Racine Art Museum exterior ca. 2005
Racine Art Museum, ca. 2005
Photography: Christopher Barrett

From the Ground Up: Building Racine Art Museum

June 1 – August 17, 2013

In 2003, Racine Art Museum opened the doors of its Main Street space in downtown Racine. Rooted in the Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts—still an integral part of the organization as a whole—RAM offered the opportunity for institutional growth in a variety of capacities, including more exhibition and storage space.

Designed by the award-winning Chicago architecture firm Brininstool + Lynch, the museum is an environmentally sound and visually striking reuse of two existing structures that join together in an “exploration of transparency, translucency, opacity, and light.” The RAM facility features over 10,000 square feet of exhibition space, an entire floor dedicated to collection care and art preparation, a museum store, art library, and administrative offices.

Honoring RAM’s 10th anniversary, From the Ground Up offers materials—floor plans, photographs, blue prints, ephemera, and a building model—that document the development of the new museum for Racine leading up to its grand opening in 2003. For visitors unfamiliar with these ideas, this exhibition is a snapshot of an important moment in RAM’s history. For those acquainted with the building project, it offers an opportunity to reminisce and to contemplate what has changed and what has stayed the same since the museum’s early phases of conception, design, and construction.

More About the Exhibition

Press Room

From the Ground Up: Building Racine Art Museum

June 1 – August 17, 2013
Racine Art Museum exterior ca. 2005
Racine Art Museum, ca. 2005
Photography: Christopher Barrett

In 2003, Racine Art Museum opened the doors of its Main Street space in downtown Racine. Rooted in the Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts—still an integral part of the organization as a whole—RAM offered the opportunity for institutional growth in a variety of capacities, including more exhibition and storage space.

Designed by the award-winning Chicago architecture firm Brininstool + Lynch, the museum is an environmentally sound and visually striking reuse of two existing structures that join together in an “exploration of transparency, translucency, opacity, and light.” The RAM facility features over 10,000 square feet of exhibition space, an entire floor dedicated to collection care and art preparation, a museum store, art library, and administrative offices.

Honoring RAM’s 10th anniversary, From the Ground Up offers materials—floor plans, photographs, blue prints, ephemera, and a building model—that document the development of the new museum for Racine leading up to its grand opening in 2003. For visitors unfamiliar with these ideas, this exhibition is a snapshot of an important moment in RAM’s history. For those acquainted with the building project, it offers an opportunity to reminisce and to contemplate what has changed and what has stayed the same since the museum’s early phases of conception, design, and construction.

More About the Exhibition

Press Room

Gallery of Work

Exhibitions at RAM are made possible by:

Platinum Sponsors

The Estate of Karen Johnson Boyd
David Charak
Judith and David Flegel Fund
Ron and Judith Isaacs
Racine Community Foundation logo
United Way Of Racine County logo
Barbara Waldman
Windgate Foundation

Diamond Sponsors

Ruffo Family Foundation
Ruth Foundation for the Arts

Gold Sponsors

Anonymous
Osborne and Scekic Family Foundation
Trio Foundation of St. Louis
W.T. Walker Group, Inc.
Wisconsin Arts Board 50th Anniversary Logo

Silver Sponsors

Anonymous
Baird
Ben and Dawn Flegel
Friends of Fiber Art International
Sharon and Tom Harty
Dave and Judy Hecker
Horizon Retail Construction, Inc.
Johnson Financial Group
Lang Family Foundation
Dorothy MacVicar
Jan Serr & John Shannon

Bronze Sponsors

Dave’s Wine Garage
Educators Credit Union
Express Employment Professionals
Lucy G. Feller
Hitter’s Baseball
SC Johnson
Bill and Debbie Keland
Susan Manalli
Norbell Foundation
JoAnna Poehlmann
Rasmussen Diamonds
Tito’s
Twin Disc

Media Sponsor

Radio Milwaukee logo

Love Art?  You’ll Love RAM!

The mission of the Racine Art Museum is to exhibit, collect, preserve, and educate in the contemporary visual arts. Stay up-to-date about special events as well as support the mission of the largest contemporary craft collection in America: