The Columbus Museum of Art is entering 2026 with a new five-year strategic plan and a series of institutional changes aimed at broadening its reach and renovating its historic facilities, according to Executive Director and CEO Brooke Minto. After drawing more than 200,000 visitors in 2025, the museum is focused on strengthening its regional and global profile while expanding its base of younger patrons.

A $3.75 million restoration of the Elizabeth M. and Richard M. Ross Building is among the most visible near-term projects. Workers are replacing a deteriorating metal roof installed more than 50 years ago with flat rubber roofing and copper panels designed to match the structure’s original 1931 appearance. Funding was provided by the Franklin County Board of Commissioners ($1.5 million), the State of Ohio ($1.25 million), and the City of Columbus ($1 million). Completion is expected by late winter 2026, after which the museum plans to reopen its Broad Street entrance on Sundays.

The museum’s satellite campus at The Pizzuti, in Columbus’s Short North Arts District, reopened in July 2025 with a permanent installation by Bahamian artist Tavares Strachan. “Bar Room” operates as a functioning rum bar and café referencing Afro-Caribbean music and the African diaspora. Additional Strachan exhibitions are scheduled to open at The Pizzuti in May 2026.

Minto described the five-year strategic plan as “the museum’s compass,” built around four priorities: amplifying the institution’s voice regionally and globally, delivering innovative art experiences, cultivating the next generation of supporters, and building long-term stability. The museum’s 150th anniversary in 2028 will serve as a formal evaluation point for the plan’s progress.

Source: The Columbus Dispatch