Incoming freshmen should be put on alert. Warning: spend as much time at the Speed Art Museum as possible during your first few weeks.
The closing of the Speed Art Museum will last for three years to complete at $50 million renovation. It was originally designed in 1927,
For some, the closing is well worth the wait for such great expansion. Not only will the model allow for more space for art display, the modern glass design will provide views of the inside from 3rd Street.
But should we support depriving incoming freshmen of a local art museum for most of their college careers? The Speed’s campus location makes it easier for student, faculty and other local art lovers to visit frequently. It’s easily one of our university’s best and unique attractions.
Many art history classes use the museum as an excellent teaching tool. It doesn’t take an art expert to recognize the awe of seeing great works in person – a feeling that one can’t achieve looking at a textbook.
As sophomore fine arts major Emily Gunn said, some professors might be forced to send students “downtown or somewhere else for assignments,” costing them money for gas.
Attention to campus aesthetics has been the unannounced focus of the University of Louisville. Projects like the Playhouse renovations, the addition of Trager plaza and the proposal for a new athletic complex vary from small to quite expensive and show the intent to expand campus. While the closing is an obvious betterment to our university, at what cost can we decide to expand?
Temporary, yet lengthy, closings like that of the Speed should be questioned.
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Photo: Aaron Long/The Louisville Cardinal
