The Philadelphia Museum of Art has received a $20 million donation to transform its north wing into a new learning center aimed at expanding educational programs for students, children and families.
The gift from longtime supporters Lois G. and Julian A. Brodsky, among the largest in the museum's history, will fund the Lois G. and Julian A. Brodsky Learning and Engagement Center.
Plans for the center include art studios, a family learning center, a visitor orientation area and a multipurpose community space. The project will also expand educational programming throughout the museum's galleries.
The museum is working with Philadelphia-based architecture firm MGA Partners on the center's design, which is expected to be completed by summer 2027. Construction is projected to be completed within a few years, though an opening date has not been announced.
The project will be the museum's first major capital undertaking since the completion of the Core Project, a four-year interior renovation and expansion designed by architect Frank Gehry that reopened to the public in May 2021.
The new center is also expected to increase the number of students the museum can accommodate. Currently, approximately 36,000 students visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art each year.
Guided school visits and bus transportation are offered free of charge to students from the School District of Philadelphia, district preschools and Head Start programs, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation camps, and Title I schools throughout the region. Admission to the museum is also free for visitors ages 18 and younger.
“The new Brodsky Center will be an intentionally designed, purpose-built space that inspires limitless educational experiences grounded in the PMA’s collection,” said Audrey Hudson, the museum's deputy director for learning and engagement. “It will address the museum’s need for expanded capacity to host school groups, while providing dedicated spaces for programming and studios for hands-on learning.”
The Brodskys have supported the museum for decades. Julian Brodsky, one of Comcast's three founding principals, joined the museum's Board of Trustees in 1995 and served in several leadership roles before becoming a trustee emeritus in 2024. Lois Brodsky began volunteering at the museum in 1982 and spent more than three decades guiding visitors through its collections and exhibitions.
The couple previously supported the museum's 125th anniversary campaign, leading to the naming of the Lois Green Brodsky Gallery in 2005. They also endowed the Brodsky Curator of Photographs position in 2009.
“Lois and I are incredibly happy to support the new Learning and Engagement Center,” Julian Brodsky said in a statement. “Throughout our lives, we have been ardently involved in educational initiatives, with a particular focus on children and families from underserved communities.”
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