The largest cultural institution in Westchester County, the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, is about to get bigger — in more ways than one.

The museum is near the end of a two-year, $12.3 million West Wing capital improvement project expanding the museum’s footprint from approximately 40,000 square feet to 52,000 square feet.

“We’re very excited about the dedicated Special Exhibition Galleries,” says Masha Turchinsky, the museum’s director and CEO.  “What this means is the spaces traditionally used for special exhibits will be able to feature more of the permanent collection.” 

Those holdings include nearly 18,000 paintings, sculptures, works on paper, photographs, decorative art objects, costumes, textiles and historical items from the 19th century to the present.

Recently, the museum announced two additions — Fitz Henry Lane’s serene, panoramic “Gloucester, Stage Fort Beach” (1849) and Severin Roesen’s Old Masters-inspired still life “Fruit With Water Glass” (circa 1850-70). The two oils on canvas are part of “Cycles of Nature: Highlights From the Collections of the Hudson River Museum and Art Bridges” — Art Bridges Collection Loan Partnership being the brainchild of arts patron and Walmart heiress Alice Walton to supplement exhibits of American art at museums around the country.