The Museum of Modern Art Returns

The Oct. 21 unveiling of the Modern’s increased galleries and expanded historical purview is the biggest bump on the art horizon this fall, and its reopening is only the beginning. Sorting it out architecturally as well as artistically will take some time and it promises to be an object of fierce debate for months, if not years.

All the opening shows are drawn from the revered permanent collection. But know this: That collection is going to be a lot less permanent. It will be in a state of relatively constant flux, with about one-third of the collection rehung, or at least shifted about, every six months. This means that there will be, essentially, a completely new hang every 18 months — rather like the human body renews all its cells every seven years or so.