One of the most distinguished and revered art museums in the world, the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in New York is all set to receive a major make over, thanks to a whopping $10 million donation from the famous billionaire, David H. Koch. Mr. Koch wishes to remodel the fountains that greet the visitors outside The Met and in order to accomplish this feat, he has funded a major renovation program for the institution, that would include the two fountains, museum’s exterior lighting, and would cover the entire plaza.
David Koch, who is the executive vice president of Koch Industries, assumed the role of Board of Members for the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in November 2008 and has been looking for ways to improve the look of the museum ever since. According to the Met’s vice president for external affairs, Harold Holzer, the two fountains outside the museum has been dormant for the last two years and since the announcement of the offer from Mr. Koch, the museum, the representatives of the institution have already held several talks with the numerous fountain experts.
The inspiration for the renovation of the fountains came from the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, that has a 50 foot fountain called, Lincoln Center Fountain, which was unveiled in the month of October last year.
According to David Koch,
“I went right up to her (Met President Emily Rafferty )—I was so fired up—and I said, ‘Emily, I want to recreate those fountains!’ If you go down Fifth Avenue, that plaza is so dreary. I want to improve the lighting, so that when you pass by at night and look over there, you’ll see a beautiful fountain, dancing away.”
