Starting Friday, June 19th, visitors will be admitted to the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, and to the Kimbell Art Museum on June 20th while the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth will reopen July 1st. The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame also put on its Facebook page that it, too, will be reopening – June 24th.

These announcements come the day after Dallas hit a record number of new COVID cases. On the other hand, Texas art museums have faced angry calls to reopen already, why the delay?

The first week of May, museums in Texas were permitted to reopen according to Gov. Abbott’s guidelines. But only a few have done so — and they’ve generally been smaller museums or museums in small towns. Studying the rate of COVID infections, devising safety protocols for wandering foot traffic and re-scheduling sizable art exhibitions that took years to set up have delayed the museums. For instance, the Modern’s exhibition, “Mark Bradford: End Papers,” was interrupted by the pandemic. It’s now been extended through January. Meanwhile, the Kimbell has extended “Flesh and Blood: Italian Masterpieces from the Capodimonte Museum” through July.

At the Amon Carter, patrons will be permitted only through the main front entrance (above). Crowds at all three museums will be limited to 50 percent of the museum galleries’ capacity – as per the state guidelines. All visitors and staff at the three museums will be required to wear face masks. The museums will provide masks for visitors who arrive without one, and social distancing will be required.

The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. Photo: Jerome Weeks

Hand sanitizing stations have been set up throughout the museums. The museums will be sanitizing high-touch surfaces, while a low-touch experience will be encouraged. Those areas at the Amon where that can’t be maintained – the Library, Study Room, Museum Shop, Food Cart, Bag Check and Family Pop-up Space – will remain closed until further notice.

Similarly, the Buffet and Café at the Kimbell will be temporarily closed. Water fountains will be closed off, but bottled water will be available for purchase. At the Modern, the Café Modern will resume lunch service July 1. Dinner service will be re-started later.

Other on-site museum activities — film series, lectures, tours, classes — have been postponed or cancelled.

The full releases:

AMON CARTER MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART TO REOPEN TO THE PUBLIC JUNE 19
The Carter to Implement New Health and Safety Procedures Including Required Masks, Limited Capacity, Frequent Surface Sanitation, and a Low-Contact Visitor Experience

WHAT:  The Amon Carter Museum of American Art (the Carter) will reopen to the public on Friday, June 19, 2020, with member-only days from June 16 through June 18. The museum has established a range of new health and safety procedures to create as safe an environment as practically possible for both its staff and visitors, including limiting capacity to 50% in line with the governor’s latest order pertaining to museums, increasing sanitation of high-touch surfaces, and offering a low- or no-touch visitor experience. Social distancing will be enforced in the galleries, on the museum grounds, and in the elevators, and all visitors and staff will be required to wear face masks.

To visit the Carter:

•  Admission remains free and does not require a ticket. If the museum is near capacity, visitors will be required to wait in a socially distanced line outside the museum’s Main Entrance and will be granted admission as quickly as possible while observing limited capacity and proper social distancing protocols.

•  Members will have the first chance to visit the Carter on member-only days, Tuesday, June 16 through Thursday, June 18. The Carter opens to the public on Friday, June 19.

•  All visitors and staff will be required to wear face masks and observe social distancing (minimum of 6 feet) within the museum. The museum will provide masks to visitors who do not arrive with their own upon entry.

• The Main Entrance will be the only open entrance at this time. The Lancaster Avenue Entrance is closed until further notice.

• The Library, Study Room, Museum Shop, Food Cart, and Bag Check will remain closed until further notice.

• A low-touch experience will be encouraged. The Family Pop-up Space will be closed, and all touchable interactives will be removed at this time.

• For more information on the Carter’s reopening procedures, visit cartermuseum.org/welcome.

•  “Our staff has worked tirelessly during this time to find safe and accessible solutions for reopening, following local, regional, and federal recommendations,” said Andrew J. Walker, Executive Director of the Carter. “With our new protocols in place, the Carter looks forward to opening its doors again and to providing a place of learning, beauty, history, and culture for our community.”

Visitors will have the opportunity to see the exhibitions “The Perilous Texas Adventures of Mark Dion”; “Looking In: Photography from the Outside”; and “Eliot Porter’s Birds,” which will remain on view through
Sunday, July 5, 2020. Additionally, the exhibition “Acting Out: Cabinet Cards and the Making of Modern Photography” will open Saturday, August 15, and remain on view through Sunday, November 1. “Culture Shock: American Artists from Europe, 1913–1953” will remain on view through September 6, and “Puente Nuevo by Justin Favela” has been extended through November 22.

THE KIMBELL ART MUSEUM REOPENING JUNE 20, WITH EXTENDED SPECIAL EXHIBITION, “Flesh And Blood: Italian Masterpieces From The Capodimonte Museum”

FORT WORTH, TX—-The Kimbell Art Museum will reopen to the public on Saturday, June 20, with member-only previews beginning Thursday, June 18. The museum has instituted new guidelines for staff and visitors that support state and local health and safety recommendations.

