A programme of capital works has kicked off at Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum.

Dr David Gaimster, Auckland Museum’s Chief Executive, says the works will transform the way Aucklanders and visitors experience their museum.

“This is the next step in our journey to offer a modern, world-class museum experience that reflects the city’s aspiration to be modern, dynamic global city,” says Dr Gaimster.

“By June 2020 more public space will be created, special exhibition space will be enlarged to accommodate international exhibitions, half the galleries will be refurbished and a hospitality hub will be delivered to encourage visitors to make the museum a destination.”

The transformations include:

A refreshed South Atrium entrance and foyer with:

• a new café experience
• a larger Museum Store with a curated retail experience inspired by Aotearoa, Tāmaki Makaurau and the museum’s collections
• a community space for performances.

A modern, dedicated education space including:

• The Learning Base, which will be tailored to provide innovative learning experiences with new classrooms
• a welcoming space where school groups and visitors can gather and orientate themselves.

A new Special Exhibitions Hall enabling the museum to bring major international exhibitions to Auckland.

A new permanent gallery on the ground floor, which will for the first time take visitors through the story of an evolving Auckland with rich interactive content bringing our past, present and future to life.

Business as usual

“We are excited to be taking Aucklanders on this  journey with us and it’s definitely business as usual while construction work is going on,” says Dr Gaimster.

“Our major galleries remain open for all visitors to experience and an exciting exhibition programme is planned.

“Our teams are focused on ensuring that any disruption for our visitors is minimised and we’ve communicated with schools, special access groups and tourism groups to advise them proactively of changes to entry and moving around the museum.”

“We encourage people wishing to plan their visit to check our website for full information.”