The galleries for nineteenth- and early twentieth-century European paintings and sculpture reopened in 2007 with renovated rooms and 8,000 square feet of additional gallery space—the Henry J. Heinz II Galleries—to showcase works from 1800 through the early twentieth century, including many works that were not previously on view.
In 2007, the Museum opened new permanent galleries for Oceanic art, completely redesigned and reinstalled, which display a substantially larger portion of the Museum's Oceanic holdings than was previously on view.
After three years of renovation, the gallery dedicated to the display of Native American art reopened in 2007, featuring ninety objects that illustrate the distinct cultural, stylistic, and functional aspects of the art created by North American peoples of various regions and time periods.
The 2007 opening of the Hellenistic, Etruscan, and Roman galleries—an entire wing housing over 5,300 objects in more than 30,000 square feet—completed the reconstruction and reinstallation of the permanent galleries of Greek and Roman art.
In 2008, portions of the medieval art galleries were renovated, thanks to the generous support of Mary and Michael Jaharis.
In 2009, the Late Gothic Hall at The Cloisters reopened following an extensive renovation.
In 2007, the thirteen Wrightsman Galleries for French decorative arts underwent extensive renovations to improve the presentation of the Museum's renowned collection of French furniture and related decorative arts pieces—many of which have a royal provenance.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing—including The Charles Engelhard Court and the American period rooms—reopened on May 19, 2009. After more than two years of construction and renovation, the unparalleled collections of American furniture, sculpture, stained glass, architectural elements, ceramics, glass, silver, pewter, and jewelry returned to public view, as did twelve of the Met's historic period rooms.
After an eight-month hiatus, the gallery devoted to Western musical instruments reopened in March 2010. It now showcases more than two hundred works of art drawn primarily from the Metropolitan's extensive holdings, among the most important in the world.
Opening January 16, 2012, this final phase of the American Wing renovation project is comprised of twenty-five renovated and enlarged galleries on the second floor. The new architectural design is a contemporary interpretation of nineteenth-century Beaux-Arts galleries, including coved ceilings and natural light flowing through new skylights.