The Berkshire Museum will break ground this fall on an extensive renovation of its aquarium and main floor galleries, the capstone of a yearslong effort to reimagine the Pittsfield museum as a multidisciplinary organization focused on art, science, and history.
The project, set to break ground in October, will reimagine the museum’s aquarium and main floor, said executive director Kimberley Bush Tomio.
“Through these enhancements, we aim to create a dynamic cultural hub that celebrates our past and inspires future generations,” Tomio said in a statement. “We are thrilled to begin this construction which will move the aquarium to the main floor, not only doubling its square footage, but interweaving our ‘living exhibition’ with updated gallery spaces that blend our vast collections of art, science, and history pieces.”
The renovations will also reconfigure the first-floor galleries, which the museum said will accentuate the relationship between the “human and natural worlds.” The museum’s large taxidermy collection, for example, will be redeployed in an exhibit called “Immersed in Nature,” which will include dioramas and projected landscapes alongside paintings, sculptures, and other cultural objects.
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The renovations, which the museum’s board of trustees approved in April, follow the museum’s controversial decision in 2017 to sell more than 40 artworks, including a pair of beloved paintings by Norman Rockwell. The museum, which was widely criticized at the time, argued that the sale was needed to strengthen its endowment and fund renovations as the organization pivoted toward science and history.
Despite various legal challenges, including one that included Rockwell’s heirs, the museum ultimately sold 22 artworks the following year for a total of $53 million.
The renovations, designed by architect Yo-ichiro Hakomori of the Los Angeles firm StudioHAU, are expected to be fully completed in early 2026.
Museum spokesperson Cody Baffuto said the aquarium and galleries will close “on a rolling basis” to accommodate construction. The museum did not provide an estimated budget for the project, though Baffuto said it would be able “to offer comment” on the project’s cost “in the near future.”
Tomio called the project a “major initiative,” adding that it “will strengthen our community bonds and rekindle a deep appreciation for the heritage that defines Pittsfield and the Berkshires.”
Malcolm Gay can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @malcolmgay.