945 Madison Avenue

945 Madison Avenue, also known as the Breuer Building and formerly the Whitney Museum Building, is located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City. Built from 1964 to 1966 as the third home of the Whitney Museum of American Art, it subsequently held a branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Frick Collection before becoming the headquarters of Sotheby's auction house. Marcel Breuer and Hamilton P. Smith were the primary architects, with Michael H. Irving as the consulting architect and Paul Weidlinger as the structural engineer. 945 Madison Avenue was Breuer's most significant design in New York City and one of the most important of. Architecture 945 Madison Avenue was designed for the Whitney Museum of American Art by Marcel Breuer & Associates – primarily Breuer himself and his partner Hamilton P. Smith. Michael H. Irving was the consulting architect, and Paul Weidlinger was the structural engineer. The work was the most significant in New York City for Breuer, and one of the most important of his career. It was his first museum commission, and his first and only remaining work in Manhattan. Breuer was originally a student of the Bauhaus architecture and design school, though he later became one. History 1964–2014: Whitney Museum See also: Whitney Museum of American Art § Move to the Upper East Side In 1929, philanthropist Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney founded the Whitney Museum to champion American modern art. Prior to this, she had offered 500 artworks from her collection to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, only to have her proposal declined. Consequently, Whitney resolved to establish her own museum, initially showcasing around 700 works of American art. The museum initially opened in 1931 on West 8th Street , spanning three remodeled rowhouses . However, this location quickly proved inadequate. In.