Pensacola Museum of Art

The Pensacola Museum of Art is the only art museum in the city of Pensacola, Florida. It was founded in 1954 by a group of women from the American Association of University Women. Since 2016, it is a University of West Florida Art Museum.[1][2]

Pensacola Museum of Art
Pensacola Museum of Art is located in Florida
Pensacola Museum of Art
Map of Florida
Established1954
LocationPensacola, Florida
Coordinates30.40837°N 87.21335°W / 30.40837; -87.21335
Websitepensacolamuseum.org

History

In 1906, the City of Pensacola built a two-story building to hold its first permanent jail. In 1954, due to a growing population, the city decided to build a new structure and vacate the original jail. The Pensacola Art Association (PAA), formed by members of the American Association of University Women in 1954, leased the building from the city.[3]

The structure itself was suitable for an arts center because the jail was already fireproof, secure and centrally located in Pensacola’s Historic Downtown District. The City allowed the group to lease the old jail for $1 per year. The PAA turned the jail cells into exhibition spaces. The PAA became the Pensacola Museum of Art in 1982 and in 1988 the Museum purchased the building.[3]

Collections

Establishment of the Museum’s permanent collection began soon after incorporation in 1954.

The museum's permanent collections focus on 20th century, modern and contemporary art, including painting, sculpture and works on paper. The museum also features decorative arts collections of European and American glass and African tribal art.

The collection contains 20th and 21st century works by artists such as Alexander Calder, Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Leonard Baskin, Salvador Dalí, Thomas Hart Benton, Louis Comfort Tiffany and Käthe Kollwitz. Other artists in the collection include John Marin, Miriam Schapiro, Fairfield Porter, Hunt Slonem, Alex Katz, Lynda Benglis, Milton Avery and Alexander Calder.

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pensacola Museum of Art.
  1. Thomas St. Myer UWF to take ownership of Pensacola Museum of Art Pensacola News Journal June 15, 2016
  2. "University of West Florida Department of Art". Archived from the original on 2019-10-23. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  3. "History". Pensacola Museum of Art. Retrieved 2022-03-20.


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