Tacoma Art Museum Programs
Audience Education
- Free Seasonal Community Festivals
Heavily programmed art experiences in which people are introduced or re-introduced to the resources of the Open Art Studio, Art Resource Center, and diverse education and public programs.
- Art Lecture Series
The series features opportunities for visitors to more fully engage with original works of art, interact with living artists, and explore their own creativity.
- Art Access Pass
Art Access passes are available to check out at each of the 26 public libraries in Tacoma and Pierce County, as well as Joint Base Lewis McChord Resource Libraries.
- Free Third Thursdays
The museum is open extended hours (until 8 pm) and offers free admission from 5-8 pm on the third Thursday of each month.
- Open Art Studio
The M J Murdock Charitable Trust Open Art Studio (OAS) allows for both self-guided and artist-led experiences. Stations designed in conjunction with current exhibitions allow visitors to create art using concepts and themes introduced in the works they viewed in the galleries such as printmaking, painting, jewelry making, and more.
School Education
- Youth Connect
In partnership with Tacoma School of the Arts, Youth Connect provides art education in 8-10 elementary school classrooms. High school interns are taught museum education pedagogy, and then implement this training with the elementary school classrooms.
- School Tours
All tours engage an average of 6,000 students annually in active art viewing and discussion in the gallery and hands-on art making in the studio.
- Educator Professional Development
Participants learn how to integrate the teaching and assessment of visual arts into a variety of areas, and classes include practice in interpreting artwork and hands-on studio art lessons.
Recent Successes and Current Challenges
The museum has welcomed over 650,000 visitors since the May 2003 opening of the 50,000 square foot Antoine Predock-designed facility, which doubled the museum’s gallery space and elevated its prominence as a national model for regional museums. The museum is a leader in revitalizing the downtown Tacoma cultural district, and is a strong economic driver in the city. Major nationally traveling exhibitions such as American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell raise the profile of downtown Tacoma as a cultural destination. The museum continues to develop important scholarship on the region’s art history, through its exhibitions, publications, collection, and programs.
As part of the museum’s 2008 Strategic Plan to ensure Tacoma Art Museum remains an extraordinary institution to experience art, in May 2010, the Board of Trustees of Tacoma Art Museum passed a resolution to embark on a $17 million Campaign for Tacoma Art Museum. To be completed by December 2013, the campaign is both an endowment and capital initiative.