Canton Museum of Art (Ohio) facts for kids

The Canton Museum of Art is a special place in Canton, Ohio. It was started in 1935 to share and celebrate art in the community. Its main goal is to collect and protect beautiful art pieces for everyone to enjoy.

The museum began by buying art from local artists. Many of its collections show the amazing work of artists from the Canton area. People and companies also gave their own art collections to the museum. This helped the museum grow its collection.

The museum wants to show art to everyone and keep local history alive. For a long time, buying art from local artists and accepting gifts were the main ways the collection grew. In 1970, the museum moved to the Cultural Center for the Arts. At that time, the museum's leaders decided to focus on a more specific type of art. A big gift of American art from Ralph L. Wilson in the 1970s helped them start focusing on American artists from the 1800s and 1900s.

History of the Museum

The Canton Museum of Art started as the Little Civic Art Gallery in the Canton Public Library in 1935. A year later, it became known as the Canton Art Institute. In the late 1930s, it had many art shows and educational programs.

In its early years (1935–1945), the museum was mostly a place for local artists to show their work and meet. Collecting art was not the main goal back then. In 1941, a building called the Case Mansion was given to the Institute. It was fixed up and became the museum's new home.

For the next 30 years, the Canton Art Institute was a central spot for arts in Canton. It supported other art groups like the Canton Fine Arts Associates. It also provided space for the Canton Symphony, the Madrigal Singers, and other music and theater groups.

New Focus and Growth

In 1970, all the arts groups in Canton moved to the Cultural Center for the Arts. The Institute then started more art shows and classes. New learning programs, like the Humanities program with Canton City Schools, began. New groups like the Museum Guild and the Potter's Guild were also formed.

In the 1980s, the museum's leaders decided to make its goals clearer. By 1989, they chose a special focus for the art collection. They would collect American art on paper from the 1800s and 1900s. They also decided to collect American ceramics from the 1950s onward.

During the 1980s, the museum had interesting shows, including one about Goya and two about Ohio's quilts. They also celebrated the 100th birthday of the Statue of Liberty. In the 1990s, the museum showed many different exhibits. One special exhibit in 1992, "Ultra-Realistic Sculpture by Mark Sijan," even traveled to other museums across the country. The museum also started Outreach programs and Art Experience Days for learning.

In 1995, the museum turned 60 years old and changed its name to The Canton Museum of Art. In 1997-98, it had its most popular exhibit ever, "Norman Rockwell’s America." It also hosted a traveling show from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum called "The Nazi Olympics—Berlin 1936." In 2004, over 12,000 people visited to see the famous "Andrew Wyeth: The Helga Pictures" exhibit.

What You Can See and Do

The Canton Museum of Art usually has 12 to 15 different art shows each year. Often, a big main exhibit is shown with two smaller exhibits by local artists. There are also shows of art from the museum's own collection, often based on a special theme. These shows might include art by important American, European, and local artists.

Student Art and Community Events

Once a year, the museum sets aside space to show art made by high school students from Canton and Stark County. These student shows are judged, and scholarships are given for college and for art classes at the museum.

Groups connected to the museum hold two fun events each year to raise money. The "Antiques in Canton" Show & Sale brings in a famous expert to talk about antiques. The "Christkindl Market" is an art and craft show where over 100 artists from all over the country sell their handmade items.

Learning and Education

The museum's Education Department offers art classes and workshops for everyone. Their Outreach programs take the museum's lessons to libraries, schools, and even a special school for students with behavioral needs. Students can also take guided tours of the exhibits. They can also join "art experience days" to do hands-on art projects.

For more than 20 years, the Canton City school district has offered special Humanities classes to its students right at the museum. Kent State University's Stark Campus also holds its ceramic classes in the museum's Pot Shop. The museum is also a regular meeting place for many community groups, like the Rotary Club and the Canton Garden Club.

The Museum's Art Collection

The Canton Museum of Art has a special art collection. It focuses on American art on paper from the 1800s, 1900s, and 2000s. It also collects modern American ceramics from 1950 onward. The main types of art in the collection are American drawings, watercolors, prints, and ceramics. This focus is unique among museums in northeast Ohio.

Key Artworks and Artists

The collection grew a lot when Ralph L. Wilson gave his collection of watercolors and drawings in the 1970s. This gift included works by famous artists like Burchfield, Demuth, Feininger, Henri, and Marin. The museum also bought more watercolors by artists such as Thomas Hart Benton, Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper, and John Singer Sargent.

The print collection has works by artists like Romare Bearden, Thomas Hart Benton, Alexander Calder, Mary Cassatt, and Andy Warhol.

The focus on modern ceramics from 1950 onward is special for the museum. Ohio has a history of making decorative pottery like Roseville and Rookwood. The museum continues this interest by collecting modern ceramic art. The collection includes works by Jack Earl, Maija Grotell, Marilyn Levine, and Toshiko Takaezu. In recent years, the collection has grown with gifts and purchases of works by Ken Ferguson, Karen Karnes, and Don Reitz.

Since 1992, the museum has bought more watercolors by artists like Oscar Bluemner, Carolyn Brady, and George Luks. The ceramic collection also grew with purchases of works by Brother Thomas Bezanson, Roberta Laidman, and Victor Spinski. The museum also received gifts of works by Don Pilcher and Don Reitz.

The museum's permanent collection is the base for its art shows. It is used in ongoing exhibits. It also forms the core of special exhibits that include art borrowed from other museums.