Although all corners of the American economy have been confronted with the bizarre 2020 twist on Hobson’s Choice in dealing with the ramifications of Covid-19, the arts are especially so besieged. Creative momentum lost is energy that must somehow be regained if we are to continue as a civilization, while at the same time remembering that human lives are at stake.
With those choices in mind, the Knoxville Museum of Art has announced that it is reopening on July 1, 2020, while taking substantial efforts to ensure the safety of visitors. David Butler, KMA Executive Director, has also announced that the popular and notable exhibition in place at the time of the March closure, Beauford Delaney and James Baldwin: Through the Unusual Door, will continue through October 25. Butler has also announced that the museum’s permanent collections, Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in East Tennessee and Currents: Recent Art from East Tennessee and Beyond have been “refreshed” for visitor’s enjoyment.
The museum is following measures accepted by public health authorities to safeguard the well-being of visitors and staff and is instituting limitations on operation hours, density, and visitor flow. Among these measures:
- Visitors will be asked to wear face coverings. Disposable masks will be available for visitors who need them.
- Visitors will be asked to stay 6 feet apart.
- The KMA will be open only Wednesday-Sunday 1-5 PM. The museum will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. (The KMA will also be closed Saturday, July 4 for the Independence Day holiday.)
- Attendance will be limited to 25 visitors per hour.
- Reservations will be required by signing up on www.eventbrite.com.
(Link is also available on the museum website: knoxart.org.) - Visitors will access the museum via the June and Rob Heller Garden gate adjacent to the parking lot, enter the building on the lower level, and exit at street level (one-way route).
Admission to the KMA is free.
