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Museum membership guide
Top 31 places in Massachusetts for Art
byShiry
Live update: Updated July 26, 2021Copy link
Copy link1. Berkshire Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:
ShiryRecommended this place!
2. Springfield Museums Corporation
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryLocated in the heart of downtown Springfield, Massachusetts, the Springfield Museums offers access to four world-class museums and the Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden all under a single admission.
3. Addison Gallery of American Art
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
4. Cape Cod Museum of Art
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryFounded by artists in 1981, CCMoA is the home of Cape Cod Art. The Museum preserves the work of the Cape’s finest artists and celebrates the distinctive artistic identity of the Cape, the Islands and the region. It is a major hub of the cultural life of the region. Through its outstanding art collection and diverse programming, CCMoA educates, inspires and excites the imagination while caring for and connecting the Cape’s many communities.
5. Danforth Art Museum at Framingham State University
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe Danforth Art Museum educates the public through its Permanent Collection of American art from the 19th century to the present day, changing exhibitions of contemporary artists. The museum is proud to be the caretaker of the Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller Special Collection.In addition, the Danforth school offers studio art classes and workshops, and a variety of community outreach programs.
6. Fitchburg Art Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
7. Highfield Hall and Gardens
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryHighfield Hall & Gardens, a magnificently restored historic mansion and estate, is now a vibrant center of cultural and community life on Cape Cod. Surrounded by 400 acres of public woodlands and spectacular gardens, Highfield is a hub for public events, music, art, and a beautiful venue for private or corporate functions. Discover seasonal art exhibitions feature works from local and international artists. Free community events include multiple Open House celebrations, Family Nights and a Bluegrass on the Lawn music festival in July. World-class concerts, docent tours, nature walks, garden presentations, and culinary classes are here for you to explore and be inspired.
8. McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe McMullen Museum of Art of Boston College organizes and presents innovative, multidisciplinary exhibitions that receive national and international recognition.
9. New Bedford Art Museum/ArtWorks!
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryNew Bedford Art Museum/ArtWorks! is dedicated to engaging a diverse audience in relevant exhibitions, exemplary education and creative experiences as a vital innovative center for the arts. The South Coast is rich in culture, history, and diversity. And rich in art! New Bedford Art Museum/ArtWorks! is at the heart of New Bedford’s Seaport Cultural District. Located in the historic downtown, NBAM / ArtWorks! offers engaging exhibitions and outstanding educational programs for members and visitors of all ages.
10. Norma Jean Calderwood Gallery at the Boston Athenæum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
11. Smith College Museum of Art
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShirySmith College began collecting original works of art in1879, four years after it enrolled its first class. The first iteration of the museum opened in 1919, and today SCMA’s permanent collection includes more than 25,000 artworks created from antiquity to the present day by artists from around the world. Considered one of the finest at an academic museum in the U.S., the collection is comprised of paintings, sculpture, works on paper (prints, drawings and photographs), as well as videos and new media. Galleries are updated, and art works are rotated, on a regular basis to feature longtime favorites as well as new acquisitions. The museum also hosts a robust schedule of changing exhibitions and related programs.
12. Trustees | deCordova
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryEstablished in 1950, deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum is the largest park of its kind in New England encompassing 30 acres, 20 miles west of Boston.
13. Worcester Art Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
14. Cahoon Musuem of American Art
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe Cahoon Museum is a dynamic center for experiencing the visual arts. It is home to a collection of American art with historic breadth from the early 19th century to contemporary art and a special focus on regional art of the Northeast and Cape Cod. The museum celebrates the creative spirit of folk artists Ralph and Martha Cahoon through the preservation of their artwork and the 1782 historic building which served as their home and studio. The museum presents an ambitious schedule of original exhibitions each year. Special events, one-of-a kind programs, artist’s talks and workshops, guest lectures and get-togethers add to your creative experience!
15. Chesterwood, A Site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryChesterwood, a National Trust Historic Site, is the country home, studio and gardens of America’s foremost sculptor of public monuments, Daniel Chester French (1850-1931), creator of the Minute Man and Abraham Lincoln for the Lincoln Memorial. Situated on 122 acres in the idyllic hamlet of Glendale near Stockbridge, Massachusetts, the property and its buildings were donated to the National Trust for Historic Preservation by French’s only child, Margaret French Cresson (1889-1973). Inspired by the natural beauty of the Berkshire Hills, French purchased the former Marshall Warner farm in 1896. Each year, during the month of May, he left his permanent home and studio in New York for six months and moved with his family to Chesterwood, where he worked on over 200 public and private commissions. Many of French’s plaster sketches, including models of his Abraham Lincoln for the Lincoln Memorial, are on view today in his Studio as well as in the permanent exhibit, Daniel Chester French: Sculpting an American Vision, in the Barn Gallery. Visitors to Chesterwood are also invited to explore An Artist’s Landscape, a self-guided tour of the beautiful formal gardens and woodland paths created by French himself.
