City Leaders Celebrate Milestone In Gilcrease Museum Construction Project

Tulsa City leaders marked a milestone in construction of the new Gilcrease Museum, the “topping out,” by signing panels that will be installed inside the building.

Construction on the $139 million museum is about halfway done, with the frame of the building completed, as work on the shell and interior of the building is underway. Workers are building the walls of the upper floors now.

Mayor G.T. Bynum, who as a City Councilor helped create the original Vision Tulsa package with the bulk of the funding for the project, put the decision to better protect the collection with a new building in historic terms.

“This generation of Tulsans is grateful for the heritage that we have been given by those who came before us, and we want to honor it by preserving and taking care of it, and making it more accessible, to those who come after us,” he said.

The original museum was demolished after it was determined a total replacement was more practical, while more expensive than a renovation.

The new Gilcrease has reached it’s final height, 35' taller than the old building, and will have more windows to offer scenic views in all directions.

Patrick Gallagher leads the team designing the exhibits.

“This is a collection that is embedded in the history of this nation and the people that settled this nation, and we want to be able to tell that story here,” he said.

He promises innovative storytelling that will appeal to all ages.

“This collection documents an important evolution of American history and it's our hope that we can use that collection to not just engage it in a more safe and beautiful space, but to really engage in a different kind of storytelling,” he explained.

The construction was hampered by labor shortages and COVID, and by supply chain problems, all of which increased the cost.

Museum Director Susan Neal is raising $10 million to match $10 million in public funding in a City tax package on the ballot on August 8.

“We know the citizens of Tulsa have been generous to Gilcrease and the private sector has been generous to Gilcrease, and that combination is magic for us, so we're headed towards success,” she said.

Despite the unexpecting higher cost and an opening still three years away, Neal said the wait and the cost will be worth it.

The Gilcrease collection is the largest collection of American Art outside of the Smithsonian, and is owned by the City, and indirectly, the taxpayers who have supported the preservation of what Thomas Gilcrease conveyed to Tulsa’s residents.

“I think they're going to find the exhibits when they're installed to be amazing, and the stories this museum can tell is practically unlike any other in the United States, and this all belongs to Tulsa, so I think we'll all be very proud,” said Neal.