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December Issue 2006
Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum in Myrtle Beach, SC, Closes for Renovations and then Celebrates 10th Anniversary
One
of Myrtle Beach, SC's top attractions will take a hiatus this
holiday season when the Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin
Art Museum closes for some much-needed renovations - just in time
for the launching of a yearlong 10th anniversary celebration in
January. The Museum will close Nov. 27 and reopen Jan. 14, 2007.
The Museum Gift Shop will remain open during construction, with
store hours from 10am-4pm, Tue. through Fri., through Dec. 15,
2006.
Known as Springmaid Villa, the facility housing the Museum dates to 1923, when it originally stood next to the historic Ocean Forest Hotel. When the hotel was razed in 1974, the Villa nearly met the same fate, until a group of local preservationists raised the funds to save the structure. The Burroughs & Chapin Co. donated the land where the Museum now stands, near Springmaid Pier, and the Villa was moved to the site.
"Time and again, we hear from visitors that the building is as much an attraction as the art inside. It's a wonderful, intimate setting that makes our art exhibits so much more accessible," said Jim Watson, the Museum's treasurer. "With so few historic structures remaining from the early days of Myrtle Beach, we felt the building was a treasure that needed to be preserved."
The facility's conversion from family home
to art museum included one alteration, however, that would come
to be regretted. In order to create more interior wall space for
the hanging of artwork, as well as to protect the art from ultraviolet
rays, most of the building's exterior windows needed to be closed
off. But to avoid substantially changing the building's appearance,
a decision was made to close off the openings with plywood - uninsulated
and painted black - while installing modern aluminum windows on
the outside. Over time, that would prove to be the source of numerous
problems. Particularly in summer, the black painted surfaces behind
the windows absorbed solar heat that wrought havoc with the building's
heating and cooling system. Eventually the heat buildup even warped
the window frames, allowing humidity and windblown rain - both
enemies of fine art works - to penetrate into the interior.
So late last year, the Museum's board of directors commissioned
LS3P, a Charleston, SC, architectural firm to find a solution
to the building's woes. Their recommendations were presented to
the Myrtle Beach Council, and following approval by the city's
Community Appearance Board, the Council appropriated $100,000
to undertake renovations.
The architects' solution was deceptively simple: Remove the existing
windows, close and insulate the openings, and then install fixed,
closed shutters (painted "Charleston green") surrounded
by faux window frames. The result is the illusion of windows where
there are none, thus preserving the look of the original structure
while providing a sturdy, weatherproof shell to protect the building's
contents.
Following completion of the heavy construction, new wall carpet will be installed on all interior walls. Three windows on the top floor of the building, located in a storage area, will be replaced but remain operable windows. Construction is expected to be completed in time for a grand reopening and the launching of a yearlong celebration of the Museum's 10th anniversary, which actually occurs in June. A variety of events, including live entertainment and arts activities for both adults and children, are planned. "In our first ten years, we feel the Museum has established itself as a major piece of the Grand Strand's cultural life," said Pat Goodwin, Museum executive director. "With our new, improved facility and the momentum we've established, we're going to be ready and able to continue that role for many, many years to come."
The Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum is a wholly nonprofit institution located across from Springmaid Pier at 3100 South Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach. Admission is free, but donations are welcomed. Components of Museum programs are funded in part by support from the City of Myrtle Beach, the Horry County Council and the South Carolina Arts Commission, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
For further information check our SC Institutional
Gallery listings, call the Museum at 843/238-2510 or visit (www.MyrtleBeachArtMuseum.org).
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