16. Cultural Center of Cape Cod
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe mission of the Cultural Center of Cape Cod is to serve the entire Cape Cod community and visitors to the area by offering instruction, entertainment, and exhibition in the visual, literary, and performing arts. The Center opened in 2007 after the decrepit yet historically significant Bass River Savings Bank building was renovated to be a multi-purpose performing arts space, art gallery, and community center. Located in the Bass River Historic District, the Cultural Center offers extensive programming and educational opportunities for all abilities, ages, and incomes, as well as through its network of active partners in social services, arts, and education. In response to escalating demand for services, the Cultural Center opened a 9,000-square-foot Education Wing in 2016. Over 200,000 people have taken part in programming to enrich their lives, combat illness and addiction, create new work, develop new skills, and THRIVE.
17. Harvard Art Museums
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
18. Hopkinton Center for the Arts
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe region’s cultural destination serving individuals of all ages, cultures, and artistic abilities across the MetroWest region, HCA develops artistic skills, offers outstanding artistic performances and exhibitions, and enables visitors to experience art in all forms. Under one roof, we celebrate art through classes and events in visual art, theater, music, dance, ceramics, writing, and film.
19. Lexington Arts & Crafts Society
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
20. Mead Art Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe Mead holds the art collection of Amherst College, celebrated for its American and European paintings, Mexican ceramics, Tibetan scroll paintings, English paneled room, ancient Assyrian carvings, Russian avant-garde art, West African sculpture and Japanese prints. The Mead is situated in the vibrant Five Colleges academic community of western Massachusetts, and serves as a laboratory for interdisciplinary research and innovative teaching involving original works of art. Eight galleries feature regularly changing exhibitions and installations spanning a wide range of historical periods and artistic media.
21. Norman Rockwell Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryLocation: 9 Route 183, Stockbridge, MA 01262, United States. For more details: http://www.nrm.org , 413-298-4100
22. Peabody Essex Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryLocation: 161 Essex Street, Salem, MA 01970, United States. For more details: http://www.pem.org , 866-745-1876
23. Salem Arts Association
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShirySalem Arts Association is a community gallery located in Salem’s Historic Waterfront District located next to the Salem Maritime National Historic Site. We feature more than 100 local and regional artists in our historic 18th Century landmark building. Our galleries and shop offer affordable locally created arts, crafts, and more. Our 10 galleries flow through two floors of this historic space. Also featured is the Paul Nathan Gallery and Museum.
ALSO FEATURED IN:Top 50 NARM locations in Massachusetts
24. The Museum of Russian Icons
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
25. Trustees | Fruitlands
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryFruitlands Museum, founded in 1914 by Clara Endicott Sears, takes its name from an experimental utopian community led by Bronson Alcott and Charles Lane which took place on this site in 1843.
26. Cape Ann Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryThe Cape Ann Museum tells multiple stories, all relating to a single remarkable place. From its earliest days as a fishing and shipping port to its mid-19th century role in the granite industry, to its singular charms of light and sea that have attracted countless artists from the 19th century to the present, Cape Ann boasts a rich and varied culture of nationally significant historical, industrial, and artistic achievement. The Museum’s fine art collection includes the largest grouping of works by native son and renowned marine artist, Fitz Henry Lane, as well as work by other prominent painters and sculptors who lived on, visited or were inspired by Cape Ann. The work of contemporary Cape Ann artists is also collected and exhibited. The permanent collection includes fine and decorative arts, and artifacts from the major industries of the area – the fisheries and granite quarrying.
27. Clark Art Institute
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryLocation: 225 South Street, Williamstown, MA 01267, United States. For more details: http://www.clarkart.edu , 413-458-2303
ALSO FEATURED IN:Top 50 NARM locations in Massachusetts
28. Cyrus Dallin Art Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryLocation: 611 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington, MA 02474, United States. For more details: http://www.dallin.org , 781-641-0747
29. Davis Museum at Wellesley College
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryDynamic gallery presentations and richly varied temporary exhibitions are designed to engage visitors in looking anew at the visual arts, and enhance the Davis’s role as a vital campus resource for cross-disciplinary teaching and study. There’s always something for everyone at the Davis!
30. Provincetown Art Association and Museum (PAAM)
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryFor over 100 years, the Provincetown Art Association and Museum (PAAM) has continually broken new ground as a community of artists, a museum, a cultural resource, and a school of art. The Provincetown Art Association and Museum is a nationally recognized, year-round cultural institution that fuses the creative energy of America’s oldest active art colony with the natural beauty of outer Cape Cod that has inspired artists for generations.
31. Martha's Vineyard Museum
PEOPLE ARE SAYING:ShiryRecommended this place!
ALSO FEATURED IN:Top 18 places in Massachusetts for History
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