The Society of the Four Arts
Palm Beach • Cultural
The Society of the Four Arts has begun a $250 million renovation and expansion of its 10-acre cultural campus in Midtown Palm Beach, focused on two historic buildings along Royal Palm Way just east of the Royal Park Bridge. The 18-month project overhauls the Esther B. O'Keeffe Gallery Building — originally Addison Mizner's Embassy Club and later reworked by John Volk — expanding its footprint from roughly 20,000 to nearly 31,000 square feet, enlarging and modernizing the galleries, and uncovering and restoring the original pecky cypress ceiling from Mizner's design. The adjacent Gubelmann Auditorium will gain improved acoustics, a larger stage, expanded backstage and dressing rooms, a catering area, and a loading dock, trading a modest seat reduction (700 to 650) for performance capability. The Rovensky Administrative Building — another Mizner design, built as the Embassy Apartment Building — receives a 10,356-square-foot, three-story addition, a relocated and expanded Children's Library with its own first-floor entrance and dedicated exhibition space (including works donated by Steve Wynn), new offices, and a 1,400-square-foot boardroom opening onto a 1,629-square-foot terrace. More than half of each building will be demolished while preserving their landmark facades. West Palm Beach–based Spina O'Rourke + Partners is the local architect of record, with Conkling & Lewis Construction handling the build. The King Library, Dixon Education Building, and Philip Hulitar Sculpture Garden remain open throughout. Funded entirely through trustee and member donations; completion targeted for late fall 2027, ahead of the 2027–28 season.