The special exhibition, “Flesh and Blood: Italian Masterpieces from the Capodimonte Museum,” has been extended through July. With this extension, visitors will have another opportunity to experience these magnificent Renaissance and Baroque works rarely seen outside of Naples, Italy, including Artemisia Gentileschi’s Judith Beheading Holofernes, which originally was scheduled to leave the exhibition early.

On the occasion of our reopening, more than 30 masterpieces from the Kimbell’s African, Ancient American, and Asian collections have been installed in the Louis I. Kahn Building alongside the museum’s European paintings and sculpture.

While the museum prides itself on visitors’ personal experience and engagement in the museum, new health and safety measures require the temporary suspension of certain activities to accommodate social distancing, as well as the addition of new visitor guidelines and staff protocols and training.

Visitor guidelines:

For the safety of all visitors and staff, anyone who is sick or has any sign of a respiratory illness should stay home. The museum has installed signage and other visual reminders to ensure visitors and staff maintain a safe social distance of at least six feet.

All visitors (ages 2 and up) should wear a mask during their visit to the Kimbell. Masks are available upon request. All Kimbell staff are required to wear masks. Custodial staff have increased cleaning frequency among high-touch locations. Additional hand sanitizing stations are located throughout the buildings, including at every entrance.

Audio wands are currently not available for visitor use. Visitors are encouraged to download the Kimbell app on their personal device and bring headphones to experience audio tours of the permanent collection and special exhibition.

Parcel check is closed. No large bags or backpacks are allowed; however, soft-front baby carriers and strollers are permitted.

Visitors are encouraged to purchase exhibition tickets online; tickets may also be purchased
on-site. Members may bypass the ticket line and show their member ID card to enter the special exhibition. Admission to the permanent collection is always free.

Facility updates and temporary suspensions

In accordance with state and local guidelines, capacity in the galleries is limited to 50% to allow for appropriate social distancing.

In the first phase of reopening, the Buffet and the Café will be temporarily closed. Drinking fountains are not available, but bottled water will be available for purchase.

The special assistance vehicle that transports visitors between the Kimbell’s two buildings is temporarily suspended. Handicapped parking is available in the Piano garage with elevator access to the special exhibition.

All on-site programs and events are cancelled until further notice.

In-depth information about visiting the museum during this time is also available at kimbellart.org/visit.

Ongoing response

The Kimbell looks forward to welcoming visitors safely once again to both the permanent collection and special exhibition, “Flesh and Blood: Italian Masterpieces from the Capodimonte Museum.” The museum’s new reopening precautions are temporary and will be lifted once it is safe to do so. The Kimbell will continue to monitor developments in Tarrant County; changes to these procedures may occur based on guidance from state and local health officials.

Kimbell from Home, the museum’s online initiative that explores the collection, architecture, kids and family activities, teen resources and more, will continue to be updated online for those wishing to explore the museum remotely. New content is added to the landing page and social media weekly.

MODERN ART MUSEUM OF FORT WORTH ANNOUNCES REOPENING JULY 1, WITH “MARK BRADFORD: END PAPERS” EXTENDED THROUGH JANUARY 10.

The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth reopens to the public Wednesday, July 1. We look forward to welcoming visitors back with new safety measures in place. In developing appropriate visiting protocols, the Museum will follow the recommended guidelines of the CDC and state and local government officials. In support of our community and guests to our city, we are partnering with Visit Fort Worth for the Reopen Responsibly campaign. Please see our guidelines below* or visit our website, www.themodern.org/reopening.

• The exhibition “Mark Bradford: End Papers” has been extended through January 10, 2021.

• Red Grooms’s “Ruckus Rodeo” will be on view through August 16.

• All in-person education programs, including docent-led tours, have been suspended until further notice. Please visit our website for information on current online opportunities, www.themodern.org/online-learning-programs.

• Group numbers for self-guided tours will be limited.

• Café Modern will resume lunch service on Wednesday, July 1. Plans for resuming Friday night dinner service will be announced at a later date.

•We will not resume the Magnolia at the Modern film series at this time. Tentatively, screenings will resume later this summer.

We are asking our visitors to please follow the guidelines below.

• Face masks or cloth face coverings are required for entry to the museum. Parents and/or accompanying adults may use discretion with masks for children over the age of 2.
• Please do not come into the building if you are experiencing any symptoms of a respiratory infection, such as cough, shortness of breath, or fever.
• Please practice social distancing when you are in the museum, and follow any instructions from museum staff. Parties may remain together; children must stay with adults at all times.
• *Please take advantage of the wall-mounted touchless hand sanitizer dispensers located in all restrooms and the freestanding dispensers located throughout the building.
•  General museum visiting guidelines can be found on our website, www.themodern.org/visit/visiting-guidelines.

And on its Facebook page, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame posted this message:

We have highly anticipated announcing when we could welcome visitors back in our doors at the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame – we will open to the public starting Wednesday, June 24, with a special “thank you” opening and gift to members Tuesday, June 23! Click here to view the press release that includes safety and cleaning precautions we are taking to Re-Open Responsibly https://bit.ly/CMreopen.

Got a tip? Email Jerome Weeks at [email protected]. You can follow him on Twitter @dazeandweex.

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