While he has worked on the project for a decade, the museum is only now unveiling the design, which involves carving out a block-size space under the east terrace to create a new wing of galleries.

Most of the improvements will be out of public view, except for two controversial proposals. Gehry wants to insert a large picture window in the so-called Rocky steps across from Eakins Oval to bring light into the new underground galleries; and, because the museum does not meet modern safety requirements, he would build a matched pair of free-standing fire stairs on the museum's east-facing wings.

Drawings, models and photographs of these changes, and the rest of Gehry's design, will be on view from Tuesday through Sept. 1 in "Making a Classic Modern: Frank Gehry's Master Plan for the Philadelphia Museum of Art."

After Gehry's museum visit, he sat down for a chat about his plan. Here are excerpts, condensed and edited for clarity:

Question: Did you have qualms about tampering with the beloved Rocky steps?

Answer:I promised Annie [the museum's late director, Anne D'Harnoncourt] that I wouldn't do anything drastic on the outside of the building. But board member Mark Rubenstein gave me the idea cutting in a window. He said you could get a great view of City Hall [from the underground galleries]. I said, 'Do you think we could really do that?' And he said yes....Continue Reading

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