The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is celebrating 100 years since it first opened its doors in April 1924. Whether you’re there for happy hour, free Thursdays, a new exhibition, or to watch a movie, the museum is a well-known art oasis for Houstonians. To celebrate their centennial anniversary, museum members can go on architecture tours on Saturdays in April. The museum will also host a free Spring Festival on Sunday, April 21. Let’s learn more about the oldest art museum in the state.
The Bright Idea
Emma Richardson Cherry and a group of women established the Public School Art League in 1900, which pushed for art and culture engagement in public schools. The group also hosted art classes, lectures, and exhibitions in the Scanlan building downtown. The organization was renamed Houston Art League in 1913 and members began their push to establish a public art museum. Hermann estate trustees donated a plot of land at South Main and Montrose for the museum, which opened to the public on April 12, 1924.
The Museum Expands
At first, the museum mainly showcased local artists. It also offered classes in painting, sculpture, and other works starting in 1927. When Le Malone became the museum’s first full-time director in 1954, he started showcasing works from across the country and abroad. Ima Hogg, known as the “First Lady of Texas,” donated her mansion and collection of American paintings and decorative arts to the museum in 1957. Her donation is one of the most recognizable museum sites today, Bayou Bend. James Johnson Sweeney, former director of the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, also revolutionized the museum. He was known for his dramatic installations, constructing a pool outdoors to showcase a Picasso exhibit. He also expanded the museum’s collection of modern and non-European art. In the 1970s and 1980s, the museum added the 41,000 square-foot Glassell School of Art and the Sculpture Garden. The museum collected more than 20,000 works of art by the end of the 1980s.
The Museum Today
The museum remains a place dedicated to showcasing international art with current special exhibits focusing on work from French and Norwegian artists. There are two other exhibits that pay homage to the African-American experience, including “Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage” and “Kehinde Wiley: An Archaeology of Silence.” on view until May. Finally, mark your calendar because every Thursday the museum has free admission and stays open late until 9 p.m.
Also, here are ways to watch movies at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston 🎥
