Carnegie Museum of Art facts for kids
Exterior view of the Sarah Mellon Scaife Gallery
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| Former name | Department of Fine Arts, Carnegie Institute |
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| Established | November 5, 1895 |
| Location | 4400 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 |
| Type | Art museum |
| Accreditation | American Alliance of Museums |
| Nearest car park | On site and street |
The Carnegie Museum of Art is a famous art museum located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It's a great place to explore different kinds of art!
This museum first opened its doors on November 5, 1895. Back then, it was part of the Carnegie Institute. Over the years, the museum grew much bigger. A new building was added in 1907. In 1986, its name officially became the "Carnegie Museum of Art." This showed it was one of the four Carnegie Museums in the city.
Contents
History of the Carnegie Museum of Art
How the Museum Started
The idea for the museum came from Andrew Carnegie in 1886. He wanted a place to keep a "record of the progress and development of pictorial art in America." The art gallery first opened on November 5, 1895. It was inside the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh's main building.
Carnegie hoped the museum would collect art from the "Old Masters of tomorrow." This meant he wanted to show new and important artists. The museum got a big expansion in 1907. New areas like the Hall of Architecture and Hall of Sculpture were added. Andrew Carnegie also provided money for these additions.
Growing Bigger: The Scaife Gallery
In 1974, the museum got even larger with the Sarah Mellon Scaife Gallery. This new part was designed by architect Edward Larrabee Barnes. It more than doubled the museum's space for showing art. It also added a special studio for children, a theater, a café, and a bookstore. An art critic from The New York Times called it an "unflawed paradise." The gallery has been updated several times, most recently in 2004.
Today, the museum also hosts a special art show called the Carnegie International. This show happens every few years. Many important artworks from these shows have become part of the museum's permanent collection. These include The Wreck (1896) by Winslow Homer and Arrangement in Black: Portrait of Señor Pablo de Sarasate (1884) by James A. McNeill Whistler.
What You Can See: Collections and Departments
The museum has many different types of art. Its collections include:
- Contemporary Art
- Works on Paper (like drawings and prints)
- Decorative Arts (beautiful objects like furniture)
- Architecture
- Photography
Every year, the museum puts on about 15 different exhibitions. Its permanent collection has around 35,000 pieces. These include paintings, sculptures, and installations from the late 1600s to today. The museum is especially known for its collections of aluminum objects and chairs. About 1,800 artworks are on display at any time.
The museum also has a large collection of old photos. These are negatives from the famous African American photographer Charles "Teenie" Harris.
Heinz Architectural Center
This center focuses on architecture. It has works related to buildings, landscape design, and even furniture. The center has a large exhibition space and a library with thousands of books about architecture.
The Hillman Photography Initiative
This program explores photography in new ways. It hosts live public events, online projects, videos, and art projects. A group of five "agents" plans the projects for each year.
Special Collection Themes
The museum organizes its collections around interesting themes:
- Contemporary Glass
- Teenie Harris Photographs: Erroll Garner and Jazz from the Hill
- Carnegie International
- Japanese Prints
- Pittsburgh Artists
- The Art of the Chair
- Pictorialist Photography
- Painting and Sculpture 1860–1920
- W. Eugene Smith
Exploring the Galleries
The Carnegie Museum of Art has several amazing galleries to explore:
- Ailsa Mellon Bruce Galleries (1907): These galleries show American and European decorative arts. You can see beautiful objects from the 1700s to modern times.
- Hall of Architecture (1907): This hall is truly unique! It holds almost 140 full-size plaster casts. These are copies of parts of famous buildings from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. You can also see casts from medieval and Renaissance Europe. It's one of the biggest collections of architectural plaster casts in the world!
- Hall of Sculpture (1907): This hall was designed to look like the inside of the ancient Greek Parthenon temple. It used to hold plaster casts of ancient sculptures. Today, it displays works from the museum's permanent collection. You can also see decorative art objects on its balcony.
- Heinz Architectural Center (1993): This area is dedicated to architectural drawings and models. It's a great place to learn about how buildings are designed.
- Scaife Galleries (1974): These galleries show the main permanent collection of the museum. Here you'll find paintings, sculptures, drawings, films, and video art.
- Forum Gallery: This single room is for temporary exhibitions of modern art. It opened in 1990. The idea was to always have a new contemporary art show for visitors to enjoy.
Educational Programs
The Carnegie Museum of Art has offered Saturday art classes for over 75 years. These classes take place right in the museum galleries! Famous artists like Andy Warhol and Philip Pearlstein took these classes when they were young. The museum has different classes for various age groups, so there's something for everyone.
Gallery
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Bronze ritualistic vessel, 1300-1150 BCE, Shang Dynasty, China
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Housepost, c. 1930s, Yoruba culture, Africa
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Ancient Greco-Roman vase
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Casket for relics of a saint (châsse), 13th century, French
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Ivory portable altar, 14th century, French
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Armour, with Helmet, c. 1555, by Anton Peffenhauser
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View of the Great Fire of Pittsburgh, 1846, oil on canvas, by William Coventry Wall
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Farallon Island, 1887, oil on canvas, by Albert Bierstadt
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Wheat Fields After the Rain (The Plain of Auvers), 1890, oil on canvas, by Vincent van Gogh
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Place des Lices, 1893, oil on canvas, by Paul Signac
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Steamboat on the Ohio, 1896, oil on canvas, by Thomas Pollock Anshutz
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Water Lilies (Nymphéas), 1915–1926, oil on canvas, by Claude Monet
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Miniature room box on display, Ruth McChesney
Past Directors
- John W. Beaty (1896–1921)
- Homer Saint-Gaudens (1922–1950)
- Gordon Bailey Washburn (1950–1962)
- Gustave Von Groschwitz (1963–1968)
- Leon Arkus (1968–1980)
- John R. Lane (1980–1987)
- Phillip M. Johnston (1988–1996)
- Richard Armstrong (1996–2008)
- Lynn Zelevansky (2009–2017)
- Eric Crosby (2018–present)
See also
In Spanish: Museo de Arte Carnegie para niños
- Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh
- Homer Saint-Gaudens
- Frick Art & Historical Center
- List of museums in Pennsylvania
- List of largest art museums
- Sally Dixon
