The Museum of Modern Art’s Board of Trustees has approved the initial plans for an expansion project that will add 40,000 square feet of public space and galleries to the museum. The addition will allow the institution to reconceive how its collection and exhibitions are presented. New York-based architecture firm Diller Scofidio + Renfro will spearhead the project.

In order to make way for the new galleries and spaces, MoMA will raze the former home of the American Folk Art Museum, which it acquired in 2011 after the Folk Art Museum defaulted on more than $30 million in bond debt. Designed by New York architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, the American Folk Art Museum’s former building sits adjacent to MoMA and earned praise from architecture critics when it opened in 2001.

Glen D. Lowry, MoMA’s director, released a statement saying, “The plans approved today are the result of a recommendation from [DS+R] after a diligent and thoughtful six-month study and design process that explored all options for the site. The analysis that we undertook was lengthy and rigorous, and ultimately led us to the determination that creating a new building on the site of the former American Folk Art Museum is the only way to achieve a fully integrated campus.”