheehan can be reached at 610-820-6628 or jennifer.sheehan@mcall.com