The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls was awarded a $100,000 grant from the Charles R. Wood Foundation to put toward its new Reimagine Project, an enhanced visitor experience with improved accessibility.
“The Charles R. Wood Foundation is pleased to assist The Hyde Collection with this groundbreaking initiative,” said Charlene Wood, chair and trustee, Charles R. Wood Foundation. “As the region’s leading fine arts venue, The Hyde Collection’s Reimagine Project was selected for its emphasis on dramatically enhancing the visitor experience. The project will provide a more welcoming atmosphere, improve and increase community use, expand collaboration opportunities, extend visitor time on campus, and forge a deeper connection between visitors and The Hyde’s history.”
“The Charles R. Wood Foundation’s tremendous investment is a crucial step for upgrading the experience for visitors and the community, said Norman E. Dascher, The Hyde’s chief executive officer. “We are grateful for their leadership and commitment, an exciting beginning for The Hyde’s new Reimagine Project. More community support and resources will be essential to realizing the full potential for this transformation. This is an investment in the museum, in Glens Falls, the region and beyond.”
This multi-year project includes substantial improvements to the museum’s entrance and outdoor campus, the translation of the Hoopes Gallery into a permanent orientation gallery, and campus-wide visitor-centric improvements. These projects are designed to make The Hyde experience more welcoming, dynamic, immersive and accessible.
Over the next three years, The Hyde Collection will strive to secure nearly $500,000 toward these efforts.
The Charles R. Wood Foundation honors the legacy of local businessman and philanthropist Charles R. Wood, who has a long history with The Hyde. He served on the museum’s board of trustees and was named a trustee emeritus in 1985. In 1987, he donated Greta Garbo’s custom 1933 Duesenberg automobile for auction. The car sale raised $1.4 million for The Hyde and supported the museum’s education wing construction.
The Charles R. Wood Gallery is named in his honor. The 2,400-square-foot gallery is the most significant temporary exhibition space at The Hyde, according to museum officials. In 2004, Charles R. Wood bequeathed a pair of Russian imperial porcelain vases to the museum as an unrestricted gift. The objects sold in 2005 for $3.5 million.
The Hyde honored Mr. Wood by using the gift to designate two funds: the Charles R. Wood Fund for Exhibitions and the Charles R. Wood Fund for Acquisitions. These funds continue to extend Mr. Wood’s legacy by allowing the museum to significantly enhance its exhibition program’s quality and the scope and depth of its permanent collection.
The Hyde is one of the Northeast’s exceptional small art museums with distinguished European and American art collections. The core collection, acquired by museum founders Louis and Charlotte Hyde, includes works by such artists as Sandro Botticelli, El Greco, Rembrandt, Peter Paul Rubens, Edgar Degas, Georges Seurat, Pablo Picasso, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and American artists Thomas Eakins, Childe Hassam, Winslow Homer, and James McNeill Whistler.