Global Museum Updates: Openings, Renovations, and Missed Opportunities in 2023

The Sursock Museum in Beirut reopens in May 2023 after a €2 million restoration funded partly by Italy, following its closure due to the 2020 port explosion. The 19th-century villa, home to Nicolas Ibrahim Sursock's collection, will again host modern art. In Manchester, the Factory International cultural center opens in February, designed by OMA, featuring flexible spaces, a Yayoi Kusama exhibition, and a 5,000-seat auditorium. The Manchester Museum also unveils a two-story extension by Purcell with a green terracotta facade. London's National Portrait Gallery reopens on June 22 after a three-year closure, with a redesigned entrance on Charing Cross Road and new galleries by Jamie Fobert Architects. The Istanbul Modern Museum, designed by Renzo Piano Building Workshop and Arup, opens in 2023 on the Bosphorus waterfront, part of the Galataport urban project. Warsaw's Museum of Modern Art opens in May, designed by Thomas Phifer and Partners, with four floors of exhibition spaces, a cinema, and auditorium, aiming to revitalize the area around the Palace of Culture and Science. However, the planned Musée Rodin satellite in Santa Cruz de Tenerife is canceled due to high costs (€16 million) and local opposition, with the city redirecting funds to local heritage.