[2] It was also voted as the #1 Hotel in the South in the 2012 Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards.
They were inspired to create 21c after seeing farmland and rural landscapes developed while the historic buildings of Louisville's downtown sat vacantly.
They created 21c in Louisville's downtown arts and theater district to support urban renewal and regional agriculture, and have developed partnerships with local growers to supply products and ingredients for the Proof on Main restaurant and bar.
Co-founder Craig Greenberg was named the company's president in 2012 and chief executive officer in September 2017.
Recent exhibitions include: 21c Museum has presented projects by Mikhail Baryshnikov and John Waters, as well as traveling exhibitions including "Marc Swanson: Beginning to See the Light", organized by the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, and "Constant World: the Work of Jennifer and Kevin McCoy", organized by Beall Center for Art and Technology.
The 21c Museum features permanent installations and special exhibitions of works by artists, including Bill Viola, Tony Oursler, Andres Serrano, Sam Taylor-Wood, David Levinthal, Yyinka Shonibare, Judy Fox, Chuck Close, Alfredo Jaar, David Herbert, Daan Roosegaarde, Anastasia Schipani, Kara Walker, and Serkan Özkaya.
[15] In its Cincinnati location, 21c undertook the complete renovation of the historic Hotel Metropole, a building previously used for housing low-income residents.
[26] In 2023 the location was released by 21c and became The Bankers Alley Hotel Nashville, Tapestry Collection by Hilton.
Additional properties are in active development, including a location in Pittsburgh in 2024, & St. Louis, Missouri,[29] which is expected to open in 2023.
The future of another planned location in Des Moines, Iowa is unclear now that "The Fifth" project, of which it was due to be a part, has stalled.
[30] The company had been looking to open a hotel in Indianapolis in the old city hall, with construction scheduled to begin in 2017; however, these plans were scrapped at the end of March 2017 due to problems with financing.