KC’s Nelson-Atkins Museum announces plans for 2026 refresh of Bloch Building
Kansas City’s Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art will use a $20 million grant from the Marion and Henry Bloch Family Foundation to fund a refresh of the museum’s Bloch Building.
The work at the museum campus off Oak Street is beginning this month and will continue in phases throughout the year, the museum announced Tuesday.
Exterior work on the Bloch Building will see the space’s green roof replaced, as soil, grass, plants, hardscaping and a waterproof membrane on the roof will all be changed out. Inside, the building will get new paint, wall repairs and resurfaced floors.
Staggered gallery closures are planned in the building throughout 2026, the museum said.
“We are extremely grateful to the Bloch Family Foundation for their generosity and commitment to keeping the Bloch Building in top condition to protect the collection and serve half a million visitors each year,” Nelson-Atkins CEO Julián Zugazagoitia said in a news release about the work.
“This essential refresh is Phase One of our multi-year campus transformation, which paves the way for future expansion. We are currently planning and fundraising for the next phase — space to welcome even more of our community to the museum for a wide variety of exhibitions and activities.”
The Bloch Building, the museum’s first major expansion, opened in 2007.
The work this year comes as a prelude to a major expansion the museum is pursuing in the coming years.
The museum announced last year that it had selected a lead architect for the project, which is expected to include a new building along Oak Street and other changes throughout the museum’s campus. The museum hasn’t announced a timeline for that project.
The museum said this week that it had hired architect Dan Wehmueller as its executive project manager for the campus improvements and had hired the firm Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated, a real estate and investment management company, as an owner’s representative for the project. A local architect for the expansion is expected to be hired this spring, the museum said.
This story was originally published January 7, 2026 at 3:16 PM.
