A university’s art collection is as good as its alumni. And at Princeton, where former students include the Museum of Modern Art’s founding director, Alfred H. Barr Jr. (class of 1922), and the groundbreaking artist Frank Stella (class of 1958), the collection is indeed extraordinary, reflecting the largess and talents of the university’s community over the generations. Now in a stunning new home, these objects seem to breathe and converse as never before.

The Princeton University Art Museum reopens on Oct. 31 with a slew of spectacular gifts and commissions by artists including Sean Scully, Diana Al-Hadid and Ai Weiwei, after a four-year ground-up construction project. The new 146,000-square-foot complex of nine interlocking modernist pavilions, built on the site of the former building that was demolished in 2021, almost doubles the museum’s size.

The design is credited to Adjaye Associates with Cooper Robertson as executive architect. The building was more than 50 percent constructed in 2023 when news broke of allegations of sexual misconduct against David Adjaye, the celebrated Ghanaian British principal architect, precipitating a swift fall from grace. He has denied the accusations but stepped back from oversight at Princeton and other projects (including the Studio Museum in Harlem, opening on Nov. 15).

For an exclusive first look at Princeton University Art Museum, visit The New York Times for the full review.