The 60-year-old museum finally reopens after two years.
To cap off its 60th anniversary and in time for the festive season, Ayala Foundation has announced the soft opening of Ayala Museum and Filipinas Heritage Library (FHL) on December 4, 2021.
Closed for renovation since June 2019, the soft opening will offer a glimpse of the newly renovated museum and library. There will be five galleries initially accessible to the public with pre-booked admissions, timed entries, and limited capacity on admissions.
In response to the global pandemic and to ensure guests will feel safe when visiting, operational adjustments and safety protocols have been adopted. All guests visiting the museum and library, must be fully vaccinated regardless of age and will have to provide proof of vaccination upon entry for the safety of all visitors and staff.
Full protocols, visitation guidelines, and reminders are available on Ayala Museum’s new website, AyalaMuseum.org.
What’s new
The new Ayala Museum will have refreshed exhibition, event, and retail spaces. Designed once again by Leandro V. Locsin Partners (LVLP), the property now has a new inviting lobby that is integrated with the larger Greenbelt complex and its environs. The resulting outside-inside atmosphere is a wise pandemic response that goes along with other safety protocols.
A total of five new exhibitions will be unveiled during the soft opening along with the new website and an app.
One of the shows is fitting follow-through to this year’s quincentennial celebration of the circumnavigation of the world. The exhibition “Intertwined: Transpacific, Transcultural Philippines” explores the resulting entangled cultures brought about by man’s ability to circumnavigate the world with over 240 carefully curated objects and artworks.
A new dedicated gallery in honor of artist Fernando Zobel who envisioned Ayala Museum will also be unveiled with the exhibition “Landscape into Painting: Fernando Zobel Serie Blanca.” As an art and history museum, the Orientations Gallery conveys the wealth and diversity that abound in the cultures and peoples throughout the islands and the nation’s past.
For the first time ever in the Philippines, guests will encounter the Digital Gallery located in the museum’s new lobby. Made up of eight sprawling screens, the gallery enables visitors to digitally explore objects from the museum and library collections. They will be able to engage in interactive and up-close conversations with art and history for free.
The Diorama Experience, a totally refreshed exhibition mainstay, will also be on view for a new generation to enjoy. The rest of the Ayala Museum galleries will be unveiled by the first half of 2022.
Going Omnichannel
With the goal of broadening the appeal of art & culture by making it more accessible, Ayala Museum and Filipinas Heritage Library have adopted the omnichannel approach.
A term derived from retail to describe a visitor-centric approach, Omnichannel allows customers to get what they want, when they want it, and how they want it. The move was planned pre-pandemic but the decision to go omnichannel has likewise proven timely with audiences now comfortable being online.
As such, everything in the newly renovated Ayala Museum will be networked, multiple channels digitally connected so one can move seamlessly between them. This enables Filipinos here and abroad to readily access Philippine art & culture 24/7, as exemplified by the collections and programming of the museum and library.
The onsite exhibitions will be supported by exclusive content through a new Ayala Museum app.
A newly revamped Ayala Museum portal will be the online destination to everything from book visits to workshops, conferences, and concerts and performances. Online visitors will be able to access the Ayala Museum collection online, visit new exhibitions, explore learning resources, and link up with the stand alone FHL website.
To learn more about the museum and library’s new protocols, what to expect during the soft opening, and how to book your tickets, you can visit their website at ayalamuseum.org and filipinaslibrary.org.ph.
