Newport Art Museum, RI

Enjoy Art, Architecture and Special Events at the Newport Art Museum, RI

The Newport Art Museum is an impressive attraction you will enjoy visiting on your next trip to Rhode Island. The Museum consists of three buildings located on a 2-acre site in Newport.

The Griswold House is the original home of the Museum. It was designed by architect Richard Morris Hunt in 1862 and completed in 1864. The Griswold House is a National Historic Landmark. Today it houses restored galleries and rooms visitors can tour as well as offices, a children’s art classroom, and the Museum gift shops. The grounds surrounding the Griswold House include a park and sculpture garden. The Griswold House is an architectural attraction as well as an Historic Landmark.

The Cushing Memorial Gallery opened in 1920 as the second Newport Art Association exhibition building. This building differs dramatically from the Griswold House’s Styk Style architecture. It was designed in the American Renaissance style typical of the late 19th century by William Adams Delano. It was built as a memorial for the artist Howard Gardener Cushing.  In 1991, the Nathalie Bailey Morris Gallery was added to the building, as was a new Lobby and a collections storage facility.

You may also tour the Gilbert S. Kahn Building on your visit to the Newport Museum of Art. This is where the Museum’s art school is housed. Courses and workshops are offered here for children and adults throughout the year. There are painting and drawing studios, a darkroom, a ceramics studio and nine potter’s wheels contained within the Gilbert S. Kahn Building.

The Newport Art Museum was created by the Art Association of Newport which was founded in 1912. Since then, the Newport Art Museum and Art Association has developed into an important community resource that features art exhibits, offers classes, and sponsors numerous cultural events.

The collection at the Museum includes historic as well as contemporary works, and particular attention is given to the role New England and Newport artists have played in the history and development of American art.  The works of local and regional artists are frequently showcased at the Newport Art Museum.
   
You will see a variety of types of artwork at the Newport Art Museum galleries. Art from the Museum’s permanent collection, private collections, and other museums is displayed in themed exhibits.

The work of artists such as Fitz Henry Lane, William Trost Richards, John La Farge, Gilbert Stuart and Catharine Morris Wright among many others is featured in the Museum’s collections. Contemporary art by Dale Chihuly, Robert Hamita, James Baker and Joseph Norman is also included within the Newport Art Museum’s collection.

Some of the special events and programs held at the Newport Art Museum include Lunch with the Artist discussions, gallery nights and opening receptions and summertime musical performances.