<P> From 1922 to 1958, Grand Central Terminal was the home of the Grand Central Art Galleries, which were established by John Singer Sargent, Edmund Greacen, Walter Leighton Clark, and others . The founders had sought a location in Manhattan that was central and easily accessible, and Alfred Holland Smith, president of New York Central, made the top of the terminal available . A 10 - year lease was signed, and the galleries, together with the railroad company, spent more than $100,000 to prepare the space . The architect was William Adams Delano, best known for designing Yale Divinity School's Sterling Quadrangle . </P> <P> At their opening, the galleries extended over most of the terminal's sixth floor, 15,000 square feet (1,400 m), and offered eight main exhibition rooms, a foyer gallery, and a reception area . A total of 20 display rooms were planned for what was intended as "...the largest sales gallery of art in the world". The official opening was March 22, 1923, and featured paintings by Sargent, Charles W. Hawthorne, Cecilia Beaux, Wayman Adams, and Ernest Ipsen . Sculptors included Daniel Chester French, Herbert Adams, Robert Aitken, Gutzon Borglum, and Frederic MacMonnies . The event attracted 5,000 people and received a glowing review from The New York Times . </P> <P> A year after they opened, the galleries established the Grand Central School of Art, which occupied 7,000 square feet (650 m) on the seventh floor of the east wing of the terminal . The school was directed by Sargent and Daniel Chester French . Its first - year teachers included painters Jonas Lie and Nicolai Fechin, sculptor Chester Beach, illustrator Dean Cornwell, costume designer Helen Dryden, and muralist Ezra Winter . The Grand Central School of Art remained in the east wing until 1944 . </P> <P> The Grand Central Art Galleries remained in the terminal until 1958, when they moved to the Biltmore Hotel . They remained at the Biltmore for 23 years, until it was converted into an office building . When the Biltmore was demolished in 1981, they moved to 24 West 57th Street . They ceased operations in 1994 . </P>

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