A breathtaking structure has arisen in the heart of Golden Gate Park, a vast façade of texturized copper panels crowned by a twisting spiral observation tower that reaches 144 feet into the sky.

After over three years of construction and over 200 million dollars spent, the new incarnation of the de Young Museum will open on Oct. 15, hosting one of the most important collections of fine art on the west coast, including American paintings, sculptures, decorative arts and crafts, arts from Africa, the Pacific Islands and the Americas, and textiles from around the globe.

“People seem to be very excited about the opening,” said Alexandra Quinn, a media relations officer with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, an institution comprised of the de Young and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park. “In addition to the new building, the collection has been augmented during this closed period. People will be amazed to see what we have here now.”

The museum, designed by the world-renowned Swiss architectural firm Herzog and de Meuron, is constructed of warm, natural materials, including copper, stone, wood and glass, in order to complement the surrounding park. The dimpled and perforated copper panels, which have already taken on a tarnished hue, will further oxidize and eventually achieve a vibrant green patina and blend with the encircling tree canopy.

The de Young’s exhibition spaces were designed to flow into one another emphasizing connections while maintaining visual distinction in order to highlight the uniqueness of every piece in the museum’s collection. There is over 116,000 square feet of gallery and educational space, and roughly one-third of that area is accessible free of charge, including the striking copper-clad observation tower that corkscrews into the air and offers panoramic views of San Francisco from the center of the city.

In celebration of the museum reopening, SF State has commissioned five public works of art through a gift from SF State alum George Marcus. The International Center for the Arts (at SF State), in association with the San Francisco Arts Commission, Strybing Arboretum and the de Young, is presenting “High 5,” five outdoor art installations by local artists, on display around the city from Oct. 7 through Nov. 7.

Also of interest to students, the de Young will continue its tradition of hosting College Nights, typically in conjunction with some of their biggest traveling exhibits.

“The de Young museum invented the idea of College Nights for students,” said Professor Mark Johnson, gallery director at SF State. “They make the house available to us and they make it free. They are, in my opinion, the most community accessible museum in the Bay Area.”

The de Young’s inaugural exhibit is “Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh,” highlighting art created during the reign of the female pharaoh Hatshepsut. Also prominently featured will be the museum’s growing collection of contemporary art, including five site-specific commissions by contemporary artists Andy Goldsworthy, Gerhard Richter, James Turrell, Kiki Smith and Ed Ruscha.

The de Young will be open every Tuesday through Sunday. General admission is $10, but college students with ID pay only $6. Visitors with either a MUNI fast pass or transfer receive $2 off the price of entry.

Workers are still bustling around, applying finishing touches to the building and landscaping, even sprucing up the two stone sphinxes left over from the old de Young. Across from the new copper structure, construction continues in earnest on the new California Academy of Sciences building, which is scheduled to open in 2008.

“The reinstallation of the de Young and the Academy of Sciences in their spectacular new homes, along with the Botanical Garden at Strybing Arboretum, the Conservatory of Flowers and the Japanese Tea Garden, is certainly a revitalization of the cultural center of Golden Gate Park,” said Quinn.

Originally opened in 1895 by San Francisco Chronicle co-founder Michael H. de Young, the old museum had become a patchwork of wings built as the need arose, and finally after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, museum leaders decided the time was right to secure a stable home for the de Young.

After failed ballot measures to publicly finance the de Young in 1996 and 1998, a new approach was in store.

Well-known local philanthropist Dede Wilsey, also the president of the de Young’s board of directors, led a fund-raising campaign that spanned the last seven years and even included her own $10 million contribution. The overall project cost sits at $202 million, of which $188 million was contributed from the pockets of private donors. That places the new de Young as the second largest privately funded museum project in the county, falling in behind New York’s Museum of Modern Art, which recently attained $750 million in donations.

San Francisco has waited years for the resurrection of one of its brightest cultural gems and is on the verge of reaping the benefits of a dedicated community achievement.

“It’s always very exciting to see things you’ve been working on for a long time come to life,” said Quinn.