Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art facts for kids
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| Established | 1994 |
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| Location | 4420 Warwick Boulevard, Kansas City, Missouri, United States |
| Type | Art museum |
The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art is a cool place in Kansas City, Missouri, that shows modern art. It first opened its doors in 1994. This museum is Missouri's first and biggest museum dedicated to contemporary art. About 75,000 people visit it every year!
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Who Started the Kemper Museum?
The main part of the museum's art collection came from a special gift. This gift was from the museum's founders, Bebe and R. Crosby Kemper Jr.. In May 2013, the Kempers decided to step down from the museum's board of trustees. Their daughter, Mary Kemper Wolf, then became the new chairman of the board. R. Crosby Kemper Jr. passed away in 2014.
What Kind of Art Can You See?
The Kemper Museum has a huge collection of over 1,400 artworks. These pieces were created after 1913, right up to today's artists. You can see art by famous names like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, and Georgia O'Keeffe. Other artists include David Hockney, Dale Chihuly, and Louise Bourgeois.
The museum also received 15 artworks in 2000 from the collection of Peter Norton. These included pieces by the photographer Nan Goldin. Besides its permanent collection, the museum often has new art shows. Each year, it puts on about 10 to 12 special exhibitions in its galleries.
A Story About Some Paintings
When the museum first opened in 1994, it showed a rare group of 28 watercolors by Georgia O'Keeffe. These were called the "Canyon Suite." They had never been shown together in public before.
Later, in 1999, some people questioned if the paintings were truly authentic. This was because the type of paper used for some of them wasn't available in the United States when O'Keeffe was teaching art in Canyon, Texas. Because of this, the "Canyon Suite" was not included in the official list of O'Keeffe's works. The gallery that sold them to the museum even refunded the money.
The Museum's Building Design
The Kemper Museum building is made of concrete, steel, and glass. It covers 23,200 square feet. The building was designed by architect Gunnar Birkerts and was built between 1992 and 1994. It cost about $6.6 million to build.
The museum has a large open space in the middle called an atrium. This atrium has a special skylight that lets in lots of natural light. Two wings stretch out from the sides of this central area. The main gallery in one wing hosts three big art shows each year. Smaller galleries show different works from the museum's permanent collection. You can always find art on display in the atrium and the hallways too.
Cafe Sebastienne: Art and Food
Inside the museum, you'll find Café Sebastienne. It's a place where you can enjoy both modern art and tasty food. The dining area is special because it has 110 paintings by the famous African-American artist Frederick J. Brown. These paintings are all part of a collection called "The History of Art." The restaurant was named after his daughter, Sebastienne Nicole Brown.
