"We did major renovations and repairs:" Facelift of Milwaukee Art Museum is complete

MILWAUKEE -- A local icon has gotten a facelift and now the doors are open to the public. The renovation of the Milwaukee Art Museum is complete and it's said to set a new standard for museums in the 21st century.

With the snip of scissors a wealth of history is unveiled. On Tuesday morning, November 24th the Milwaukee Art Museum was reopened and it's bigger and better than ever.

"We did major renovations and repairs to the older buildings that were owned by Milwaukee County," said Daniel Keegan, Milwaukee Art Museum director.

The pieces were placed back inside and rearranged along with new additions.

"We have a brand new center for photography and media art, a new Kohl's art generation center for youth and families, a brand new American art collection -- 16,000 square feet of space," said Keegan.

Just like the building itself, Keegan says folks should expect the unexpected.

"By design, we have created a lot of variety. The galleries are different from one gallery to the next. The color schemes are different. Interactives are present. We've mixed objects with paintings and we have large-scale sculptures in surprising places," said Keegan.

There really is something for everyone. New spaces for families offer unique, interactive, hands-on experiences.

"Just to see the wonderful space that's here and how things are better displayed, I think you can allow the artwork to breathe and experience it how it supposed to be displayed," said Kelly Schlicht.

Art enthusiasts are in awe.

"Every piece is engaging and captivating and beautiful," said Lizzie Cichowski.

The transformation project took $34 million and about six years to complete.